Ink

Maberry returns to Pine Deep, the Pennsylvania town that launched his career as a novelist, in this stand-alone horror story. A tattoo artist has the face of her dead daughter on her hand. Well, she used to, anyway. Slowly, it has faded and then vanished. And with it, her memories of her daughter. Pine Deep is full of people whose memories are vanishing--or being stolen. Maberry, who has never shied away from serious, complex subjects, here tackles one of the most fundamental themes of them all: the nature and transience of memory. Yes, there is a monster in the book, but this is no one-track monster story, though the idea of people losing pieces of their identities, and how they respond to the loss, packs a monstrous wallop. Maberry, who was no slouch as a storyteller back in the days of the first Pine Deep novel, Ghost Road Blues (2006), continues to hone his craft. What's especially interesting about Ink is its texture. Descriptions like "He smelled like yeast from a bakery Dumpster" or "The window was crammed with beer signs and they painted the wet pavement in Christmas colors" create strikingly vivid imagery. This tactile realism makes the story's horror even more visceral and haunting. A brilliant and supremely scary novel.

Maberry sends the hard-boiled skip tracer Monk Addison, who first appeared in 2018's Glimpse, to the creepy small-town setting of his Pine Deep trilogy for a disquieting standalone adventure. Upon arriving in Pine Deep, Pa., the "most haunted town in America," Monk immediately runs into trouble; one of his oldest friends, tattoo artist Patty Cakes, is attacked by a mysterious force that eats away at one of her most significant tattoos and steals the memories associated with it. Local psychic Dianna Agbala experiences something similar: a tattoo representing her core essence begins to fade, and with it her understanding of herself. The culprit is a man who calls himself the Lord of the Flies and feeds off memories--and it's up to Monk and his allies to stop him. Moments of gruesome violence and abuse mark this as not for the faint of heart, though Maberry's focus on the strength and resilience of his heroes offers a glimmer of light in the darkness. The unhinged and unrepentant Lord of the Flies is a striking villain who will haunt readers long after the book is through. Horror fans should take note. Agent: Sara Crowe, Pippin Properties. (Nov.)