A room within a room. A door behind a door. I need something more. A world's out there and it's calling your name.

This book was a real passion project of mine. I worked on it in my spare time when I wasn't overloaded by exams. So there were massive breaks. But when I start on something, I never give up on it, no matter how long it takes. I needed to fulfill my vision for this book, write every idea of mine down and structure the narrative and each perspective to match the last. I went down a rabbit hole of crazy ideas and some of the craziest narrative plot points made it through because it was irresistible to create this world and have it become something more. So realistically impossible that I tried to make it make sense.

I had this idea of crossing over the characters in my books as soon as I wrote 'The Dicer'. It was always going to be six characters who came from different genres of mystery/thriller, horror, neo-noir and sci-fi. It was an idea that was ambitious, but it was genuinely original. And the book doesn't come off wacky in the slightest. A narrative experiment that actually turned out serious and pondering. It's a study of these characters, further delving into their pasts and futures, and ultimately their fates in this connected universe.

It's also a continuation of the journeys of these characters. They are simply written in my style of writing but they each have a touch of flavour from the genres they hail from. As they draw closer to each other, they all begin to sound the same. Their thoughts grow louder, no longer able to keep it to themselves anymore. Their ideologies and motivations are all inspired by modern American ideals. They are characters, but they feel human emotions, and to humanise them, I had to draw it out of the deepest part of me. Of my limited knowledge of the America I know, and my limited knowledge of the human mind.

It goes without saying, that this book should not be read if you haven't read my other books (excluding 'The Shortest Pain'). It sees my evolution in writing style and book length, bookended by this favoured masterpiece.

Enjoy the book. It's rather something special. An epic hybrid. A philosophical odyssey.