The Afterdark

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Author(s)

E. Latimer

Publisher

Tundra Books

Genre(s)

Age Range

14+

Release Date

January 07, 2025

ISBN

978-1774882245

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Queer horror at a boarding school with a Lovecraftian twist in this new YA novel from E. Latimer, author of the acclaimed The Strange and Deadly Portraits of Bryony Gray.

Northcroft is an elite boarding school with a deadly secret. Each night as the bell tolls and the shutters slam down, cutting off the outside world, the Afterdark descends, turning the surrounding old growth forest into a macabre copy of itself. A negative photograph crawling with horrors.

Evie Laurent is certain of one thing from the moment she sees Holland Morgan on the front steps of Northcroft: she wants to know everything there is to know about her. But there are some things about Evie herself that are better kept secret. Especially the fact that she let her sister drown. And that it's getting harder to ignore her dark impulses . . .

Holland Morgan knows falling for Evie is just one more terrible choice in her long history of terrible choices. The problem is, she's not sure she cares.

As attraction turns slowly to obsession, they find themselves playing a dangerous game. Something out there is calling to each of them. Beckoning to the shadows within.

Do they fight the call and protect one another, or answer and embrace the darkness?

Editor review

1 review

Dark YA Novel Tinged with Secrets and Romance

April 28, 2026 (Updated: July 12, 2026)

Overall rating

4.7

Plot

5.0

Characters

4.0

Writing Style

5.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

THE AFTERDARK is a young adult horror novel set in a boarding school. After the death of her sister, Evie is sent to the school that her father works at. She’s got plenty of secrets she’s trying to hide, but it becomes harder when she sees Holland Morgan, her crush of years. Holland knows that spending time with Evie is dangerous, but she can’t help herself.

E. Latimer writes both Holland and Evie as very complex characters. Both are haunted by their pasts and putting them together is a recipe for disaster, but something keeps drawing them together. Their relationship turns from attraction to something darker and more dangerous. Depending on your definition, it may be considered a toxic relationship. I thought it was obsessive, but not quite to the point of toxicity.

The book is told from both Evie and Holland’s POV. This gives readers a better look at their emotions as well as what is going on at Northcroft. Evie is a newcomer, but Holland isn’t; so, the two of them aren’t experiencing Northcroft in the same way. It’s fun to get to see how both of them approach the mysteries of Northcroft.

Northcroft manages to be a perfectly gothic atmosphere for this book. It seems like a regular boarding school by day, but at night it becomes something twisted. Drowned in darkness and secrets, it feels grotesque and haunting. The woods add to the creepiness of the setting as well. The entire thing provides a perfect backdrop to the story; adding to the tension and suspense of the book.

The pacing of this book is fairly solid, with a couple of moments that don’t quite seem to match. The first chapter alone had me pulled into the story and the deeper they explored into the mysteries, the more I was drawn in. There’s a sense of urgency and danger in the pacing, a present threat that drives the plot and the characters forward.

THE AFTERDARK is a dark and haunting YA horror with a side of romance. The setting creates a gothic atmosphere that perfectly reflects the dark secrets that both the school and the characters are hiding.