When Ryan La Sala’s The Dead of Summer was released, we we’re absolutely mesmerized by Ollie’s story in this twisted world that not only masterfully balanced dark humor with horror, but continued to prove that La Sala is the real deal. And now we’re finally going back to see what happened to him after the book’s ending left us gasping and begging for more. Now, he’s officially answering the call with a book that definitely kicks things up a notch and has us wondering what he’s come up next to leave us absolutely terrified.
Cosmopolitan has an exclusive first look at Bodies of Water by Ryan La Sala, which is set to be released on April 6, 2027. The book brings a conclusion to the series kicked off by The Dead of Summer and continues to follow Ollie as he sinks deeper into the secrets of Anchor’s Mercy in order to finally save himself and the island that means the world to him. Here’s some more info from our friends at PUSH / Scholastic:
The thrilling follow-up to The Dead of Summer, told in a mix of narrative voices and found documents, from the bestselling author of The Honeys, perfect for fans of Tiffany D. Jackson, E. Lockhart, Karen McManus, and Rory Powers!
Paradise has been lost.
Anchor’s Mercy is locked down, overrun with weepers. The Embrace sits in the harbor, full of survivors, but no one is safe. A horrific fate awaits all aboard while something lurks, eager and hungry, in the waters below. And now, one key survivor is missing. The world watches in horror as the government considers annihilation the only option. Until a dossier of confidential files leaks to the public and a resistance begins to rise...
Meanwhile, Ollie Veltman awakens chained to the bottom of a pool, transformed by the twisted experiments of those on his island. A terrifying power has anchored itself inside of him, and now the remaining survivors on the island—doomsday cultists—believe he is a miracle sent to unleash a plague that will drown humanity from the inside out. To rescue his friends, Ollie must learn to trust enemies, and to save his island he will need to delve even deeper into the tragedies of the past. But to save the world, Ollie must do what no one else can: venture to the very darkest depths of his island and confront the unfathomable truth before it turns him into a monster, forever.
The book’s official cover not only reminds us about all that lies underneath the ocean, but also features a stunning sprayed edge that feels like you’re drifting onto shore. Whether that’s the safety or more danger is still unclear, but knowing Ryan, there might be something sinister hidden beneath it all.
It also matches the new edition of The Dead of Summer that you’re going to want on your shelf when it washes ashore on July 7, 2026.
And while we do have to wait until next year to find out how Ollie’s story wraps up, you can get an official sneak peek below. Just make sure to pre-order Bodies of Water so you don’t miss out as soon as it’s out!
OLLIE
TWENTY-SIX DAYS AFTER
“Sometimes a person’s got no choice but to learn to drink what’s drowning them.”
My mother’s voice finds me deep in the dream I’m having, which is weird because the dream is about her. In the dream, we sit shoulder to shoulder at our old upright piano, cupped in a golden spotlight of afternoon sun, playing one of our iconic four-handed duets. We’re in the parlor of Singing House, and we’re not alone. Beyond the gilded glare, I sense a crowd. My aunt Maddie; and my best friends, Bash and Elisa; and all the drag queens who helped raise us, like Wendy Pretendy and Hunky Dory; and even Sam, the boy I met on the ferry. Hell, our nemesis Imogen Pfaff is probably tucked into the parlor’s back corner, arms crossed in her lab coat. I squint against the light in my eyes, trying to see their faces, but the dark beyond is impenetrable. I’m not worried though, because in the dream I know that if I keep playing, the moment will never end, and we will all remain in this moment.
Safe and together, forever.
But then that voice from above echoes itself.
“Sometimes a person’s got no choice . . .”
My mother’s words drift down into the dream like radioactive ash, decaying the pleasant illusion. The music twists out of tune as the piano warps below my fingers. The afternoon light flickers, and in the dull blinks I finally glimpse the audience: a sea of pale bodies draped
over the furniture, each face drilled through where the eyes should be by twin pearls of dead light. They watch with vacant, unseeing obsession. Crying. Weeping. Swaying along to music that plays itself even as I snatch my hands from the keys.
“This is wrong, this is a dream!” I shout, but the piano rampages on.
Then a voice right beside me answers. It’s not my mother’s voice, but the voice of something ancient and monstrous wearing her memory, with a breath of deep-sea brine that curls right into my ears.
“But, Ollie-baby, don’t you want to play with me? I’ve waited so long to meet you.”
Slowly, I turn to face the thing next to me on the piano bench, the thing that crawled out of the sea and into my mother’s head, that stole her skin, that drowned her life, that destroyed her beloved island, that took the best summer ever away from us. And even though I tell myself to be strong, and that this is just a dream, it takes only a glance to halt my breath.
Gracie’s familiar face split by a smiling trench of teeth, her pleading eyes boiling over with tears.
I scream myself awake.
Copyright (c) 2027, Ryan La Sala. Used with permission from PUSH / Scholastic Inc.
Bodies of Water, by Ryan La Sala will be released on April 6, 2027 from PUSH / Scholastic. To preorder the book, click on the retailer of your choice:
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