Life is unfair. It plays favorites and is often unusually cruel to those who do not fit within society’s standards. Moll has crafted a bittersweet tale of two outcasts from different spectrums of life who come together to survive and try to make their mark in a world that doesn’t want them to exist.

The story is initially told through an omniscient narrator but quickly shifts to the point of view of a hotel maid named Lucy. She is a lonely, naive girl who starts exchanging letters at night with a man named Eldritch, who has a notorious reputation. She is then literally whisked away by him one night. Although she is initially terrified, the two fall in love through music. Their story is short and succinct, with a reminiscent vibe of Leroux’s Phantom of the Opera. While Lucy is not an opera singer like Christine, she goes through painstaking measures to keep music the central focus in both her and Eldritch’s life as it has brought them together.

This novella echoes with a lesson throughout the story, educating the reader on the impact that ostracizing and judging people can have. It is a heartbreaking, tragic tale as Lucy and Eldritch face trauma daily and struggle to shine in a world that doesn’t want them (banishing them to a darkness that is sadly comforting to Eldritch). While it is a poignant lesson that will reach readers of all walks and ages, it would have been even more impactful with more descriptions of their daily struggles or internal thoughts. Nonetheless, this story is filled with suspense and mystery, keeping readers on the edges of their seats.

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