BE READY FOR THE LIGHTNING

From an acclaimed emerging talent, whose debut was a national bestseller, comes a suspenseful, poignant and provocative tale about violence, sibling love, friendship and heroism, all told through the lens of a young woman trapped on a hijacked bus—disturbing, tender and darkly funny, this family story calls to mind When God Was a Rabbit, Jodi Picoult and The Language of Flowers

On the surface, Veda's life in Vancouver seems to be going just fine—nearly 30, she has a caring family, lifelong friends and a good job as an audiologist. But beneath it all a dead-end romantic relationship lingers and a stifling commitment to watch out for her vulnerable, violence-prone brother, Conrad, has left her feeling adrift and detached from her own life.
When Veda is injured as a bystander during one of Conrad's many fights, she knows it's time to leave Vancouver for a fresh start. She heads to New York; staying in the cozy Manhattan apartment of old friends Al and Sunny, exploring the city, she's begun to feel like a normal person, a tourist—until one day the uptown bus she's on is hijacked by a sweet-faced, gun-toting blonde man named Peter.
He instructs Veda and the other passengers to spray-paint the bus windows black, and what ensues is a gripping and unpredictable hostage situation, the outcome of which will make Veda question everything she knows about herself.
Told with powerful immediacy and warmth, at once unsettling and engrossing, Be Ready for the Lightning is a story of violence, its attractions and repulsions; of love, loyalty and friendship; and of a young woman finding a well of courage she didn't know she had.