Shortwave Publishing has rocketed onto the publishing scene, blending horror and science-fiction. One of the first releases in its novella line is Lyndsey Croal’s Have You Decided on Your Question?, the immersive story of Zoe, a woman who is left to ponder a question that has confounded fools and sages for years: If you could do it all again, would you?

Zoe is alone and lost. Then she finds Alternative Reality Tech, a corporation that purports to allow someone to relive their past and see what might have been. In Zoe’s case, she decides to see what would happen if she met the love of her life.

But of course, it’s never so simple as one single glance at diverging timestreams. Zoe begins to lose herself in the world of alternate reality. The life she lives and the life she wants are difficult to separate. Her obsession grows dangerous and threatens to consume her.

Croal’s writing is beautifully immersive—an intoxicating blend of emotion and longing, with a subtle undercurrent of horror. The writing is subtle, starting with Zoe’s decisions being almost whimsical and emotional. But the core of obsession and darkness soon manifests in frightening ways.

Have You Decided on Your Question? brings a fear of losing control, made so much more terrifying by the idea Zoe might never want to regain it. When she decides on her question, the answer may consume her forever.

And it’s a riveting exploration of what happens when that’s exactly what she wants.