Under This Red Rock by Mindy McGinnis
Published by Katherine Tegen Books on March 19, 2024
ISBN: 0063230410
Genres: Mental Health, Mystery, Psychological thriller, Realistic Fiction
Format: Young Adult
Source: MSL Book Review
Goodreads

In this suspenseful young adult novel, sixteen year old Neely does her best to hide her audio and visual hallucinations because her father and brother cautioned her never to let people know about their shared symptoms of mental illness. Neely is under constant pressure not to reveal the severity of her hallucinations while trying to fit in with her peers and not worry her grandparents. Desperate to find some meaning in life after her brother’s suicide, Neely starts working in the local caves, the only place she doesn’t experience hallucinations. Neely quickly develops a crush on her coworker, Mina, but doubts anyone could care about her in return if she told them about her hallucinations. When Mina goes missing, Neely realizes she’s missing chunks of time and her hallucinations are getting worse. Fearing a complete mental break and desperate to find out what really happened to Mina, Neely works to put the pieces together even if she can’t trust her memory.

A long list of heavy subjects such as depression, untreated mental illness, suicide and suicidal ideation, torture, rape, murder, drug use, and gaslighting all contribute to the somber and at times, bleak tone of this young adult novel. Vulnerable and dealing with unprocessed trauma and untreated mental illness, Neely is a tragic character in desperate need of something positive in her life. Under This Red Rock is recommended for readers who enjoy unreliable narrators, mysteries, and realistic fiction.

Reviewed by Sarah Hartje, Lewiston Public Library, Lewiston