A disenchanted man struggles to get beyond the first chapter of the books he's writing, and to separate fact from fiction in his own life. His friend's suicide changes everything ... The mind-blowing, heart-rending new thriller from cult bestselling author Will Carver. 'One of the most exciting authors in Britain' Daily Express _________________________________________ Eli Hagin can't finish anything. He hates his job, but can't seem to quit. He doesn't want to be with his girlfriend, but doesn't know how end things with her, either. Eli wants to write a novel, but he's never taken a story beyond the first chapter. Eli also has trouble separating reality from fiction. When his best friend kills himself, Eli is motivated, for the first time in his life, to finally end something himself, just as Mike did... Except sessions with his therapist suggest that Eli's most recent 'first chapters' are not as fictitious as he had intended ... and a series of text messages that Mike received before his death point to something much, much darker... _________________________________________ Praise for Will Carver 'One of the most compelling and original voices in crime fiction ... The whole thing feels like a shot of adrenaline' Alex North 'Deliciously fresh and malevolent story-telling' Craig Sisterson 'Weirdly page-turning' Sunday Times 'Laying bare our 21st-century weaknesses and dilemmas, Carver has created a highly original state-of-the-nation novel' Literary Review 'Arguably the most original crime novel published this year' Independent 'At once fantastical and appallingly plausible ... this mesmeric novel paints a thought-provoking if depressing picture of modern life' Guardian 'This book is most memorable for its unrepentant darkness...' Telegraph 'Unlike anything else you'll read this year' Heat 'Incredibly dark and very funny' Harriet Tyce 'Wickedly fun' Crime Monthly 'Will Carver's most exciting, original, hilarious and freaky outing yet ... I loved it' Helen FitzGerald 'Vivid and engaging and completely unexpected' Lia Middleton 'Dark in the way only Will Carver can be ... oozes malevolence from every page' Victoria Selman 'A wickedly dark and funny novel, with a protagonist you can't help but root for' Lisa Hall 'Move the hell over Brett Easton Ellis and Chuck Palahniuk ... Will Carver is the new lit prince of 21st-century disenfranchised, pop darkness' Stephen J. Golds 'An Eleanor Oliphant for crime fans. Carver truly at his best