My Two Cents: NO ONE WAS EVER REALLY IN THIS PLACE by Mike Salt

In No One Was Ever Really in This Place by author Mike Salt (coming August 4 from Wicked House), when chronically depressed Felix wakes to find himself alone in the city he calls home, it isn't much of a change. After all, he's always felt isolated and alone, even when surrounded by other people. There's no one Felix feels close to or intimate with, whether physically or emotionally. His only real points of connection in the world are with his dog, Ninja, and a young woman at a local coffee shop upon whom he harbors an unspoken crush, and when both vanish along with everyone else in the world, Felix is left to try and figure out what has happened.

As he explores the empty city, he discovers he is not as alone as he initially believed. Frightening encounters with mysterious, shadowy figures and ghosts from his past lead him to realize there is something more malevolent involved, an ominous force that is actively hunting him through vacant streets and along empty sidewalks. Without giving too much away, suffice it to say when Felix discovers the truth, he learns there's nowhere left to run, no sanctuary from the grim fate that he's unwittingly set in motion.

Like a modern twist on a classic episode from the Twilight Zone, No One Was Ever Really in This Place explores themes of isolation and loneliness through a surreal and often sinister lens. Salt's often dream-like prose gives readers a bird's eye view of Felix's life both before and after the occurrence that leaves him stranded, and paints a portrait of a man who, like a contemporary version of the titular character from T.S. Elliot's poem "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufock," is encumbered by his own inequities, so shackled by self-doubt and anxiety, he fails to speak his mind or admit his feelings until it's too late.

No One Was Ever Really in This Place releases August 4. It's available for pre-order here.