The Verifiers

(Hardback, Large Print Edition)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Introducing Claudia Lin: a sharp-witted amateur sleuth for the 21st century. This debut novel follows Claudia as she verifies people's online lives, and lies, for a dating detective agency in New York City. Until a client with an unusual request goes missing. . . .

"The world of social media, big tech and internet connectivity provides fertile new ground for humans to deceive, defraud and possibly murder one another. . . . Well rendered and charming. . . . Original and intriguing." --The New York Times Book Review

Claudia is used to disregarding her fractious family's model-minority expectations: she has no interest in finding either a conventional career or a nice Chinese boy. She's also used to keeping secrets from them, such as that she prefers girls--and that she's just been stealth-recruited by Veracity, a referrals-only online-dating detective agency.

A lifelong mystery reader who wrote her senior thesis on Jane Austen, Claudia believes she's landed her ideal job. But when a client vanishes, Claudia breaks protocol to investigate--and uncovers a maelstrom of personal and corporate deceit. Part literary mystery, part family story, The Verifiers is a clever and incisive examination of how technology shapes our choices, and the nature of romantic love in the digital age.

A VINTAGE ORIGINAL.

Reviews

ONE OF THE YEAR'S MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS! Publishers Weekly - Harper's Bazaar - Good Morning America - BuzzFeed - USA Today - Electric Lit - Literary Hub - Book Riot - Bustle - CrimeReads - Medium - Alma - Lambda Literary - LGBTQ Reads - PopSugar

"This book is exhilaratingly well-written. I loved it so much that I didn't want it to end."
--Emily St. John Mandel, bestselling author of Station Eleven

"A commentary on love in the time of iPhones, a thrilling ride to discover what was really going on with the client that disappeared, and a look at one family making their way through all types of distance."
--Zibby Owens, Good Morning America

"[A] funny and touching modern detective story."
--Keely Weiss, Harper's Bazaar, "The Best, Buzziest New Books of 2022"

"This astute, page-turning debut sheds light on the necessities and limitations of interpersonal interaction, the role technology plays in its evolution (and de-evolution), and what it means to be human and looking for love in the 21st century."
--Dahlia Adler, BuzzFeed

"Through Claudia's perceptive and entertaining narration, The Verifiers underscores the pitfalls and absurdities of modern technology. The novel is also an intimate portrait of a young, queer Chinese American person forging her own path."
--Poets & Writers

"Claudia is single, gutsy (she's a cyclist in New York), and a really funny narrator of this wonderfully entertaining mystery."
--Carole E. Barrowman, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

"The Verifiers is as delightful as it is insightful. . . . Pek poses deep and thoughtful questions about romance, privacy, family, data, corporate greed and big tech. . . . The Verifiers is sure to leave readers looking for more from this new voice in the genre. . . . A perfectly paced whodunit."
--Kerry McHugh, Shelf Awareness

"Pek's first novel is a whip-smart and super charming techno thriller that feels at once contemporary and classic."
--Michelle Hart, Electric Lit, "The Most Anticipated LGBTQ+ Books of 2022"

"Pek's book is funny in a sly way and smart in the way it explores the intersection between identity and technology."
--Lisa Levy, CrimeReads, "5 Psychological Thrillers You Should Read This February"

"I was so taken in by [Pek's] descriptive language and lush, immersive imagery. . . . She's adept at crafting the rich inner world of her characters."
--Vanessa Willoughby, Literary Hub, "Lit Hub's Most Anticipated Books of 2022"

"A twisty and smart mystery about online dating algorithms layered with a poignant tale about second-generation Asian American identity."
--Emily Burack, Alma, "Alma's Favorite Books for Winter 2022"

"Claudia's wit [is] a great source of humor throughout the book. . . . This is an all-around interesting mystery that doesn't sacrifice characterization for plot."
--Erica Ezeifedi, Book Riot

"That rare combination of technothriller and traditional mystery. . . . When Claudia's client vanishes, she goes down an ugly rabbithole into the nature of truth, and the truth of corporate malfeasance."
--Molly Odintz, CrimeReads, "The Most Antici

Author Bio

JANE PEK was born and grew up in Singapore. She holds a BA from Yale University, a JD from the New York University School of Law, and an MFA in Fiction from Brooklyn College. Her short fiction has appeared in The Brooklyn Review, Witness, Conjunctions, Literary Hub, and twice in The Best American Short Stories. She currently lives in New York, where she works as a lawyer at a global investment company.