The Aching Plane

"A creepy tale of reality-shattering revelations that will grip avid horror fans." - KIRKUS REVIEWSMarion Del Rosario disappeared at age twelve, and no answers ever came. Ten years later, Charlie Louise is still haunted by the empty space in her life that Marion once filled. They were best friends, each other's first loves. She still searches for Marion in the eyes of strangers, trying in vain to escape the gravity of her past. The only things that give her hope anymore are her father, whose sobriety has brought a semblance of stability and comfort; and her friend Adrian, whose kindness she feels she doesn't deserve.Then Marion reappears as mysteriously as she vanished. Traumatized and afraid, she refuses to talk about what happened to her over the past decade-but it's clear there's more going on behind her reticence. In trying to reconnect with her long lost friend, Charlie unwittingly places herself in the proximity of deep, unimaginable horrors that will forever alter her understanding of reality. Something terrible is reaching out from an aching darkness, bringing strange dreams and alluring promises of deliverance from grief, sorrow, and longing-at a devastating cost.

she also hears a voice in her head that tells her things such as "I went to the Border to witness the Katalpian Dusk...." Charlie is plagued by insomnia and a determination to get to the bottom of Marion's time in captivity in a realm called the Borderlands, where Marion read a journal that contained horrors beyond human comprehension. Lakin switches between multiple perspectives throughout the novel, including those of Charlie, Marion, and the journal writer, to intriguing effect. At times, the dialogue is unrealistically long-winded, taking up lengthy paragraphs. Marion's narration is appropriately ominous and unsettling, however, which sows a great sense of dread regarding the fate of Charlie's character. The women's relationship is a believable one that will hook readers; Adrian's introduction also makes him an easy person to root for. Overall, it's a satisfying addition to the cosmic-horror genre. A creepy tale of reality-shattering revelations that will grip avid horror fans." - KIRKUS REVIEWS

"After her missing friend mysteriously reappears, a young woman finds herself pulled into another realm in Lakin's novel. Twenty-one-year-old Charlie Louise still finds herself preoccupied by thoughts of her best friend and first love, Marion Del Rosario, who disappeared without a trace 10 years ago. In the interim, Charlie's become close to a new friend, Adrian Benedict, and has a good relationship with her father. But, while attending meaningless parties and working a dead-end coffee shop job, she often feels out of place in her own life; it seems like she's the only one who still remembers Marion. She also has strange, unsettling dreams; while awake, she sometimes glimpses weird, inhuman figures whom no one else can see. When Marion suddenly reappears, it's not the happy reunion of Charlie's dreams. Marion is different--quiet, fearful, and initially unwilling to answer questions. But she does admit that she, too, can see the man in black whom Charlie's been seeing around town. This is only the start of the cryptic messages Charlie receives from Marion

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