This book was so incredibly amazing! I cannot thank NetGalley enough for giving me the opportunity to read this. Libby is written so well when it comes to mental health and finding strength within yourself. The gothic horror/body horror of this was written so incredibly well and had me lowkey regret finishing this at 2:30 am. I need everyone to read this book so I have so many people to talk about it with

A Place For Vanishing is a story unlike any that I’ve read. We meet Libby, her sister Vivi, and their mother after they move into their mom’s childhood home in the aftermath of Libby attempting suicide. Their family dynamic is shaken to the core, and we see how each member is affected.
The beginning of the book starts as a haunted house, but with its own quirks and history that Libby must uncover. Around 60% it when the book really sank its teeth in, and I couldn’t wait to figure out what truly was going on here.
Haunted house, creepy family history that must be figured out in time, and saving those who matter the most. If you have any qualms about insects, I would stay away as there is a lot of bug stuff going on in this book, but otherwise, I would recommend this highly!

Big thank you to Netgallery for the ARC; all opinions are my own!

I’ve found lately that books that involve big, mysterious houses are definitely ones I want to be reading. Bonus points if there are enough descriptive details that I can envision the mansion easily. Most of the time these books involve some sort of mystery, so that makes it even more up my alley. A Place for Vanishing hit a little different though, and I think it was just not quite realistic enough for my taste.

First, I would like to address the fact that the protagonist in this book, Libby, is very transparent about dealing with a mental health diagnosis and her time in a psych ward. I was impressed that the author added some of the difficult details right away and peppered the rest throughout the book, making the story of Libby’s recent past and diagnosis of bipolar III seem like a life-changing event, (which it was) but also possibly a metaphor for the healing she is going through in stages as time moves on.

The main reason Libby, her younger sister Vivi, and their mom moved to the big old house that was their mother’s childhood home is to escape the memories of some recent incidents they’d rather forget. It seemed like the perfect opportunity: a need for a change and an old house inherited. Sounds like fate, right?

Unfortunately, the mother didn’t strike me as super stable and responsible. She’s doing the best with what she has, but sometimes she takes on more than she can handle…like moving to a huge, possibly haunted, house. Apparently, the fact that her parents possibly disappeared rather than died (as she was told) and several other people have disappeared from the house aren’t anything concerning to the mother. Or maybe she doesn’t believe that they were disappearances in the first place. The more the whole family learns about the house and its history, the creepier the story gets, with séances and secret ceremonies and a past that is filled with shadows and uncertainty.

All in all, this book mixes reality and a world of spirits and ghosts quite successfully, in my opinion. I appreciate that while Libby is fighting mental battles she’s also fighting these fantastical physical battles simultaneously. A Place for Vanishing captured my attention and held it until the very last page.

Review of a Digital Advance Readers Copy from Random House Children’s, Delacorte Press

This was really wild! A family looking for a fresh start, a strange house where people tend to go missing, seances and spirits, and bugs. Lots of bugs. This was definitely creepy and a little grotesque. I was super engrossed in the mystery of the house and its sinister history and it made the book really fly by.

This honestly just got crazier and crazier as it went on. Some of the descriptions especially involving the bugs actually had my jaw dropping. I enjoyed the characters and the little hint of romance was cute as well.

The depiction of mental illness and the way it affects the people around you was very well done, but definitely check trigger warnings. Overall a really unique & well written contemporary gothic horror.

Thank you to Random House for the ARC!

3.5 stars

The best way to describe this story is UNIQUE - I can honestly say I've never read anything quite like it.

16-year-old Libby has recently been diagnosed and treated for Bipolar III after a suicide attempt; as a result she, her 13-year-old sister Vivi, and their mother are moving back into mom's creepy childhood home. There's something not quite right about this place - insect/bug masks in every room along with stained glass windows depicting the aforementioned...not to mention the myriad of creepy crawlies infesting the place despite multiple fumigations -- but that isn't even the worst part. The formerly abandoned home has a long history of folks vanishing. With the help of her cute neighbor Flynn, Libby and Vivi plan to get to the bottom of these disappearances and understand what's going on in this house a little better.

This book does a great job representing Libby's mental state and the highs and lows of her mental illness - along with showing what it's like for family members of folks with mental illness.

Once you start reading you're definitely in for a wild ride - there is a lot to unpack on this adventure.

Folks who enjoy horror, paranormal activity, supernatural beings, and all around great story-telling will enjoy this book.

Thank you so much to Random House Children's and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback. I look forward to consuming more material from Ann Fraistat.

