Wash Fuller and Naomi Vargas love a lighthouse. It’s a beacon of hope that persists stronger than any of the mounting social pressure facing them, more forceful than the waves beating down at home, willing to crush them in one foul swoop. It’s a glimmer of hope at what life could be together. In 1937 East Texas though, it's simply not a matter of mere love. There's a complex racial caste system to jump through with stumbling blocks meant to trip them up at every twist. Set against the backdrop of the deadliest school explosion in our country’s history, Ashley Hope Péreztells a story of segregation, family and a love worth even the direst consequences.

I've been told by people who actually get their noses out of books that there is this thing called Instagram, a social media app where there's a popular hashtag floating around called #relationship goals. Well, Ashley Hope Pérezis my #writing goal. In all seriousness though, this woman can WRITE! Even after closing the final page of OUT OF DARKNESS,I was astonished by the way she could weave such delicate prose out of seemingly nothing,and as anyone who knows me would tell you, poetic writing is like chicken soup for my soul. There was many an instance where I would read a page only to immediately flip back to it so I could place a sticky note there for further analysis and dissection.

That leads me to the other thing about her writing; it made me look deeper into hidden metaphors and the subtle meaning behind her clever wordplay to uncover the layers of grit that surround the core of the story. Literary Eye-spy would be the only way I could describe it, with the reader constantly looking to uncover little nuggets of gold that really capture the essence of the book.  This creates a very rich reading atmosphere where it feels like as soon as you open the dustjacket, you’re immediately catapulted into a world just as layered and diverse as our own, where some new dimension is always waiting undiscovered.

"It feels like as soon as you open the dustjacket, you’re immediately catapulted into a world just as layered and diverse as our own, where some new dimension is always waiting undiscovered… If there’s one book you read this year, let this one be it."

Be forewarned, though --- Pérezno way shies away from tough subjects, and thus OUT OF DARKNESS is not for the faint of heart. She handles these delicate issues with sensitivity though, in a way that makes a reader think outside their comfort zone. There are so many analogies I could use to explain Pérezand her wordsmith talent, none of which would fully do her justice, but the one I feel best captures her gift compares her to a spider. Out of nothing she slowly builds a story, with each strand slowly tying together and becoming more intricately wound with time, until finally she ensnares us hook, line and sinker in her masterpiece of words.

As I mentioned in the intro, at its core, OUT OF DARKNESS is a story of love in all its forms. Not just Wash and Naomi's romance, but sibling tenderness as well. This love fuels character development, builds conflict and adds a dynamic layer to our relationship with the book.  Most importantly though, it made me care. Call me a softie, but after reading just a few of the many little ways Naomi fills a maternal role for her siblings, my heart grew three sizes. After that, the thought of Naomi being ripped away from Beto and Cari filled me with genuine heartache.

Wash and Naomi's relationship is precious as well. The way they bring each other out of their cocoons and thaw the ice in their respective hearts makes the ticking time bomb of their relationship all the more apparent and agonizing. The best love stories are always shrouded by a cloak of darkness, it seems, where the cruelty in others’ hearts overpowers the good in our heroes. So, can Wash and Naomi join the ranks of 21st century greats like Jack and Rose, Noah and Allie and Eleanor and Park? I think so.

After savoring every bit of OUT OF DARKNESS I have a feeling my library card will have a lot more check-outs featuring Ashley Hope Pérezin the coming months. Actually, scratch that. I’ll be heading straight to Amazon to purchase them so I can dog-ear my favorite pages, scribble in the margins and use an array of post-it notes to mark my favorite passages. If there’s one book you read this year, let this one be it.