Rules for Vanishing ~ Kate Alice Marshall

Expected UK Publication Date: 24th September 2019

I feel so very fortunate to have been given the chance to read this before it comes out in a couple of months because this might be my favourite read of 2019 (so far).

Rules for Vanishing is a ghost story told in the style of a faux documentary. Once a year at midnight, a path appears in the middle of the woods. Lucy Gallows, a girl who disappeared years ago and has become the local ghost story, beckons. Last year Becca disappeared and this year Sara is determined to find out what happened to her sister.

Rules for Vanishing has a Blair Witch Project style, with evidence collected from a written testimony, interviews, mobile phone footage and exhibits. This style means that sometimes the plot can be a little non-linear, however, it was really easy to follow. I really liked the style and thought it added to what could’ve been a really clichéd story.

Sara is the main protagonist and is an unreliable narrator who is constantly leaving things out and sometimes not making much sense. It doesn’t detract from the story at all, in fact, it adds to the mystery. There are many elements to this ghost story which take it away from what could’ve been a cliché, campfire ghost story. It does have the classic horror film ingredient of a group of friends going into the woods to find their missing friend. The characters are all fleshed out and feel like real people, even with the missing details from Sara’s testimony.

The ghost road has seven gates, which present their own set of trials and rules. Each challenge attempts to tear the admittedly already-strained friendship group and the newcomers have to figure out how they fit into the once fractured group.

This novel is chilling and dark. The ghost story is only a major plot point in a story that tells how friends that have drifted apart deal when put into a life or death situation. I found myself completely hooked and incredibly blown away by the brilliance of Kate Alice Marshall’s storytelling. I give this novel five stars and encourage you all to go buy it when it comes out on the 24th September 2019 in the UK.

C

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