Shaken Loose

Not a word is wasted in DeBare’s intense and challenging existential horror debut about a college dropout navigating a decaying Christian hell in search of redemption and justice. Annie Maple finds herself in hell without knowing either how she died or why she was damned. With the underworld’s infrastructure crumbling, she and other “shaken loose” souls from various cultures and time periods—including a Hun named Trua and Billie, a 1950s American housewife—seize the opportunity to bust out, trekking across a harrowing hellscape in search of an exit. Along the way, Annie transforms from an underachiever to a determined, empathetic heroine on a quest to challenge divine injustice. DeBare leavens this fast-paced and often brutal tale with subtle wit and thought-provoking existential dilemmas. In its examination of divine justice and personal growth, this reads like a gorier, more visceral, and more introspective sibling to the TV series The Good Place. (July)