{"product_id":"seek-immediate-shelter","title":"Seek Immediate Shelter","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA Most Anticipated Book (\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Millions, CrimeReads, WBUR, Los Angeles Daily News, Orange County Register, Our Culture\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e) \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Achingly tender, invoking sympathy for even the most selfish of characters, Vincent Yu's triumphant debut asks can any of us really know who we are and what we truly value until it's a matter of life or death?\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--WBUR\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Residents of an Asian American community in Western Massachusetts respond in consequential ways to a false alert of a 'ballistic missile threat' in Yu's resonant debut.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eThe Millions \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Recommended for readers who enjoy deep character exploration and moral complexity. \n\u003cbr\u003eA great choice for book clubs to ponder what they would do in a similar situation.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal \u003c\/i\u003e(starred review)\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"The novel twists and turns into the private and public lives of the characters, offering a quirky, often funny, and sharply rendered peek into small-town life and the moments, large and small, that ripple out beyond our horizon of perception...A quietly profound debut that asks what we would really do if we believed we would die within the next few seconds.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eKirkus \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Resonant...Yu handily juggles and resolves the many story lines, exploring the ripple effects of snap decisions and fully developing his characters as they face various consequences. Reminiscent of the \n\u003ci\u003eTwilight Zone\u003c\/i\u003e episode 'The Shelter, ' this layered novel pays dividends.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Surprising...Secrets surface, regrets sharpen, and long-avoided truths demand to be spoken...A character-driven story that asks two simple but unsettling questions, If you believed the world was ending, who would you become in those final minutes? and how would you live afterward, if you were given the chance?\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Propulsive and poetic, Vincent Yu's \n\u003ci\u003eSeek Immediate Shelter\u003c\/i\u003e explodes with characters at once sad and lonely, fierce and funny, selfish and selfless, all mirroring missiles themselves as they hurtle toward the consequences of their choices in the wake of a false missile alarm. This is a book that asks not so much what it means to be human, but to be a person \n\u003cb\u003e--\u003c\/b\u003efoibles, shame, desire, gluttony, and all. A masterful debut.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eJenny Tinghui Zhang, author of \u003ci\u003eFour Treasures of the Sky \u003c\/i\u003eand\u003ci\u003e Superfan\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\"Vincent Yu is a writer of incredible grace and insight who understands that the best fiction is about trusting characters to reveal themselves under the right pressure. In \n\u003ci\u003eSeek Immediate \u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003ci\u003eShelter\u003c\/i\u003e, a single miscommunication shocks a community and shakes up the habitual lives of its myriad inhabitants, revealing both their individual stories and their shared humanity. It is a profound work about connection and disconnection that left me reeling and wanting more. A daring, prodigious debut.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--Brian Castleberry, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Californians\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eNine Shiny Objects \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Compelling and cinematic . . . In the face of mutually assured destruction, given the choice to reach for grace and mercy or to hold on to hate and fear, can we forgive each other for what's been said and done when the world doesn't end? Yu's vivid and beautiful descriptions of these 'difficult to like but easy to empathize with' characters display the skillfulness of this storyteller in full force.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--Abraham Chang, author of \u003ci\u003e888 Love and the Divine Burden of Numbers\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Can we ever really change our lives? Vincent Yu's intriguing novel, exploring a wonderful array of responses to a terrifying moment, examines the many and varied ways we confront the possibilities of transformation within the confines of our familial bonds.\" \n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e--Andrea Barrett, author of \u003ci\u003eShip Fever\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eNatural History\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eVincent Yu\u003c\/b\u003e is a sales manager at W. W. Norton\/Liveright and the winner of the 2021 Ashley Bourne Prize for Fiction from \n\u003ci\u003ePloughshares\u003c\/i\u003e. His work has been published in \n\u003ci\u003ePrairie Schooner, StoryQuarterly, Ninth Letter, Able Muse\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003eand elsewhere. He lives in Brooklyn.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA BREATHTAKING DEBUT novel about survival, hope, and second chances in an Asian American community in Massachusetts, when a false missile throws the residents' lives into chaos. \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\"Propulsive and poetic...A MASTERFUL debut.\" --Jenny Tinghui Zhang\u003cbr\u003e\"A PROFOUND work about connection.\" --Brian Castleberry\u003cbr\u003e\"Compelling and CINEMATIC.\" --Abraham Chang \u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eOn an otherwise unremarkable morning, the residents of a small town in Massachusetts all receive the same alert: \n\u003ci\u003eBALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eConfronted with the options of fight or flight, planning or panicking, the people of Beckitt are stripped to their basest instincts and revealed as their truest selves. Russ squeezes his family into the bathtub, leaving his own survival in question; Nina sends an unforgivable text to her daughter; Milly confesses her unrequited love; and David hits the gas, speeding away from his wife and child. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThen the second message comes in: \n\u003ci\u003eFALSE ALARM. PLEASE DISREGARD. ALL CLEAR.\u003c\/i\u003e First comes relief, then comes the reckoning, as each person is forced to face the unforeseen aftermath of decisions they thought might be their last. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eVincent Yu's searing debut follows this eclectic cast of characters over a period of many years, suggesting that the conflicts the missile exacerbated were simmering under the surface long before, and proving the ripple effects of the false alarm will be felt for years to come. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAn urgent, fiercely heartfelt exploration of relationships in all forms, \n\u003ci\u003eSeek Immediate Shelter\u003c\/i\u003e explores the balance between love and loyalty, betrayal and forgiveness. What choices would you make if you thought your life were on the line? And if you survive, can you ever redeem yourself? \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/span\u003e 02\/01\/2026 pg. 54 (EAN 9781250410122, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 03\/30\/2026 (EAN 9781250410122, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e 04\/01\/2026 (EAN 9781250410122, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eBooklist\u003c\/span\u003e 05\/01\/2026 (EAN 9781250410122, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/span\u003e 12\/30\/0001 (EAN 9781250410122, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eContributor Bio:\u003c\/strong\u003eYu, Vincent\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eVincent Yu \u003c\/b\u003eis a sales manager at W.W. Norton\/Liveright and the winner of the 2021 Ashley Bourne Prize for fiction from Ploughshares. Seek Immediate Shelter is his debut novel. His work has been published in Prairie Schooner, StoryQuarterly, Ninth Letter, Able Muse, and elsewhere. He lives in Brooklyn.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Flatiron Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496150368534,"sku":"9781250410122","price":34.79,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9781250410122.jpg?v=1783054096","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/seek-immediate-shelter","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}