The Journal (ePub)

In the sleepy town of Playsfield, Kentucky, where the population barely crests 9,000 and everyone seems to know one another, 16-year-old Katrina Dowell leads an ordinary life as a student at Meadowbrook High. Her world is turned upside down, however, when her best friend Ashley Thomas inexplicably vanishes without a trace.

Katrina and Ashley had been inseparable for five years, their friendship forged from nights of laughter and secrets shared between the cozy walls of the Thomas household. So when Ashley fails to show up for classes one fateful morning, Katrina's concern is piqued. Surely Ashley must be ill - a quick text would confirm as much. But the message fails to send, Ashley's contact conspicuously absent from Katrina's phone.

Confused, Katrina broaches the subject with their tight-knit friend group at lunch, only to be met with utterly baffled expressions. "Ashley who?" they ask, a disturbing chorus of denials that Ashley had ever been part of their circle. A cold dread begins spreading through Katrina's veins.

After school, she makes a beeline for the Thomas residence, the path long since committed to muscle memory from her countless visits over the years. But the cheery yellow door opens to reveal a gruff, unfamiliar man - and a shocking proclamation that he has lived there for half a decade and has never heard of an Ashley Thomas.

Panic sets in as Katrina realizes her very reality seems to be unraveling. She scours yearbooks, texts, emails, any proof that her best friend had existed, but finds nothing. It's as if Ashley has been erased, expunged not just from the world but from the minds of everyone around her. Only Katrina's memories remain intact.

Desperate for answers, she embarks on a twisted investigation to uncover the truth. The more she digs, the more she realizes that other people's memories of Ashley are not just foggy - it's as if they have been meticulously, purposefully altered. But by whom? And why?

The trail leads Katrina to the darkest corners of her town, where an ancient, terrifying evil lies waiting. A malevolent force has been preying on Playsfield for centuries, periodically feeding by devouring the very existence of its victims from the memories of mankind. And Ashley, it seems, was simply its latest casualty.

In a harrowing climax, Katrina comes face-to-face with the eldritch entity, risking her very soul to save her friend's memory from being erased forever. Only by delving into arcane rituals and harnessing unimaginable powers can she hope to reverse the damage and restore Ashley to her rightful place.