Defy

“Compelling and thought-provoking.” ― Kirkus Reviews

Enjoy your Final Days.

Escape a Natural Death with us.

Come to Zalmon’s Quiet End.

In the city of Zalmon, every Life Event is predetermined: where you’ll work, who you’ll marry, when you’ll die.

On a tour of Central Processing, seventeen-year-old Darius inadvertently unveils shocking information about his beloved little sister, Mahlah. His impulsive reaction may make him a target of the sinister people who run Zalmon, and could doom Mahlah to a worse fate than the one Darius uncovered.

Defying an unjust system, an unwanted Life Match, and an uncontrollable enemy, Darius fights to save Mahlah, leading him to expose a conspiracy at the heart of the city ― and a potential life of autonomy, dignity, and love beyond what the Book of Zalmon dictates.

Sara de Waard is an author, screenwriter, and educator of Métis descent and is currently in the process of exploring her family’s heritage. Her debut novel, White Lies, won the 2022 ETFO Writer’s Award for Women. After completing her BA in Radio and Television from Toronto Metropolitan University and a stint in London, ON, de Waard returned to her hometown of Port Colborne, ON, where she currently lives with her kids.