Under redwoods older than empires, 11-year-old Shree’s dreams are sinking fast. Power is down, food has run out, and a river of mud has erased the only road of escape. Shree is alone with her father. Her father, who is hiding the worst of a growing storm. As the rains fall and a chorus of voices torments him, whispers begin urging Tony to kill his daughter. Wendy and Shree first bonded over the pain of dysfunctional families. Yet when Shree runs away from her angry, lying mother and disappears with her mythical father, Wendy is left alone to face her tormentors. Can a mysterious envelope from far away shield her from her abusive brother or the venom of her classmates? Will their secret letters be enough? Part descent into psychosis, part ode to friendship, Will’s Wake is a coming-of-age novel that asks if two children can untangle emotions and intentions to rescue each other when those they should look up to fall short. WARNING : Despite the two main characters being tweens, this novel is not aimed at children, as it wrestles with the nightmare of psychosis, drug use, suicide, and other mature topics. "A Stunning Debut from Timothy Dreszer. Imaginative and bold, with an emotionally charged narrative stressing the importance of early life relationships. Was captivated the entire time!" - Laura Franklin "This genre-bending novel is both a poignant coming-of-age tale and one that has unforeseen dark twists and turns. A very exciting read from a new and emerging author!" - April Mcilwaine "Will's Wake is haunting and beautifully written. It captures what it's like to grow up surrounded by chaos and still find hope and friendship." - Emily Humy Timothy Dreszer grew up in Houston, within NASA's pious penumbra. At seven, he endured mundane family trauma when his parents divorced and he was forced to live with his mother against his will. By his twenties, when his brother was diagnosed with schizophrenia, Tim learned to appreciate the poetic humor in his own 'tortured' life. Escaping family and suffocating humidity, he found refuge in the redwoods on the edge of the Pacific and distraction in nature, science, and engineering. This led from psychology to biology to bioinformatics via degrees and a career along the way. While his head was occupied with writing code and scientific papers, his heart was beating stories colored by complicating human emotion. Though he anticipated living alone with a cat, his wife and two adult children have rescued him from that ascetic fate. Presently he's most likely riding his bike with no hands near the ocean.