Synopsis
Acclaimed author of CHLORINE, Jade Song, returns with her latest literary exploration of the Gen Z condition, I LOVE YOU DON'T DIE - a lyrical, poignant, and heartfelt novel about the meaning of love, friendship, debt, depression, and death in New York City.
Seeing death as the only inevitable thing in life, Vicky has always found it fascinating. She surrounds herself with it - living above a Chinatown funeral parlour, working at a celebrity start-up for bespoke urns and collecting zhizha (paper creations meant to be burned for the dead).
Despite living in Manhattan and working her dream job, she struggles to find meaning in her life or make connections outside of her best (and only) friend Jen. That changes when a dating app leads her into a throuple with an artist and a labour organiser, who seem to offer exactly the kind of love she needs.
For some time, it's perfect, but no one understands better than Vicky that all things must end. When her doubts grow over her love life, her friendship and her job, Vicky must decide whether to try and hold on to what she has, or to do what she does best . . . destroy.
Seeing death as the only inevitable thing in life, Vicky has always found it fascinating. She surrounds herself with it - living above a Chinatown funeral parlour, working at a celebrity start-up for bespoke urns and collecting zhizha (paper creations meant to be burned for the dead).
Despite living in Manhattan and working her dream job, she struggles to find meaning in her life or make connections outside of her best (and only) friend Jen. That changes when a dating app leads her into a throuple with an artist and a labour organiser, who seem to offer exactly the kind of love she needs.
For some time, it's perfect, but no one understands better than Vicky that all things must end. When her doubts grow over her love life, her friendship and her job, Vicky must decide whether to try and hold on to what she has, or to do what she does best . . . destroy.
Details
19 March 2026
9781804443538Imprint: Footnote Press
Reviews
Achingly, urgently, Jade Song probes at loneliness with some of the most poetic prose I've ever had the good luck to read. A dizzying and yearning story of love and loss, I can't remember the last time a book made me gasp like this one did. Death, sex, student debt - I Love You Don't Die is unflinching
Jade Song has written the novel on 21st century loneliness. I Love You, Don't Die is luminous, tender and an absolute gut punch. A melancholic must read.
I Love You Don't Die is a poignant meditation on love, loss, loneliness, and the human condition. Song's ambitious sophomore novel will break your heart completely.
I Love You Don't Die is a gorgeously penned meditation on death, life and love. With tenderness and sharp clarity, it illuminates who and what we truly value and asks what it is we are really living for. Song reminds us that amid the chaos of late-stage capitalism, we all leave behind far more than we allow ourselves to worry about. I relished every page.
