We: A YA Dystopian Novel by the Author of a Winter's Promise

★ "Demanding, unsettling, and deeply rewarding."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

★ "Kaleidoscopic...exquisite...inventive. Philip Pullman fans should take note."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Deluxe hardcover edition with spot gloss and sprayed edges

From the prize-winning author of the Mirror Visitor quartet comes a standalone YA dystopian novel set in a world where every life is assigned a purpose--and no one is free to question it.

In a world ruled by "We" each person has a role, a direction, a mission assigned by their Instinct. No deviation. No freedom--Instinct is irrepressible and serves the Collective. But if young Goliath, a shattered Protector, saves lives, it's also because he dreams of becoming a Saint. And Claire, hiding behind her Instinct as a Confidant, bears a secret that could shake the entire system.

When some students begin disappearing into silence, Claire and Goliath find themselves questioning everything. Determined to uncover the truth, they follow forbidden trails, escape a murderous Archangel, and discover that "We" is not at all what it seems. The Instinctive Bureaucracy is impenetrable, and the detractors of the Collective work in the shadows, but one thing connects them all: their certainties are about to be shattered.

Christelle Dabos was born on the Côte d'Azur in 1980 and grew up in a home filled with classical music and historical games. She now lives in Belgium.  A Winter's Promise, her debut novel, won the Gallimard Jeunesse-RTL-Télérama First Novel Competition in France, and was named a Best Book of the Year by critics and publications in the US, including  Entertainment Weekly,  Bustle,  Publishers Weekly, and  Chicago Review of Books.  A Winter's Promise was named the #1 Sci-Fi/Fantasy title of the year by the editors of the Amazon Book Review.


Hildegarde Serle graduated from Oxford University. After working as a newspaper subeditor in London, she obtained the Chartered Institute of Linguists Diploma in Translation. She is the translator of the  Mirror Visitor series.