Many thanks to NetGalley and Zando | Tin House for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest novel by Claire Fuller. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars!
in 1987, after childhood trauma and years in and out of the care system, sixteen-year-old Ursula finds herself with a new job in the postroom of a local art school, a bed in a halfway house, and some new friends, including wild-child, Sue. When Ursula is invited to join a squat at The Underwood, a mysterious house whose owners met a terrible end, she can’t resist the promise of a readymade, hodgepodge family. Thirty-six years later, Ursula is a renowned, reclusive sculptor living under a pseudonym in London when her identity is exposed by true-crime documentary-maker who is digging into an unsolved disappearance. But it is not only the filmmaker who has discovered Ursula’s whereabouts, and as her past catches up with her present, Ursula must work out whether the monsters are within her or without
I'm not sure I've read a book that gave me such creepy, unsettling feelings from page one to the end. I was questioning everything and everyone, never convinced what was real and what wasn't. It's that kind of book, where timelines are slippery and intermingle as Ursula looks back over the events of the summer of 1987 as an accomplished adult. The writing is amazing as you would expect from this author, and it kept me engaged throughout, with that dark, gothic feel so prevalent. It also brings up topics of childhood trauma, mental illness and the care system for minors, which in this book will make you mad and understand the characters a bit more. I felt for young Ursula as she wanted so badly to fit in and belong. And that ultra-creepy house was practically a character itself. Be sure and check this one out if you like your reading on the dark side!
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