Description

In Midwestern flyover country, the stories of More Hell weave a rich and sometimes comic tapestry of longing, addiction, sex, and loss. The wild cast of rural characters navigate a fast-changing world from their vantage point in a place unaccustomed to such change.

This collection swirls perpetually around the hope and animosity of Neil and Maria Kenning’s fracturing marriage, while introducing readers to the voices around them:

an autistic woman who imagines her relationship as a fragile glass house;
a little girl who plays with sentient nativity figurines while her mother’s infidelity unfolds for all to see;
a young man grieving the deaths of his great aunt and a blue-collar boy he had feelings for in high school.

More Hell presents characters struggling for self-actualization and personal identity in a space painfully confined by its geography.

al-Sirgany’s writing paints a nuanced picture, challenging stereotypes and revealing the depth and diversity hidden beneath the surface of a seemingly monochrome landscape. The cast of More Hell will resonate long after the final page.