Coming 3.25.25

Psychopomp

Dark Matter INK

Psychopomp

Sale price $17.99

Author: Maria Dong

Format:Paperback
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On the penal colony of Hibiscus Station, no positions are as key as the Pomps, who direct the dangerous mining operations to remove highly valuable—and volatile—crystal from the moon's crust.

Young was previously in training to be a Pomp until a depressive episode, mental break, and a suicide attempt. She doesn’t need the other convicts on her work team to suspect she’s unraveling again, so when she suddenly hallucinates visions of the unstable crystals in the tunnel walls around her—along with the potential danger they hold—she keeps her mouth shut.

And then their newly dug tunnel explodes, killing her crew.

During her reassignment, her new lover, Gyu, makes her an offer: he can pull some strings and help her finish her Pomp training. If Young decides to take the gamble that her new secret visions are accurate, she can prevent further accidents and pay off the penal debt keeping her from going home.

However, the more she trains, the more her paranoia convinces her that the collapse wasn’t an accident at all, and that everyone—her new crew, the station staff, and even Gyu—are all hiding secrets. If she doesn’t figure out what’s real before her mental health implodes, she might not survive the next “accident.”

Product Details

Author: Maria Dong

Cover Artist: Katerina Belikova (Ninja Jo)

Publish Date: ‎ March 25, 2025

Language: ‎ English

Paperback

EPUB

About the Author

Maria Dong is a prolific writer of short fiction, articles, essays, and poetry. Her work is published in dozens of magazines, including Lightspeed, Augur, Nightmare, Khoreo, Fantasy, Apex, and Apparition. She was a finalist for the 2023 Sturgeon Award and has been featured twice in The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy. Her debut novel, Liar, Dreamer, Thief, is a psychological suspense with speculative elements that's been featured in Buzzfeed, PopSugar, Goodreads, Forbes, Shondaland, Electric Literature, Good Housekeeping, Gizmodo, and Novel Suspects.

She's currently a computer programmer, but in her previous lives, Maria's held a variety of diverse careers, including property manager, English teacher, and occupational therapist. She lives with her partner in southwest Michigan in a centenarian saltbox house that is almost certainly haunted, watching K-dramas and drinking Bell's beer.

She is represented by Amy Bishop-Wycisk at Trellis Literary. For film inquiries, please reach out to Addison Duffy and Orly Greenberg at United Talent Agency. She can also be reached via twitter @mariadongwrites or via email with the contact form at mariadong.com.

About the Cover Artist

Katerina Belikova, also known as Ninja Jo, is a Ukrainian illustrator and concept artist. Belikova specializes in science fiction and cyberpunk art.