Libby her mom and little sister Vivi are moving back to her mom‘s childhood home a place they never even visited do to the bad memories and things her mom doesn’t want to speak about. However they need a new start ever since Libby was found trying to OD in the bathroom and has been diagnosed with bipolar type three. her family treats her different now and she understands and knows why she has stopped acting but her sister Vivi has also stopped her ballet something Libby cannot forgive her self for and worries about. Soon after they move in to the Home it doesn’t take long before they realize the strange house they’re now living in they first find a plaque saying the house of mask which is odd but something they blow off the nails until they take the boards off the windows every window is made of stain glass but nothing quite so lovely as the one you say at a church these windows have Beatles butterflies and even a table with 12 attendees at assailants which is the same table that sits in their backyard. When Libby tries to learn more about this strange and weird home they now live in she meets a boy at the library named Flynn due to his rude attitude she figures it won’t be a lasting friendship but little does Lily know he will be the key to finding out all the secrets the house has to offer and why does every rum come with the tone mask. I not only that but what about the room her mom doesn’t want her to go in, so many unanswered questions and Libby is going to try and figure it out. Can she do it without making her mom thinks she has totally lost her mind and will her and Vivy ever be close sisters again? I know some people will read this modern day Gothic story and see a lot of tropes we see another haunted house stories but I think this was a very imaginative gripping tail but I couldn’t turn away from and didn’t want to put down. I found them to be such a lovely family and the mystery in their place and all the missing people from the house made it that much more intriguing. there is so much still to know about this great story so don’t think I have given too much away because I have hardly scratched the surface this is a great solid read and one I definitely recommend. I want to thank Random House publishing kids and net galley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

Her mother's childhood home, which has sat empty since her grandparent's accident when her mom was a child, was supposed to be a fresh start for Libby, her younger sister, Vivi, and their mom. A way to find a new normal after a recent tragedy and Libby's subsequent bipolar III diagnosis. Libby is trying to keep an open mind about their new home, but the house isn't making it easy. A never-ending bug infestation, stained-glass windows with bone-chilling designs with eerie masks, and haunting landscaping with a impossible blue rose hedge maze are just the beginning of Libby's concerns. As she dives deeper into the mysteries and history of her new home, she uncovers disappearances that span back a century thanks to a peculiar boy who seems to know more about her creepy house than the surface rumors she found in her own research.

There are secrets swirling around Libby and the deeper she goes, the more concerned she is, especially when her mom and sister seemed to be acting odd. Using the masks she and Vivi find in their rooms, she attempts to find the key to unlocking the truth. We all wear masks to make us strong or brave or shield ourselves from the world. But will the ones Libby wears lead her to uncover secrets or to lose everyone she loves.

The representation of mental health in this book was incredible. Libby's journey was beautifully written, as was the internal processing of the mood highs and lows she was experiencing. You could feel the emotion in the words as Libby experienced these different waves. I loved how Fraistat detailed the interactions between Libby and her family as they worked to grow back together after the tragedy and diagnosis that led them to seek out a fresh start, especially the relationship between Libby and Vivi. Mental health diagnoses affect not only the individual but the family around them, and the inclusion of this fact was appreciated.

These characters had layers and were a mystery in themselves as they experience their own journeys that are intertwined to the secrets of the house. Libby's strength was one to be admired as she struggles to find herself and repair the relationship with her sister. Vivi was bright and vibrant and tenacious. The enigmatic Flynn was a perfect addition to this sister duo as they dive deeper and deeper into the chilling history of the house.

The gothic horror atmosphere gave me just the perfect amount of chills. The last few chapters had me on the edge of my seat, heart-racing, and fingers flipping the pages as fast as possible to reach the end. The balance of family dynamics, mental health representation, a touch of young love, incredible character development, and a creepy mystery makes it the perfect book for those who love spooky stories that hold a deeper meaning.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's, Delacorte Press for this advance copy.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this amazing book! I fell in love with the house for sure! It has exceeded my expectations! You won't be sorry, this is a great read!

★ ★ ★ ★ • 4

Gothic young adult, paranormal-horror that starts off as a family moving into the mother’s childhood home for a fresh start after the older daughter attempted suicide as a result of a mental health crisis. Goes without saying, TW for suicidal ideation, suicide attempt, and heavy themes of mental illness and trauma. Additionally, (but unrelated to the other TW) I would absolutely not recommend this book to anyone who has any bug related phobias.

From the very beginning the book builds an increasingly unsettling and eerie tone, as the main character (Libby) takes in the new home. At first questioning if, while creepy, there’s anything actually inherently wrong with the house or if it’s just her imagination… Only to find out that the house has a very tangible history of disappearances.

At some point the book does quickly depart from the suspenseful build-up and take a sudden turn that I did not anticipate, and the ending came a bit too easy and abruptly… But that aside, A Place for Vanishing was a pretty decent read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for proving an ARC for review!

