“Eerie. . . . depict[s] women as artists, cult leaders and lost souls who are often on a path of self-discovery and frequently brush up against the supernatural.”—New York Times Book Review
T”he American Southwest is a stage for slippage between reality and the weird, between horror and beauty, and between speculative and literary fiction…. If you enjoy the work of Kelly Link or Carmen Maria Machado, you will find much satisfaction in Mystery Lights.” —Esquire, A Best Horror Book of 2024
“Delicious. . . . In the umbra of these darkly tinged stories, readers will experience late-night fears and the sweet relief of daylight.”—The Los Angeles Times, A Best Book of Summer
“Where there is glamour, there is terror in this self-assured debut collection. . . . In 10 eerie stories, Valencia leans into the horror and grit under a shiny world.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Accomplished . . . . Valencia exhibits a mastery of plot and keen perception of her characters’s vulnerabilities. These alluring stories deserve a wide readership.”—Publishers Weekly
“Eerie and unsettling; Valencia’s deft writing allows her readers a peek into each character’s specific nightmare.”—The Rumpus
“Southwest Shirley Jackson: that’s the comparison that floats like ectoplasm through the minds of readers who encounter the horripilating stories of Lena Valencia.”—Library of America
“Shimmers with eerie desert locations. . . .She conjures up vivid characters with complicated relationships, and chill-inducing supernatural phenomena. Each story reverberates with strangeness and suspense.”—Lit Hub
“Social media influencers, ghost hunters, and slasher writers populate these stories…. giving supernatural Southwestern Americana.”—The Millions, A Most Anticipated Book of Summer
“Razor sharp and disconcerting, Mystery Lights is a collection of speculative short stories with a bite. From the supernatural to the otherworldly and beyond, these ten stories range from the terrifying to the ugly, suspenseful to quietly disquieting. Valencia will make you stare at the sky in wonder and awe.” —Barnes & Noble, A Most Anticipated Debut of 2024
“These dark and moody stories are such a treat to read. . . . Read this if you want something a little off-kilter. It delivers on making you squirm, gasp out loud, and think hard.”—Debutiful, a Most Anticipated Book of 2024
“Cinematic. . . . Using the raw, strange setting of the desert, and its uneasy proximity to the glossy grit of Hollywood, Valencia probes the dark obsessions her characters have with control and sublime spectacle.”—Shelf Awareness
“Wryly crafted. . . . a delightful debut that renders our most abstract hauntings concrete.”—Adroit Journal
“Delightful—menacing, smart, cozy-creepy, both strange and familiar—and it provides a vexing reflection of modern society.”—The Brooklyn Rail
“Valencia’s fiction often ventures to desert landscapes, illustrating the strange and fantastical goings-on that take place there.”—Reactor
“Valencia is not afraid to dip a toe—hell, her whole foot—into the speculative uncanny. If you enjoy the work of Kelly Link or Carmen Maria Machado, you will find much satisfaction in Mystery Lights.”—Redbook, A Best Horror Book of 2024
“These are stories full of menace and delight, drawing from that deep well of human complexity, perversity, sincerity, and hope. Mystery Lights is gorgeous.” —Kelly Link, author of The Book of Love
“Lena Valencia writes some of the best stories I’ve read in years, as sharp and finely honed as knives. Here are women who turn out to be powerful enough to meet the threats of their worlds in kind: their lives may cut them, yes, but they can cut back, and astonishing truths are laid bare in the process. Both bold and sly, in turns righteously angry and sinister, Mystery Lights offers a brilliant new vision of what it means to be a woman in this world.” —Clare Beams, author of The Garden
“I’ve loved Lena Valencia’s brilliant, beguiling stories for years and read her debut collection in a single breathless evening. These are stories with teeth, both chilling and bold, about the strength and vulnerability of women and girls. Full of surprising turns, Mystery Lights reminded me of the incredible power of short fiction to speak the truth.” —Julie Buntin, author of Marlena
“B movie aesthetics meet the cinematic splendor of the desert in these ten clever, neatly crafted, wryly stylized short stories. Against the backdrop of their desolate and often haunted landscapes, Lena Valencia’s characters vividly come to life.”
—Rachel Lyon, author of Fruit of the Dead
