Seek Immediate Shelter: A Novel
Vincent Yu
May 2026 · Sold by Flatiron Books
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About this ebook
* NATIONAL BESTSELLER *
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE SUMMER
A BREATHTAKING DEBUT novel about survival, hope, and second chances in an Asian American community in Massachusetts, when a false missile throws the residents' lives into chaos.
"Propulsive and poetic...A MASTERFUL debut." —Jenny Tinghui Zhang
“A PROFOUND work about connection.” —Brian Castleberry
"Compelling and CINEMATIC." —Abraham Chang
On an otherwise unremarkable morning, the residents of a small town in Massachusetts all receive the same alert: BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.
Confronted with the options of fight or flight, planning or panicking, the people of Beckitt are stripped to their basest instincts and revealed as their truest selves. Russ squeezes his family into the bathtub, leaving his own survival in question; Nina sends an unforgivable text to her daughter; Milly confesses her unrequited love; and David hits the gas, speeding away from his wife and child.
Then the second message comes in: FALSE ALARM. PLEASE DISREGARD. ALL CLEAR. First comes relief, then comes the reckoning, as each person is forced to face the unforeseen aftermath of decisions they thought might be their last.
Vincent Yu’s searing debut follows this eclectic cast of characters over a period of many years, suggesting that the conflicts the missile exacerbated were simmering under the surface long before, and proving the ripple effects of the false alarm will be felt for years to come.
An urgent, fiercely heartfelt exploration of relationships in all forms, Seek Immediate Shelter explores the balance between love and loyalty, betrayal and forgiveness. What choices would you make if you thought your life were on the line? And if you survive, can you ever redeem yourself?
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE SUMMER
A BREATHTAKING DEBUT novel about survival, hope, and second chances in an Asian American community in Massachusetts, when a false missile throws the residents' lives into chaos.
"Propulsive and poetic...A MASTERFUL debut." —Jenny Tinghui Zhang
“A PROFOUND work about connection.” —Brian Castleberry
"Compelling and CINEMATIC." —Abraham Chang
On an otherwise unremarkable morning, the residents of a small town in Massachusetts all receive the same alert: BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.
Confronted with the options of fight or flight, planning or panicking, the people of Beckitt are stripped to their basest instincts and revealed as their truest selves. Russ squeezes his family into the bathtub, leaving his own survival in question; Nina sends an unforgivable text to her daughter; Milly confesses her unrequited love; and David hits the gas, speeding away from his wife and child.
Then the second message comes in: FALSE ALARM. PLEASE DISREGARD. ALL CLEAR. First comes relief, then comes the reckoning, as each person is forced to face the unforeseen aftermath of decisions they thought might be their last.
Vincent Yu’s searing debut follows this eclectic cast of characters over a period of many years, suggesting that the conflicts the missile exacerbated were simmering under the surface long before, and proving the ripple effects of the false alarm will be felt for years to come.
An urgent, fiercely heartfelt exploration of relationships in all forms, Seek Immediate Shelter explores the balance between love and loyalty, betrayal and forgiveness. What choices would you make if you thought your life were on the line? And if you survive, can you ever redeem yourself?
* NATIONAL BESTSELLER *
ONE OF BARACK OBAMA’S FAVORITE BOOKS OF THE SUMMER
A BREATHTAKING DEBUT novel about survival, hope, and second chances in an Asian American community in Massachusetts, when a false missile throws the residents' lives into chaos.
"Propulsive and poetic...A MASTERFUL deb...
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About the author
Vincent Yu is a sales manager at W.W. Norton and winner of the 2026 Barnes & Noble Discover Prize and the 2021 Ploughshares Ashley Bourne Prize for Fiction. Seek Immediate Shelter is his debut novel. His work has been published in Prairie Schooner, StoryQuarterly, Ninth Letter, Able Muse, and elsewhere. He lives in Brooklyn.
Vincent Yu is a sales manager at W.W. Norton and winner of the 2026 Barnes & Noble Discover Prize and the 2021 Ploughshares Ashley Bourne Prize for Fiction. Seek Immediate Shelter is his debut novel. His work has been published in Prairie Schooner, StoryQuarterly, Ninth Letter, Able Muse, and els...
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