Local author publishes first novel

Dark City is part thriller, part romance novel. It’s also the first published full-length novel by Hillsboro resident Sarah Kay Moll.

The book, which will be the first in a series, was inspired by her interest in psychology and the Russian mafia.

“The idea for Dark City hit me one day just out of the blue and I stayed up all night and wrote the first draft in a couple of weeks,” Moll said.

Dark City focuses on tenderhearted Jude, who is expected to follow in the footsteps of his father, a violent leader of organized crime in the City. He survives by developing split personality: Jude loves while Ras kills. But this strategy won’t work forever.

Moll says she certainly identifies more with Jude, but, “Ras in some ways… is who I wish I was. I wish I had that confidence, maybe arrogance… that grace, ability to get what he wants.”

In one significant scene, a young Jude breaks a rose. Seeing how distraught he became, his older brother attempted to tape the rose back together. This was, of course, unsuccessful. This story was based on real life; Moll’s father once tried to tape a rose back together after she accidentally broke it as a child. She now has a tattoo of a broken rose on her left arm. “The book is symbolic of lost innocence,” she said, “You can’t ever quite get it back.”

Moll can often be found writing around the Orenco neighborhood. When not writing, she works part-time for Bienestar and volunteers with several local political organizations. We hope to recruit her to write for the Hillsboro Signal soon.

A paperback version of Dark City is available at Powell’s.

Kindle and paperback versions of Dark City are also available on Amazon.