The Grace Year

The Grace Year is a 2019 young adult dystopian fiction novel written by bestselling American author Kim Liggett. The novel follows the story of 16-year-old Tierney James as she and the other girls of Garner County are sent to live out their “grace year”: a special time in a young woman’s life where she is banished to the woods to burn through her evil magic so she can be purified and turned into a suitable bride. The novel touches on the genres of horror and speculative fiction, and Liggett uses tools from psychological thrillers as well as big ideas from classic works of literature such as Lord of the Flies, The Handmaid’s Tale, and The Crucible. Shortly before the book’s official release, Universal Pictures announced that it had optioned the film rights, and The Grace Year film production began. The novel was awarded the Amazon Editors’ Young Adult Book of the Year award for 2019 and the 2020 Nous a Libre Prize for Young Adult Literature, and it was also on the Amelia Bloomer Book List for 2020. The version used for this guide is the e-book of the Wednesday Books imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group.