At the End of Every Day: A Novel
Description
This haunting debut novel—perfect for fans of Mona Awad, Karin Tidbeck, and Julia Armfield—is a “wild genre-and-mind-bending ride” (Laura Sims, author of Looker) about a loyal employee at a collapsing theme park questioning the recent death of a celebrity visitor, the arrival of strange new guests, her boyfriend’s erratic behavior, and ultimately her own sanity.
Delphi has spent years working at a vast and iconic theme park in California after fleeing a trauma in her rural hometown. But following the disturbing death of a beloved Hollywood starlet on the park grounds, Delphi is tasked with shuttering it for good.
Meanwhile, two siblings with ties to the park exchange letters, trying to understand why people who work there have been disappearing. Before long, they learn that there’s a reason no one is meant to see behind its carefully guarded curtain…
What happens when the park empties out? And what happens when Delphi, who seems remarkably at one with it, is finally forced to leave?
Simultaneously “a smart and surprising escape room of a novel” (Matt Bell, author of Appleseed) about the uncanny valley, death cults, optical illusions, and the enduring power of fantasy, Reiche’s debut is a mind-bending teacup ride through an eerily familiar landscape, where the key to it all is what happens at the end of every day.
Praise for At the End of Every Day: A Novel
“Through all of her pop-culture references and sci-fi filigree, Reiche maintains a charming prose style. I circled many deft phrases while reading … [An] extraordinary creative reach.”—New York Times Book Review
“A debut for those more enamored by a rusted, retro amusement park than Disneyland, this novel follows a loyal employee at a collapsing theme park who questions her sanity after a Hollywood starlet dies on-site, and employees start disappearing. It reads like a roller coaster dropping headfirst into the uncanny valley.”—NYLON, Best Books of July
"Gorgeous"—CrimeReads
"A dreamlike, unsettling narrative that frequently slides into the uncanny valley. Readers are in for an eerie, psychological roller-coaster ride."—Publishers Weekly
“Arianna Reiche’s At the End of Every Day takes us deep inside a dying—and sometimes deadly— theme park. Filled with richly detailed descriptions of the world her possibly unreliable protagonist, Delphi, knows best, Reiche’s unique take on the epic quest—featuring creepy bots, a death cult, subterranean realms, and more—compels you to hang on for the wild genre-and-mind-bending ride.” —Laura Sims, author of Looker and How Can I Help You
“Arianna Reiche’s At the End of Every Day is a smart and surprising escape room of a novel, transforming America’s theme park urban legends and pop culture mythologies into something darker, stranger, weirder—or else only making clear what dark and strange and weird holds such amusements have always had on us.” —Matt Bell, author of Appleseed
