Someone to Watch Over You

An unsettling, poignant story about two troubled strangers finding refuge in each other during the pandemic

As coronavirus spreads, paranoia overtakes a quiet northern Japanese town. People keep strict social distance, they disinfect their groceries and doorknobs, they fear-especially anyone from a teeming city. In these tense, antiseptic circumstances, two odd loners meet.

One bears the burden of possibly causing a protestor's death, the other worries her behaviour led to a student's suicide. In their remote lives, there is no relief. But then an unlikely connection begins to grow between them.

As the world collapses around them, can they become one another's refuge?

An unsettling, poignant debut novella about unusual connections fostered by the covid pandemic, perfect for fans of sharp literary fiction that reflects and confronts our world

It’s early 2020, and with the world in chaos as covid spreads, two lonely people, both seeking to break with their pasts, meet and start sharing a home.

One is a former security guard who was captured on video knocking down a protester who died soon afterward; the other, a former teacher accused of driving a student to suicide.

In an oppressive atmosphere of tension and fear, the pair avoid direct contact and communicate through notes and their shared presences, close yet distant. Their odd connection, with neither affection nor trust, brings them a kind of privacy and safety they both need – but at what cost? The book’s creeping tension draws out an unforgettable story of disconnection and disruptive change.

• | Author: Kumi Kimura, Yuki Tejima
• | Publisher: Pushkin Press
• | Publication Date: Apr 10, 2025
• | Number of Pages:
• | Language: eng
• | Binding: Paperback / softback
• | ISBN-13: 9781805330059
• | ISBN-10: 1805330055