Reviews with content warning for Suicide attempt - Here, and Only Here

Reviews tagging 'Suicide attempt'

Here, and Only Here by Christelle Dabos

7 reviews

k_shimer's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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booklywookly's review

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dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Prateek - BooklyWookly on Instagram

I am not into fantasy reads. Yes ma’am, no dragons, no elves, no swords for me. But December is when I crave me some little Terry Pratchett or Neil Gaiman (Urban fantasy?). The season and all its ho-ho-hos pairs well with a bit of dark fantasy/ dark academia vibes. So, I tried Christelle Dabos’ for the first time with her book Here, and Only Here. And this was so GOOD!

Welcome to Here - A mysterious middle school where everything is stratified, the atmosphere is eerie, students are ruthless, teachers are helpless, and weird is normal.

The book follows four students, each feeling like outcasts in their own ways. Each of the characters is dealing with how to fit into the social construct of the school.

Iris, a shy and timid first-year student who doesn’t want to attract any attention, and wants to blend in so much that she literally becomes invisible to the world around her.

Pierre, the “lousy kid”. A second-year student who in a class of 27, where everyone is paired up, is the odd one out. Forever destined to be the designated punching bag of the class, he is violently bullied and he wouldn’t want to change anything about it.

Madeleine, an extremely insecure and fiercely competitive third-year student who gets appointed as “The Chosen One” by a mystical spirit.

Guy, a fourth-year bully - but a deeply conflicted and vulnerable kid - who meets his match in a new girl in class.

We also have a Prince - the bully supreme, a substitute teacher with a past, a super secret society investigating supernatural phenomena called Schmoil, ghosts and ectoplasm, a student who walks upside down on ceilings, stinky bogs from hell, profanity galore, cuckold teachers and parents, it’s fun!

The book explores themes of loneliness, isolation, identity, power. Unless you were completely at ease in the middle school, never had to go through the difficulties of being a teenager, and never felt out of place (who the hell are you?!), you will find this book nostalgic and relatable. You can either take all the supernatural events at face value. Or you can find deeper meanings and metaphors for the isolating perils of existing as an adolescent within the social trappings of schools, and incomprehensible coping mechanisms to survive and combat fear of moving towards high school. Everything felt amplified during that period innit? Either way the narration can be enjoyed.

On paper this looks YA. But I don’t think that’s the target audience. I loved the atmospheric and imaginative writing creating a vivid and eerie world. A big chunk of the book is dedicated to isolated characters intros and development. The characters are complex and flawed, and their interactions are realistic and sometimes heartbreaking. Overall, two thumbs up.

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