A few weeks ago, Atom Books put out an open call for bloggers to review Another Place by Matthew Crow, and I was lucky enough to be sent a copy. I didn’t really know what it was about, but I’d seen some buzz about it on social media, and there was a cover quote from Matt Haig about Crow’s last book, so I hoped it would be good. I was not disappointed!
A small town. A missing schoolgirl. A terrible secret. And one girl’s fight to survive.
Sixteen-year-old Claudette Flint is coming home from hospital after an escalating depression left her unable to cope. Released into the care of her dad, she faces the daunting task of piecing herself back together.
She may look unchanged; but everything’s different. The same could be said about her seaside hometown: this close-knit community seems to be unspooling in the wake of the sudden disappearance of one of her schoolmates, Sarah.
As the police investigate and the press dig around for dirt, small town secrets start to surface – and Claudette must do everything in her power to keep her head above water.
Another Place is a novel about lost girls – and the meaning of home.
Another Place is so good, I really recommend it you get hold of it as soon as it comes out. It has great mental health rep (Claudette, the main character, has recently been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, after years of suffering with depression) and it’s also really interesting in the way it explores class – there’s a definite divide between the middle and working classes in the community, which can be seen in the attitudes towards Sarah.
We only get to meet Sarah through flashbacks, as Claudette remembers her friend, but I found myself really liking her. She’s not a nice character by any means, but she comes across as a survivor, who does what it takes to get by…until of course, she goes missing. Claudette is convinced that the key to her own recovery is finding out what happened to Sarah, and sets about doing so. Claudette herself is difficult. She’s clearly still struggling, but instead of turning to the people who love her, she becomes obsessed with her quest, and hurts a lot of people. The book is marketed as something of a mystery, but it’s much more about Claudette’s journey to accepting who she is.
Fortunately, Claudette is surrounded by great supporting characters. Her dad, her almost-stepmother and her best friend are fantastic and I loved seeing them interact with Claudette and try to show her that they’re there for her. Donna, the best friend, is particularly good at home truths, which Claudette was sorely in need of at times. I also very much liked Mr Fitzpatrick, a curmudgeonly soul who is unexpectedly nice to Claudette one day, leading to an unlikely friendship.
I don’t want to say too much about the plot because I think it’s much better if you go into this book knowing as little about it as possible, but I really did think it was great and exceptionally well-written. It’s out today, 3rd August, and I hope that if you do check it out you enjoy it as much as I did.
4/5
I received an ARC from Atom Books in exchange for an honest review.
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