Amanda Marquit

Shut the Door Amanda Marquit

In one of the most impressive debut novels ever written by a teenager, Shut the Door, says the New York Post, is "a raw and disturbing portrayal of a suburban family."
In a household spiraling out of control, Lilliana and Vivian are two teenage sisters struggling to carve out their identities as young adults, taking risks and undergoing disturbing transformations that go unchallenged by their emotionally absent parents. Beatrice and Harry's marriage is disintegrating, and it no longer provides the safe harbor their daughters so desperately need. As the girls test boundaries and push limits, their silent cries for help are lost within the apathy that has crept into their family life. Harry's prolonged absence on a business trip finally provides the impetus to reevaluate family roles and relationships--and the choices made are shocking. In the vein of American Beauty, this evocative family portrait reveals just what happens when our support system falls away and we become emotionally disconnected from the ones we love the most.