A beautifully illustrated graphic romance about finding love in the unlikeliest of places and people, and embracing who you are, even when it’s hard.

SALVAGE
by Renee Nault
Ten Speed Graphic/St. Martin’s Publishing Group, October 2025

Paolo only knows life in The Flats, where people live on stilt houses under constant threat of sinking into the ocean below. His family makes a living salvaging materials from the skyscrapers just underneath the water, remnants of a world before sea levels rose. It’s a dangerous job, diving down so deep, but one day Paolo scores big: He finds a suitcase of undamaged clothes, and they just so happen to be in his size. Instead of selling them at the weekly market, he decides to fulfill a dream of his—spending one night in the Uplands, where everyone who’s someone lives.

Getting off the subway in the Uplands, Paolo immediately gets lost and is about to end up in a bad situation when a girl named Jules and her friends usher him away. It turns out they’re living the life he’s always dreamed of. They spend their nights at the most exclusive clubs, have access to all sorts of entertainment, and have no real responsibilities. One night with them—and with Jules—just isn’t enough. Soon, Paolo finds himself sneaking to the Uplands as much as possible and leading a double life. The closer he gets to Jules, the more he has to lie to her and risk the new life and friends he’s made.

Renee Nault began her art career as an illustrator, and her vivid watercolors have appeared in books, magazine and advertising around the world. Renee works traditionally in ink and watercolor preferring the tactile qualities of paint and paper to digital tools. She is best known for her acclaimed graphic novel version of The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood, which she both adapted and illustrated. SALVAGE is her first original graphic novel.