All the Colors of the Dark

Starred review from June 17, 2024
In 1975 Missouri, 13-year-old orphan Saint Brown and her scruffy, eye patch–wearing classmate, Patch Macauley, are drawing closer by the day when Patch’s disappearance rips them apart—setting in motion this lyrical, decades-spanning outing from Whitaker (We Begin at the End), which is both a riveting serial killer thriller and a heartrending love story. Before tragedy, however, comes triumph: Patch strikes a man attempting to abduct local golden girl Misty Meyer—Patch’s secret crush—with a rock from his slingshot, allowing Misty to escape. By the time police arrive, however, the only trace of Patch is his bloodied T-shirt. The colder the investigation becomes, the stronger Saint’s resolve grows to find her friend, a task to which she applies both precocious deductive skills and ferocious tenacity—traits that will prove invaluable in her future with the FBI. Meanwhile, Patch withers away in an undisclosed location, growing obsessed with a young woman being held in captivity with him. When Saint and Patch finally do reunite, they’re both irrevocably changed. With deeply affecting characters and ambition to spare, Whitaker has conjured a dazzling epic that defies easy categorization. It’s astonishing. Agent: Jennifer Joel, CAA.