“This brilliant portrayal of the lives of expats and their servants is also a suspenseful mystery with ever-darkening twists. For fans of A Little Life and The Goldfinch.” --People, Book of the Week

WCBS Avallon grab.png

Starred Publishers Weekly Review
A January 2021 Indie Next Pick
People Book of the Week
Real Simple Best Books of 2021
New York Post Best Books of 2021
Barnes&Noble Monthly Fiction Pick
Parade “Best 2021 Releases to Read This Winter”
New York Post “The Best New Books to Read”
The Modern Mrs. Darcy: “The New And the Notable”
a Book Reporter Bets on” selection
Betches: 27 Books to Read in 2021
Crime Reads:5 Psychological Thrillers You Should Read This January
Book Bites: Girlboss Picks
Hasty Book List featured book
Book Passage: Elaine and Luisa’s Picks for Winter 2021
Book Picks The Roundtable, WAMC Jan 26, 2021
The What Best Fiction List 2021

An immersive, powerful story set in Bangkok in 1972 and Washington, DC, in 2019 about an expatriate child who goes missing, whose family is contacted decades later by a man claiming to be the vanished boy.

“Superb . . . Schwarz is a remarkable storyteller. . . [This] stellar work is riveting.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“A delicious hybrid of mystery, drama, and elegance” —Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Spark of Light and Small Great Things

"Exquisite and memorable writing” —Lisa SeeNew York Times bestselling author of The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane

“Gripping . . . A richly imagined page-turner that delivers twists alongside thought-provoking commentary.” - Kirkus Reviews

“Immersive, profoundly moving, and gorgeously told” — Laura Sims, author of Looker