Next Up

In Andrea Gibson's latest collection, they continue their artful and nuanced looks at gender, romance, loss, and family. Each emotion here is deft and delicate, resting inside of imagery heavy enough to sink the heart, while giving the body wings to soar.

BEWARE THE CALIGINENTSaffron has been imprisoned in Medlock's Detention, where the guards are soulless, the prisoners are secretive, and the shadows are sharpening their claws. But she knows something even darker is lurking in the depths of the cells. Her friend Ray was detained here before he mysteriously vanished. The only clues he left were warning messages about a monster that feeds on thoughts and devours sanity. A monster that may still be watching from the dark corners of every room. THE CALIGINENT WILL EAT YOUR MINDSaffron is now determined to discover what happened to Ray. She is willing to search through forbidden rooms, cultish séances, and brainwashing drug trials to uncover the secrets kept in the ever\-growing shadows. Including the secrets she's keeping from herself. RUN WHILE YOU STILL CAN

Gilda, a twenty-something lesbian, cannot stop ruminating about death. Desperate for relief from her panicky mind and alienated from her repressive family, she responds to a flyer for free therapy at a local Catholic church, and finds herself being greeted by Father Jeff, who assumes she’s there for a job interview. Too embarrassed to correct him, Gilda is abruptly hired to replace the recently deceased receptionist Grace. In between trying to memorize the lines to Catholic mass, hiding the fact that she has a new girlfriend, and erecting a dirty dish tower in her crumbling apartment, Gilda strikes up an email correspondence with Grace’s old friend. She can’t bear to ignore the kindly old woman, who has been trying to reach her friend through the church inbox, but she also can’t bring herself to break the bad news. Desperate, she begins impersonating Grace via email. But when the police discover suspicious circumstances surrounding Grace’s death, Gilda may have to finally reveal the truth of her mortifying existence.