First published 2017
A business executive sits across from a friend, cocktail in hand, recounting the twisted tale of a guardian angel whose protection comes at a terrible price. Nearby, a mother obsesses over her daughter's innocence, crafting elaborate schemes to freeze childhood in place forever. In a theater district office, a critic's cruel review of a young actress's debut performance sets in motion a night of theatrical revenge. Across town, a former cult member practices his apology speech for the parole board, rehearsing remorse for crimes that made headlines years ago. These characters inhabit S.P. Miskowski's collection of thirteen interconnected stories, each one peeling back the veneer of ordinary life to expose the raw desperation underneath. Mothers, executives, critics, and criminals all discover that their deepest desires lead them toward the same destination: their own undoing.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, mystery, crime, contemporary, dark
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator
249 pages · Paperback · Trepidatio Publishing
Content warnings: abuse, mental-illness