When we were shadows

In Portland's bruised underbelly, four friends survive by turning ruin into ritual. They are the Rats: Juno, who crowns herself in glitter and ash; Rex, who coughs sermons through blood; Nico, who tapes the city's sins into proof; and Spider, whose silence hits harder than any bat. Together they drag meaning from hunger, theater from pain, and defiance from every shadow.

As Swans preach sterile silence, Kade's boys weaponize laughter, and Marla counts debts in blood, the Rats answer with their own gospel: static, smoke, and glitter. Crowds follow. Enemies circle. Portland itself seems to kneel, howl, and bite in turn.

When We Were Shadows: An Archive of Smoke and Glitter is a novel of crowns made from wire and roses, altars built from chalk and tape, and a city that demands sacrifice from all who dare to speak. Part hymn, part riot, part confession, it is the story of how shadows can burn as bright as saints-and how proof, once spoken, refuses to die.

Perfect for readers drawn to dark beauty, electric prose, and characters who live loud even as the world tries to erase them.