Pet

by Akwaeke Emezi, Carla Bataller Estruch · 2019

In the city of Lucille, children are taught that monsters are a thing of the past. Jam, raised by loving parents and her best friend Redemption, believes this until a creature of horns, colors, and claws steps out of her mother’s painting, alive with a drop of Jam’s own blood. The being calls itself Pet and declares it is here to hunt a monster—one that lurks hidden in Redemption’s home and in the very fabric of the society that refuses to see it. As Jam confronts the unsettling truth, she must decide whether to protect her friend, expose the denial around her, and find a way to save a world that refuses to acknowledge its own darkness. Akwaeke Emezi’s genre‑defying debut weaves identity, justice, and bravery into a riveting young‑adult tale that asks: how do you fight monsters when no one admits they exist?