From New York Times bestselling author Lauren Oliver comes an extraordinary novel of fear, friendship, courage, and hope.
Panic began as so many things do in Carp, a dead-end town of twelve thousand people in the middle of nowhere: because it was summer, and there was nothing else to do.
Heather never thought she would compete in Panic, a legendary game played by graduating seniors, where the stakes are high and the payoff is even higher. She'd never thought of herself as fearless, the kind of person who would fight to stand out. But when she finds something, and someone, to fight for, she will discover that she is braver than she ever thought.
Dodge has never been afraid of Panic. His secret will fuel him, and get him all the way through the game; he's sure of it. But what he doesn't know is that he's not the only one with a secret. Everyone has something to play for.
For Heather and Dodge, the game will bring new alliances, unexpected revelations, and the possibility of first love for each of them - and the knowledge that sometimes the very things we fear are those we need the most.
Already optioned by Universal Pictures in a major deal, this gritty, spellbinding novel captures both the raw energy of fear mixed with excitement as well as the aching need to find a place to belong.
"Starred Review. Oliver makes a white-knuckle return to realism that will have readers up until the wee hours." - Kirkus
"Oliver brings a high-concept, high-stakes conceit to Main Street USA, and the result is as uncomfortable as it is thrilling. Ages 14up." - Publishers Weekly
"Oliver's novel is a wholly believable and compulsively readable tale of friendship, loyalty, survival, and courage." - Booklist
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Lauren Oliver is the author of the New York Times bestseller Before I Fall, a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year. Her thrilling second novel, Delirium, debuted on the New York Times bestseller list and is the first book in a trilogy. The second volume is Pandemonium (March 2012). Oliver is also the author of a luminous novel for younger readers, Liesl & Po.
A graduate of the University of Chicago and the MFA program at New York University, Lauren is now a full-time writer and lives in Brooklyn, New York.
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