The Light We Lost

Published in 2017, The Light We Lost is Jill Santopolo’s debut novel that explores the intense connection between two people whose lives are forever changed after meeting on a fateful day. Lucy and Gabe first cross paths in New York City on September 11, 2001—a moment that cements their bond and sets the tone for their intertwined destinies.Over the years, their relationship is tested by ambition, distance, and the need for personal fulfillment. Gabe pursues a photojournalism career in the Middle East, while Lucy builds a life in New York. Despite moving forward in different directions, they remain emotionally tethered, navigating love, heartbreak, and the question of “what if?”Told from Lucy’s perspective as a letter to Gabe, the novel is intimate, heart-wrenching, and poetic—a meditation on passion, timing, and the light we carry for the ones who’ve changed us.