The Portal Between, by Sarah Barnard

Sam was Kate's best friend since they met at school, together they grew, had children and Sam was there as Kate married Jack.

But one autumn Sam vanished after a row with her parents and a disagreement with Kate over a secret she was keeping, leaving her children behind and Kate stepped in to care for them. With Lily's help Kate has coped with her own children and Sam's but at a cost. Jack has left her and she's struggling when Sam suddenly reappears in a rush of fear and mystery and Kate's world is torn apart as magic is suddenly made real and Lily isn't who she seems to be, and neither is Sam.

As the demonic Ametsam relentlessly pursues Sam and Lily it takes more than one of the three friends to find him before he finds them, and even then the journey isn't easy and their lives get more tangled than they could imagine and in ways they never dreamed.
Ultimately, where will Sam choose to belong?

The Portal Between is the first book in the Portal series and Sarah Barnard's debut novel. The second book in the series, The Portal Sundered, is also available in good bookshops, libraries and in various places online. The third and final book, Child of the Portal, is due for paperback release during September 2011, but is already available in ebook editions.

The three women in the book represent aspects of the western society that I see everyday and aspects of ourselves as well as the traditional three ages of womanhood.

Sam is the youngest, the maiden who although she is a mother doesn't really want to be. She doesn't cope, has no idea what or who she wants and her anger at her treatment in the events leading to the opening of the book tear apart the lives and friendships she encounters. She is depressive and damaged and not someone you need in your life. Yet, somehow, Kate and Lily love her anyway.

Kate is the nurturer, the mother, the carer, the home-maker. She has an inner strength that she doesn't see in herself but Lily and Jack both see it. She is the one with no magic but she is the one who holds the families together while the magic rips them apart.

Lily is, in many ways, the most complex of the three. She is the oldest, in more ways than one and she has held the power since her birth. She has been trained and uses magic in everyday life but chooses to keep it quiet and subtle. She has a tremendous depth to her and is a force to be reckoned with. A wonderful and true friend but not someone you'd want to cross.

Ametsam is a manifestation of twisted, cruel anger. He is dark, and intelligent, and he is in control of the power he wields although he spends it recklessly in the end as that control slips away from him. But he is still charming and possesses a magnetism and charisma that were almost impossible to resist until he began to change.

Her heart pounding she drove the few short miles to the woods and carefully made her way to a parking spot as close to the oak as possible. Sweat on her hands had made them slip more than once. The woods were dark outside the headlights and she was grateful for the torch. She stopped and sat in the dark. Reaching for the torch, she checked the time. 11.00, an hour to go. Should she set up the candle early? Would it help? Would it attract something nasty? Full of indecision and lacking any real knowledge of what she should be doing, Kate sat there on the verge of tears. She was hoping this would work but at the same time didn't really believe it could. The minutes ticked by slowly and the torch was flicked on and off to check more times than was truly necessary. Her heart beat loud against her ribs and echoed in her ears. Her mind raced in circles. At 11.40 she finally gave up and got out of the car. She touched a hand to her breast to reassure herself that the jet was still there. Its shape felt clear through her shirt. She pulled it out to have a closer look. A simple piece of polished stone, gleaming black but warm, with a five pointed star carved into one side. The sort of star you saw on Hallowe'en costumes or Goth gear. She tucked it back in and pulled her collar up for extra warmth. Most of what she had brought was left in the car. Hiding behind practicalities still, she took the candle, matches, pendant and photos and stuffed them all in various pockets.
Kate took a deep steadying breath and approached the old oak. There was a stump in front of it where she and Sam had used to take the children for picnics.
She stood for a moment and gazed up at the enormous, ancient tree and wondered if it could really be a place that held a gateway to another world. Then she knelt to place the candle in the centre of the stump. She lit it and carefully arranged the photos and pendant around it. On impulse she took some fallen leaves and arranged them too. Then she took back her favourite of the selection of photos and tucked it into her pocket. She thought for a moment and then stood and addressed the tree, feeling more than a little silly.
"I have no idea why I'm doing this." She began, "But I do know I want my best friend back. I want Tom and Susan to have their Mother back please and if there is any way that can happen, well, it'd be the best thing for all of us. I don't know if there are special words to say or whether I have to hug you or something, but I'm here for Sam, lighting the way like she asked. I only hope it's enough." She reached out to touch the deeply creased bark and pulled back her hand, hesitant to hope and feeling distinctly daft she checked her watch by the light of the flickering candle. 11.55.
She took a long look at Sam's laughing face in the photo in her jacket pocket, reached out again. Her hand just kept on going as if the tree wasn't there. She pulled it back, tried again. It was like a film special effect, her hand went straight into the tree, but it felt like there was nothing there. She flicked on the torch for a better look, but the damn thing flared and died. She shook it, banged it against her leg, tried again, nothing. Heart pounding harder now she stepped away from the tree but couldn't take her eyes from its dark bulk. It was just a tree, and a familiar one at that, her initials and Sam's were carved on it, but somehow it became menacing in the dark. It was midnight, in the oldest local woods, said to be haunted, on Hallowe'en. Kate would have laughed if she'd not been so terrified. She'd discussed this with Sam, almost crying with laughter, in horror films why do they always go to the woods? Why do they open the door? This was the place and time the main character should not be. Certain death was usually on its way and she might just escape by the skin of her teeth. Then Kate heard the voices.
Screaming, shouting, aggressive and abusive and coming closer. One voice stood out.
"KATE! I'M COMING!" Sam, yelling. Then Sam came tumbling out of the old oak tree, tripped over a root and fell into Kate's waiting arms.