2025 Author's Talk: An Evening with John Vercher

Join us this fall for a one-of-a-kind author event! Mystery, history, and dark humor seamlessly intertwine in John Vercher's 2024 novel Devil Is Fine.

Inspired by the history of southern Delaware, Devil Is Fine tells the story of a young biracial man who, still reeling from a sudden tragedy, receives a letter from an attorney and learns he has inherited a plot of land from his estranged white grandfather. Upon inspection, he learns that what lies beneath the dirt is far more complicated than he ever imagined. In a shocking irony, he is now the Black owner of a former plantation passed down by the men on his white mother’s side of the family.

John Vercher will be joined in conversation with Dr. Adenike Davidson, Professor of Literature and Gender Studies at Delaware State University.

Ticket Information

• Single ticket includes admission for one attendee and one signed softcover copy of Devil Is Fine
• Dual ticket includes admission for two attendees and one signed softcover copy of Devil Is Fine
• Physical tickets will not be required to check in; only registered name(s)

Event Details

An Evening with John Vercher will be an in-person event hosted at the Bank of America Building at Delaware State University.

Doors open at 5:00 PM; the event will start at 5:30 PM. Registration is required.

If you are interested in further supporting Delaware Humanities, donations made at the event are highly encouraged. Ticket sales are set at a flat rate and will offset event costs. Donations* will count towards the $50,000 Challenge Grant by the Mellon Foundation and will be matched by the Federation of State Humanities Councils with support from the Mellon Foundation.

*For those donating to join the 302 Circle, donations made after August 4, 2025 will be applied to membership perks for the 2026 annual event.

About the Author

John Vercher holds a BA in English from the University of Pittsburg and an MFA in Creative Writing from the Mountainview Master of Fine Arts program. He has served as an adjunct faculty member at Chestnut Hill College and as an Assistant Teaching Professor in the Department of English & Philosophy at Drexel University. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Creative Writing in the Department of English at Monmouth University. He currently lives in Philadelphia with his wife and two sons.

About the Book

Devil Is Fine was named one of the 100 Must-Read Books of 2024 by TIME Magazine, a Best Novel of 2024 by Electric Lit, Jezebel, and The Chicago Public Library, a finalist for the Audie audiobooks award in literary fiction and was longlisted for the 2025 Aspen Words Literary Prize, the Mark Twain American Voice Award in Literary Award, and the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. It was selected as a Book of the Day for July by NPR, and was featured on NPR's IT's Been A Minute.

Host or Publisher Delaware Humanities