If you’re looking for a good combination of serial killer stories and haunting stories, Ania Ahlborn’s Apart in the Dark is a great book to snag this Winter. The book holds two novellas, “The Pretty Ones” and “I Call Upon Thee.” Both will leave you unsettled and wanting more.
“The Pretty Ones” takes place in New York during the Summer of the Son of Sam killings. Nell is a homely mousy girl working in an office where she most certainly doesn’t belong. Her coworkers are stunningly beautiful mean girls, all terrified that they will be the next victim of a legendary serial killer. Nell just wants to be invisible and spend quiet time at home with her mute brother. One by one, the pretty girls in the office start to disappear. Nell begins to wonder if her brother is involved, even as her life is falling apart at work.
“I Call Upon Thee” follows a young woman named Maggie. She returns home after the apparent suicide of her slightly older sister. Returning home, however, reminds her of all the haunting reasons she left Savannah in the first place. This includes the Ouija board and haunted doll she’s tried to put out of her mind.
Ania Ahlborn is a gifted storyteller. I found myself more drawn to “I Call Upon Thee”, where the characters felt a bit more relatable. In “The Pretty Ones”, I found myself almost uncaring about her cruel coworkers. It felt like an unfunny version of Heathers.
Apart in the Dark is available January 16, 2018 from Simon and Schuster.
