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Tigest Girma is an Ethiopian writer living in Melbourne, Australia, and splits her time between writing and teaching. She is passionate about exploring East African characters and myths, and her work weaves Black stories with the dark and fantastical. Girma is the author of the Immortal Dark duology, which includes Immortal Dark and Eternal Ruin (both available from Little, Brown Books for Young Readers).
Handsell readers your book in 25 words or less:
Immortal Dark follows a vengeful girl determined to rescue her kidnapped sister from an arrogant vampire but discovers monsters don't always have fangs.
On your nightstand now:
Bound by Fury by Noelle Monét, which is a 2026 YA fantasy dark academia release! It has one of my favorite things in books: brown girls accessing dangerous magic.
Favorite book when you were a child:
I used to read a lot of Ethiopian fables and short stories about witches and mischievous girls as a child, and my favorite book as a teen was Evermore by Alyson Noël.
Favorite book to read to a child:
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems. It's a funny book that gets kids laughing and I always reach for it if I'm teaching an elementary class.
Your top five authors:
Tracy Deonn, Octavia E. Butler, Leigh Bardugo, R.F. Kuang, and Rachel Gillig. Go read their books right now if you haven't already. Trust me, you won't be disappointed.
Book you're an evangelist for:
This one is hard because it changes! Most probably Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo--it is an incredibly smart book with morally gray characters you can't help but root for. And the best part? It's a duology!
Book you've bought for the cover:
Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim has one of the most beautiful covers I've ever seen. I would love to have it as a poster on my wall.
Best book an adult handed to you when you were a child:
The Interrogation of Ashala Wolf by Ambelin Kwaymullina. It is about a young girl who is detained and must survive the interrogation of a man intent on destroying her tribe. I remember taking it everywhere with me.
Book that changed your life:
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. This is a necessary book for any creative that deals with fear and doubt. It will make you want to pick up that project you thought you'd never finish.
Five books you'll never part with:
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo (a masterful YA book filled with heists and danger), Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead (the book that introduced me to paranormal romance), Jade City by Fonda Lee (brilliant worldbuilding), Kindred by Octavia E. Butler (time travel with intelligent commentary on slavery), and Seven Days in June by Tia Williams (a delightful Black adult romance).
Book you most want to read again for the first time:
I'd love to read any of the paranormal books I was obsessed with when I was a teen once again. I have such a fond memory of sitting in my high school library and going through Evermore or Vampire Academy and thinking this is the best genre to ever exist. Who wouldn't want to fall in love with an immortal creature and go on an epic adventure to save the world? Years later, those stories are still what I'm most pulled to.