Lesath by AM Kherbash is an X-Files-esque read tinged with elements of Shutter Island, Inception, and the Agent Pendergast series by Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child. We mostly follow Greg, an unreliable narrator if ever there was one. A drifter who lives in his truck, and hopes to create a career in free-lance writing, Greg follows hints to a secret facility in Duncastor (or does he?), where he ends up a captive of the place. The facility director, Dr Carver, tells Greg that he must stay in place of an inmate who escaped, and who happens to look exactly like Greg. There are flashbacks to Greg’s childhood that alludes to a twin named Ory, and some nameless abuse. Though most of the story focuses on Greg, there are asides following the enigmatic Dr Carver, as well as Holden, a former staff member turned inmate. Greg agrees, albeit reluctantly, but as the days pass, he discovers this is something more than a special correctional facility. Something sinister stalks the shadowed halls. Something hungry.  

It reads like a paralysis dream, that foggy liminal state when the brain wakes, but the subconscious still controls body functions, aware and unable to move. A state that can lead to vivid dreams as real as the waking world. Greg, whose twin ‘Ory’- Greg/Ory- makes me think that Greg suffers from DIDS, and ‘Ory’ is a dominant, yet secondary personality manifested to deal with the childhood trauma. A protector figure that resurfaces as ‘Grim’. This mysterious doppelganger makes an appearance (or does he?), interacting with others, but never Greg, except one ‘shroom worthy encounter that seems to support the DID.

Much of the story is disjointed, which suits its tone and substance. Every page will leave you questioning what is true and what shapes reality, what hides in the dark and what hides in our own inner depths. The ending, too, suits the book, but it left me going AAAHHHH! I wanted to know if my guesses and suspicions were correct, but like Inception, the ending leaves it open for the reader to continue to ponder the possibilities. Are you brave enough to face Lesath? Are you brave enough to face yourself? Enter the shadowed halls of Duncastor, where dreams are reality, and reality tis but a dream.

Overall, a great read. Recommended for those who like psychological thrillers, especially with hints of X-Files, Inception, and Shutter Island, or those who enjoy Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child’s works.

***Many thanks to Netgalley and the author for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.