I DON'T WISH YOU WELL

Over summer break, a college student researches a series of murders in hopes of recording a podcast.

When the brutal killings of four high school football players rocked his small Louisiana town five years ago, the motive the police gave for the attacks didn’t convince aspiring journalist Pryce Cummings. There was a homophobic backlash against the victims’ closeted classmate Deuce—who supposedly carried out the murders to avoid being outed by the victims and then killed himself. This hostility kept Pryce from coming out until he entered historically Black Whitmore University. When new evidence casts doubt on the identity of the Trojan Mask Killer, Pryce convinces Dr. Morrison, Whitmore’s student media director, that investigating the new lead would make a perfect podcast. He’s also secretly hoping that proving Deuce’s innocence will help convince his own parents to accept his sexuality. Pryce teams up with Izzy, Deuce’s ex-boyfriend, to uncover the truth, but they learn there are more buried secrets than they imagined. The more they dig, the more dangerous the situation becomes, and they have to decide whether finding the truth is worth it. Pryce and Izzy are well-crafted characters; there’s a moving honesty to their experiences as gay Black men. Emill deftly portrays the intersection of race, religion, and homophobia. This complex novel also shines a light on familial abuse, ugly aspects of Southern football culture, and the lengths people will go to maintain their power and privilege.

A tense, thrilling mystery featuring two unforgettable queer sleuths.