AFK

*Chosen as a Quarter Finalist in Publishers' Weekly's BookLife Prize for Fiction*

There haven’t been any otters in Otter Rock, Oregon, since 1921.

But after two friends stumble onto a black barn that might soon change.

When fifteen-year-olds Atsuko and Lyric aren’t gaming or watching Bob’s Burgers, they’re out surfing. It’s something that helps Lyric cope with the recent divorce of his parents and also distracts Atsuko from her grandmother's failing health.

But it's an older surfer who's trying to find his way back into the world after a recent tragedy that will truly test the two friends.

AFK is a story about loss and the toll it can take on those left behind.

It also a story about setting things right that were put wrong long ago.

*Warning: This book deals with, in part, suicide and physical child abuse

"A nuanced, deftly characterized exploration of grief, loss, and growing up, Jamie Zerndt’s AFK is at its best when conveying the most significant yet prosaic events in life." -IndieReader Discovery Awards