From the Booking Desk:
I first became aware of Winnie Li when she released and toured with her emotionally devastating debut novel, Dark Chapter. We struck up a friendship on social media and eventually met in person when she was touring again with her second novel, Complicit. So when she asked if I would host the cover reveal for her next novel, it was an easy YES on my part. Below you will find the new cover, an exclusive Q&A about the book, and the pre-order link. I just know you are going to be as excited as I am to read Winnie’s new novel, What We Left Unsaid.
Jacket Copy:
On an unexpected road trip, three estranged siblings uncover a startling family secret and larger truths about being Asian American in a post-COVID world—from the author of the “dazzling and devastating” (Chris Whitaker, New York Times bestselling author) thriller Complicit.
The Chu siblings haven’t seen each other in years but when they’re told that their ailing mother is scheduled for an operation next month, they agree to visit her together. Then their mother makes an odd request: before seeing her, they must go on a road trip together to the Grand Canyon.
Thirty years ago, a strange incident had aborted a previous family road trip there. No one’s ever really spoken about it, but during this journey, the middle-aged Chu siblings have no choice but to confront their childhood experience.
Together, Bonnie, Kevin, and Alex travel along Route 66—but as the trip continues, they realize the Great American Road Trip may not be what they expected. Facing their own prejudices and those of others, they somehow learn to bridge the distances between them, the present-day, and their past.
With “powerful and beautiful writing” (Sarah Pearse, New York Times bestselling author), Winnie M Li weaves an emotive and eye-opening exploration of family, race, growing up, and what it means to be American.
Exclusive Q&A:
In an exclusive Q&A with Edgar-nominated author Winnie M Li, we get a glimpse of her third novel What We Left Unsaid, which will be published in August 2025.
What’s the quick pitch for your novel?
It’s about three estranged middle-aged siblings who go on a road trip across Route 66 to see their ailing mother in California. Along the way, they piece together what happened on another family road trip thirty years ago.
What prompted you to write this book?
I love a good road trip story! But you rarely see the Great American Road Trip from the perspective of people of color, who may not always be seen as ‘American’ when they travel to certain parts of America. I was also thinking how, in middle age, we hardly ever get to spend extended periods of time with our siblings, because we’re all too busy with our own lives and families. In my book, these Asian-American siblings have taken very different paths in adulthood to navigate their own individual ambitions and identities. And that’s led to some conflict.
Your previous two novels, Dark Chapter and Complicit, were sold as crime fiction. Would you see this as you a taking a step away from the genre?
It’s true: I don’t think What We Left Unsaid will be sitting on the crime and mystery shelves in bookstores. I sort of wanted to try something new, something lighter on the surface. I first came to write in the crime genre because I myself was a victim of a very violent crime, but that’s a pretty heavy origin story, and I don’t always want to be writing ‘dark’ stuff. My whole life, I’ve found a great deal of adventure and joy in traveling, so this book allowed me to embrace that. But there’s a lot I’ve learned from the crime and mystery genre: suspense, shifting points of view, psychological tension… That’s all in there. (And also a maybe a car chase too…)
Pre-Order Link:
Are you intrigued? Crazy question, i know you are.
You can pre-order the novel here: What We Left Unsaid