I absolutely loved this book! I was immediately drawn in by the aesthetic of the house that was described in the book, and I was intrigued by the air of mystery surrounding it. There was a huge unknown secret surrounding the house that Libby and her family moved into and it was a very delightful experience to see how that secret kept unraveling until you were shown the truth! I also really liked the macabre and grotesque aspects of the story and the way it made you feel uneasy and almost disgusted at times. That really enhanced the point that the author was trying to get across with this book. The only thing I will say is that some readers might not enjoy this book if they really don’t like bugs or are afraid of bugs, but if you don’t mind bugs then I highly recommend this book! A Place For Vanishing is a must read book and I will definitely buy my own copy when it comes out.

I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was better than the author's first book, What We Harvest. I liked the characters and the plot was interesting and engaging. Although you may want to think twice if you are really squeamish about bugs.

5/5 stars

A new favorite!

I don’t know why, but I wasn’t expecting this book to be a horror novel. The synopsis completely flew past my head and I was surprised when it took a turn for the creepy and the crawly, literally. But that kept me wanting to read and it was a hard book to put down.

This book has everything that I wanted out of a creepy, gothic novel: it’s atmospheric, it dives into human error and human nature, it hits the points of making my skin want to crawl and making me forget I was reading a book to begin with.

Libby was such a tragic character that I rooted for with all of my heart and soul. She’s sympathetic and just filled with a type of guilt that made me want to hug her and squeeze it all out of her. Each of the characters are flawed, struggling with their own problems and sometimes, too caught up in their own problems to look up and see how the others are hurting.

I thought the amount of thought and care that went to writing about mental health was done well and while I can’t speak on it, as I do not have bipolar disorder, it didn’t feel glorified and set the tone for Libby’s believability with those around her.

The prose was amazing and I found myself immersed in the world and horrified with the thing happening in it. Everything that happened was a beautifully painted image and I forgot I was reading. I was so invested in Libby’s journey and the history behind the house and just this overall need to see her succeed. There was many a moment where I found myself dusting my body off or smacking my legs thinking there was a bug crawling up it.

I highly recommend this book and it’s perfect to kick off Halloween in… 10 months or if you’re in the mood to just get creeped out randomly.

First off thank you to Netgalley and Ann Fraistat for allowing me to read and review this ARC.

Starting over on a new town after a horrible bi-polar incident with Libby, her mother decided to relocate her and her sister to a home she's owned (passed down by ancestry) but hasn't lived in since she was 4. After just one night, creepy noises and unexplained occurrences begin. Desperate to understand, Libby starts researching and finds out that her home is called the House of Masks and 10 people have gone missing over the years, including her grandparents.

What a wonderful story. Unlike anything I've read. I was sucked in from the first chapter. A definite read!

This book puts a fascinating twist on a haunted house story featuring creepy masks, seances, ghosts, possessions, and so, so many bugs. SO many bugs. YA tends to be better for diverse rep than most contemporary genres, and that's reflected here with a really fantastic portrayal of mental illness (Bipolar III) and an aroace character (not a big part of the plot, but appreciated nonetheless).

The heart of this novel is the family drama as the main character readjusts to life with her mother and younger sister in a new house after a suicide attempt. This is shown with painful honesty as those relationships are rebuilt on the increasingly tenuous ground of adjusting to a new and increasingly dangerous home. I don't really have anything to complain about here - I gave this book a shot even though it's outside my usual genre tastes, and I had an enjoyable time reading it. A worthwhile read if any of the above intrigues you!

My thanks to Random House Children's/Delacourte Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you, NetGalley and Delacorte Press, for my complimentary digital copy for review.

Let's delve into the captivating setting of this story - an enchanting old Victorian house with a haunting history that immediately caught my attention. The mysteries surrounding the house and the fate of its previous occupants intrigued me. What happened to those who inherited the house and vanished without a trace?

Libby's journey, following her diagnosis of bipolar III, her harrowing suicide attempt, and her fresh start in a new city, captivated me. The house, intended as a sanctuary for her recovery and new beginnings, had other plans for her and her family. What fascinated me most was watching Libby grapple with self-doubt, questioning whether her experiences were real or figments of her imagination. Her internal conflict made her a compelling character to latch onto and follow throughout the story.

The suspense in this book steadily builds, never leaving a dull moment. It maintains a steady pace, skillfully weaving tense moments that keep readers on edge.

As someone who appreciates stories centered around family dynamics, this book delivered on that front. It delves deep into the emotional turmoil families endure when one of their own attempts suicide, as seen through the eyes of Libby's mother and sister. But it also explores the other side of the coin, showcasing Libby's resilience and guilt.

Now, let's talk about the horror element - it was absolutely out of this world. The loss of control over something beyond comprehension, where the one who once held power becomes the powerless. It sent chills down my spine.

I tried to read this. The writing was so good and I was excited at first, but the bugs were triggering for me.

