The Night Highway follows the journey of four siblings who have been isolated all their lives because of a supernatural condition, but now must journey across America to uncover the truth of their past.
Seventeen-year-old twins Poe and Shelley Carpenter live happily with their brother and sister on an isolated estate. They act like normal teenagers, binge watching Netflix and connecting with friends online. But they have to wear gloves, hoods and masks because anyone who sees their skin immediately dies. For everyone’s safety, they are forbidden from leaving their adopted father’s property. However, Shelley dreams of forming a band and traveling the world, while Poe has a secret online girlfriend named Carmen. After their father suddenly passes away, the four teens find themselves lost in a world that misunderstands them. Their best hope for survival is to reach the man who left them with their father years ago. With Carmen’s help they embark on a road trip across America. Along the way they encounter a sadistic sheriff and a town that tries to burn them for being demons, all the while discovering that their father knew more about their past than he let on. Shelley and Poe are determined to protect their siblings, who are brilliant but naïve, and find a home where they will all be safe, but ultimately they must face what is under their masks. Are they actually demons or angels in disguise?
THE NIGHT HIGHWAY is complete at 89,000 words and will appeal to readers interested in characters who struggle with identity and isolation and are searching to create a community. Imagine if the dysfunctional family from Umbrella Academy had the deadly powers of the creatures in Josh Malerman’s Birdbox.