When a shred of the unfathomable emerges inside the unborn child, a life’s path is stained with the ink of the unthinkable. 

Drandis’ earliest years are a struggle to understand the subtle nature of the force he calls ‘the pealing,’ and grasp how it affects his relationship to the world around him.  Estranged from his parents and ostracized by his peers, Drandis discovers happiness in the unexpected meeting of two fellow misfits, and at first they thrive in the world they create together. 

But a chasm begins to grow between the three as a result of the secrets they keep from each other, the pain that puberty brings, and their encounters with a boy with a wishbone birthmark, whose motivations seem mysterious.  Drandis’ anxiety in the increasingly grim world around him intensifies after a disturbing dream about the pealing, and he is finally driven to a desperate decision that results in him facing the unimaginable. 

Inside a nameless institution with no obvious way out, he begins to understand the events that led to his entrapment and the nature of the force within. Yet it’s questionable what end his triumphs are leading him toward until the startling final act. 

The boy with the wishbone birthmark tells the story’s other side, in which the shadowed faces of intentions are revealed, mysteries left in darkness are brought to light, and the frayed ends of Drandis’ life finally join together to form an unexpected hole.

RATE THIS CHAPTER!

Author guidance for This work

This is a synopsis, akin to a back cover blurb, that I am working on to include in agent letters, or possibly to hook readers if I end up self-publishing. Any comments or suggestions whatsoever would be greatly appreciated! It was a struggle to pare down a more complex and structurally experimental book in this way.

The misspelling of 'whole' at the end is intentional, and the play on words is apt, but I am wondering if it seems too gimmicky.

updated May 17 '11 by Black_Box