This book is great for people who aren’t triggered by bugs, I just couldn’t do it.

tw:%20Suicide/self%20harm%0A%0AAfter%20Libby%20has%20an%20emotional%20and%20mental%20breakdown,%20her%20mother%20decides%20it%E2%80%99s%20time%20for%20a%20fresh%20start%20for%20their%20little%20family,%20moving%20Libby,%20her%20younger%20sister,%20Vivi,%20and%20her%20to%20her%20childhood%20home,%20which%20has%20sat%20empty%20for%20decades.%20Libby%E2%80%99s%20mother%20has%20never%20wanted%20anything%20to%20do%20with%20the%20house%20since%20she%20moved%20out%20as%20a%20young%20girl%20after%20an%20accident%20which%20killed%20her%20parents,%20and%20once%20the%20family%20moves%20in,%20Libby%20realizes%20why.%20The%20house%20feels%20very%20%E2%80%9Coff%E2%80%9D%20and%20is%20filled%20with%20creepy%20imagery.%20Plus,%20it%E2%80%99s%20considered%20the%20neighborhood%20%E2%80%9Chaunted%20house.%E2%80%9D%20With%20the%20help%20of%20a%20new%20friend%20in%20town,%20Libby%20vows%20to%20get%20to%20the%20bottom%20of%20the%20house%E2%80%99s%20secrets,%20even%20if%20it%20means%20risking%20her%20life%20to%20save%20her%20family.%0A%0AThis%20book%20is%20a%20YA%20thriller,%20and%20it%20definitely%20reads%20as%20a%20little%20more%20juvenile.%20The%20mystery%20isn%E2%80%99t%20super%20complex,%20though%20it%20is%20pretty%20interesting%20to%20see%20as%20it%20plays%20out,%20because%20there%20is%20quite%20a%20bit%20of%20questions%20in%20regard%20to%20the%20reliability%20of%20the%20narrator.%20Then%20there%E2%80%99s%20more%20questions%20that%20arise%20as%20certain%20things%20become%20more%20clear.%20But%20I%20won%E2%80%99t%20spoil%20that%20part%20of%20things.%0A%0AAnd%20tgere%20were%20some%20interesting%20twists%20here%20and%20there.%20Some%20I%20was%20able%20to%20guess,%20some%20I%20wasn%E2%80%99t.%20My%20interest%20was%20kept%20until%20the%20end,%20though%20some%20of%20the%20final%20confrontation%20scene%20dragged%20slightly.%20But%20I%20wanted%20to%20see%20what%20happened,%20and%20the%20payoff%20was%20well%20worth%20it!%0A%0AMaybe%20I%20just%20didn%E2%80%99t%20like%20how%20much%20supernatural%20elements%20were%20mixed%20in?%20That%E2%80%99s%20all%20I%E2%80%99ll%20say.%20I%20wish%20some%20more%20was%20grounded%20in%20some%20form%20of%20realism/reality.%20But%20that%E2%80%99s%20a%20personal%20preference,%20and%20may%20not%20be%20yours!%0A%0ASo%20if%20this%20sounds%20like%20something%20you%20would%20be%20interested%20in,%20go%20for%20it!%20It%E2%80%99s%20a%20good%20book%20overall!

Let me start by saying A Place For Vanishing made my arm hairs stand up on more than one occasion. It is so well written, the detail the author uses is impeccable and had me feeling as if I could envision every single aspect of the house she describes. The main character in the story is Libbey who had recently went through some mental health issues which is why her mother decided it would be a good time for her, her sister and mother to make move. They are moving into their ancestral home, which happened to be an eerie old mansion. It is said that the mansion holds many dark secrets and that many people have "vanished" from it. It doesn't take long for the girls to realize that someone dark and ominous is definitely residing in the house with them.This story is definitely one for the spooky season. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend reading it if you like a little spook in your stories.

I was completely sucked into this novel from the very beginning. I absolutely loved the creepy gothic horror feel to this book, and I could not put it down. I appreciated the unreliable narrator and loved that I had no idea what was happening for the first half of the novel. Unfortunately, that is where it started to become a cliched paranormal novel and where I began to lose my interest in the story. I loved the creepiness and absolutely grossness of the novel. I didn't really think the romance was a necessary aspect that added to the story. I would have preferred this to have stayed on the gothic train for the whole book instead of turning into a paranormal book. Towards the end it did wrap up the loose ends, but too easily in my opinion. While I appreciate that in most novels, I would have preferred this to have been more of an open ending. I think it would have added to the gothic allure. I did enjoy this one, but not as much as I had hoped.

This is a great addition to the young adult horror genre. It has high levels of creepiness. Readers looking for contemporary gothic horror are especially going to appreciate this book.