Exit to Reality

When Euclid (real name Lydian) ventures onto the random Queries and Idle Speculation bulletin board, she meets Proteus (real name Merle), a self-described misfit. Curiosity and a desire to jettison her culturally induced techno-stupor lead Lydian to rendezvous with Merle, igniting an unlikely meeting of the minds—and bodies. Lydian and Merle's careening love affair takes them from California to Paris to Jamaica, from the wrong side of the law to the far side of late-millennium family values, and ultimately, to a face-off between technology and civilization that spurs Lydian to question—and then dismantle—the very essence of human existence.
"Forbes is masterful in telling her story, blending a clever plot with a stinging message. . . . The dialogue is as witty as it is down-to-earth, and the characters are thoroughly lovable." —The Bloomsbury Review
"It is a testament to Forbes' story-telling abilities that Exit to Reality is so entertaining. The book not only chills and provokes, it also makes the reader laugh—sometimes out loud." —American Bookseller

The following is an excerpt from chapter three of Exit to Reality.
     The room was crowded, I discovered. I began to thread my way among the bodies, casting a discreet glance at each chest in search of a red carnation. At first, I barely noticed the people themselves. . . But I began to be aware that everyone except me was looking in one particular direction. No one was staring fixedly. Rather, they were casting quick glances, the way people do when their gaze is drawn irresistibly, but the feel a stare would be impolite.
     I let my gaze follow the direction of theirs, and in spite of rudeness I stared. In the far corner of the chapel stood a most extraordinary looking man. He was peering closely at some detail in the stained glass, and appeared to be oblivious to all the covert gawking directed his way.
     "That's Proteus," I thought, by no conscious path of reason.

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