By Erica Wiggins
Content warning: suicide, drug use, mental health concerns, sexual assault
The Darkness in the Light is the latest novel from international bestselling author Daniel Kalla. Kalla is a practicing emergency medicine physician from Vancouver, British Columbia. He uses his medical background and experiences to write authentic fiction about current world issues. I have been reading Kalla’s novels for years. They are thoughtful, insightful, and I always walk away feeling like I am more educated on the book’s topic than when I began.
The Darkness in the Light begins in part one with Dr. David Spears, a psychiatrist. Spears lives in Anchorage, Alaska, and is living and working through the COVID-19 pandemic. He has been conducting his counselling online with local patients, but also with several in remote locations. Spears’s patients start dying by suicide, and with the most recent loss of his patient Brianna O’Brien, he begins to question what is happening and how he could be missing the signs. Twice a year, he heads to the remote community of Utgiagvik to check on his patients in person. The timing could not be better; one of Brianna’s friends is showing signs of crisis. When Spears arrives, Amka is missing, and he is determined to find out what has happened to her. These patients have all been prescribed a new antidepressant—could this be the problem, or is it something more sinister? Spears begins working with Taylor, the local social worker, along with police and the local doctor to find Amka. In part two, we switch to Taylor’s perspective. As the investigation continues, we are left to wonder who to trust and what is happening in this small remote community.
This book was incredible. I am in awe of the way this author writes about real-life issues in such a caring and compassionate way. Kalla paints a picture of the new remote world we are living in and shines a light on depression, anxiety, and the constraints of treating patients through the pandemic. I was immediately drawn into this story and read it one sitting. It reads like nonfiction. I love David’s character. I love that he is struggling with his own mental health concerns and is working through them to continue helping others.
This author is special and writes from a place of experience. I have never read anything quite like his stories. They are relevant, compelling, and utterly heartbreaking. The Darkness in the Light was hard to read at times. I felt such grief and sadness for the characters in this story. It can feel like the topics in this story can sometimes be ignored and are only amplified in these small remote communities. It has twists and turns that had me saying “WHAT?” out loud. It had everything that I was looking for and is a story that will linger with me.
As you can tell, I loved this story and would give it an easy five stars. I would highly recommend it if you love medical mysteries/thrillers. Please be mindful of the content warnings and proceed with caution.
Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.