“What is the sound of one heart breaking?

Part travelogue, part history, part romance and part Zen meditation, Make the Dark Night Shine sweeps over the reader with overlapping waves of emotion.”

–Viet Dinh, author of After Disasters

“Make the Dark Night Shine beams with honesty while it explores the creation of chosen families. At its core, this story is a sweeping journey highlighting our humanity and our deep need for home, love and acceptance.”

—Corie Adjmi, author ofThe Marriage Box

“A meticulously researched historical novel with a Zen heart, Make The Dark Night Shine tells the story of a diplomat-turned-monk torn between many countries and many identities as his world falls to war. There is much music in Lessik’s storytelling, but the hidden gem of this novel is its detailed (albeit brief) glimpse of life in a Buddhist monastery in pre-war Japan. Though peppered with many love stories — between men, friends, and family — it is, more than anything, an examination of queerness not seen often in Western literature and a love story with the shifting, wandering self. It is one man’s attempt to make peace with his choices and their far-reaching consequences. Cinematic and sad, it raises valuable questions about how a person might do good in a broken world, a lesson we all should consider.”

 –Alexander Cheves, author of My Love Is a Beast: Confessions

“Make the Night Shine is a sweeping romantic adventure of fascinating characters caught up in the 20th century’s cataclysms. But Alan Lessik has done more: he’s provided us with a thinking, feeling hero who’s journey makes for an original and stirring read.”

–Felice Picano

Pre-order today. Available from Rebel Satori Press, Amazon (book and Kindle) and from your favorite independent bookstore on October 3.