Agoraphobia. OCD. Anxiety. Norah Dean deals with a lot, and although she's found a bit of comfort inside her home and inside her bedroom, it's not a life that a typical teen lives. Norah's quiet and carefully controlled life is tossed upside down when Luke, a handsome young man, moves into the neighborhood.

Under Rose-Tainted Skies is a portrayal of these conditions and mental illness in general that goes beyond just describing an illness. It goes beyond solving it with a sudden miracle. It deals with it how Norah deals with it--a second, a minute, a page at a time. Although Luke is a catalyst for Norah wanting to change and challenge her limitations, his attention and desire don't magically cure her. Instead, the story develops organically, and there are many mistakes made along the way for the both of them. It's honest, funny in Norah's snark, and authentic in what it has to say.

I don't usually read Issue Books, but agoraphobia runs in my family, as does OCD. This book sounded interesting because of that, but also because of the tone, a brisk, sarcastic, often funny, as well as vivid and gritty first person narrator.

Norah tipped over the edge around puberty, which rang true. She has to step twice on the bottom step to make the number come out even. She is afraid of being touched because of others' germs. She can't go out her front door, so she lives on the Internet, forever scaring herself witless at articles about germs, pandemics, earthquakes, plane crashes . . . you get the idea.

Her mother does her best to cope--her mother is one of the many pluses in this book. But Norah, in spite of her awesome mother, and her equally awesome therapist, doesn't seem to be able to escape the cage her own brain has made for her.

Then she meets the boy next door.

This could so easily have gone south. The boy who solves everything--teen love conquers all--we've seen wish fulfillment stories along those lines, and although they feel good, they don't ring true, especially to the readers who feel a kinship with the problems the heroine is dealing with, whatever they may be.

Some readers might find Luke's steadfast kindness and willingness to stick it out too good to be true, but I've met teenage boys like that. They usually have their own backstories that have boosted their empathy quotient (teenage boys not being known for empathy while dealing with their own hormonal issues) but Gornall gives Luke a believable background as well as a lovely personality.

The book is very well written, vivid--almost too vivid in places. Gornall does not romanticize self-harm, which is such a relief. And Norah's clawing her way toward sanity is depicted in realistic baby steps, so it feels earned, and true.

Though mental health issues are a big part of what's driving the story, it is not about that, it's about a girl who copes, and tries to find her place in the world. Beginning with outside her bedroom. There is a sprinkling of salty language (including the f-bomb) but otherwise I think a smart younger teen could read this book and gain a great deal of insight.

Under Rose-Tainted Skies falls into the category of books I find most difficult to rate. It made me feel most assuredly, which would generally indicate a new favorite, but what it made me feel was uncomfortable. Not in the way of a movie full of embarrassment or gross out humor, but bone-deep nervousness and frustration at an inability to help. Reading Under Rose-Tainted Skies wasn’t something I can really say I enjoyed, but I also think it was good and that the discomfort it caused was intentional. Because I rate everything and not rating it would bother me, I threw a rating on there, but don’t pay too much attention to it.

Norah has barely left her house in four years, ever since her first panic attack. Since then, she’s been agoraphobic, despite the fact that nothing major precipitated the attack. She also has OCD and anxiety to the degree that she sometimes unconsciously and sometimes consciously will hurt herself physically in small ways. The fact that the book makes me feel some amount of Norah’s daily discomfort is, I think, a testament to Gornall doing something very right, but it is very unsettling.

As happens in the YA version of this story, a hot boy moves in next door, and they get their meetcute when Norah’s trying to get her groceries off the porch with a broom because she can’t go out to get them. Luke’s a really sweet guy, and he tries really hard consistently with Norah. If anything in the book felt off, I’d say that he ventures on unbelievably good and understanding and kind. They do have a nice back and forth at times, but I didn’t get particularly invested in the romance when I was so tense about Norah’s mental health and safety, but he didn’t fix her either, so that’s good. I actually appreciated more her relationship with her mother in the scenes when they really got to hang out.

Read Under Rose-Tainted Skies for the mental health aspects. If you’re more interested in the romance aspects, I’d recommend going with Love and Other Alien Experiences or Everything, Everything. The former also deals with agoraphobia and anxiety, and the latter deals with physical health.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Angela – ☆☆☆☆☆
Under Rose-Tainted Skies was a fascinating read. I’ve had a difficult time as of late, sitting down and actually reading a book. I’ve turned to audiobooks more and more in order to feed my need for entertainment. This marks the second book of the year to suck me in and earn five stars. Norah’s agoraphobia, OCD, cutting, and other forms self-mutilation insured that my professional brain would be engaged, but Gornall takes it one step further by complicating Norah’s mental health issues with a crush… on the boy next door… who just might have what it takes to sneak past Norah’s walls and worm his way into her heart. After all, the guy who can make her contemplate holding hands and kissing has to be something special.

As an introvert who suffers from grief-induced depression, I saw myself in some of Norah’s behaviors. As someone who works with persons with autism, I saw some of my clients in Norah’s behaviors. As someone who has a family tree filled with addictive personalities, I saw some of my family members in Norah’s behaviors. Why? Because mental illness affects more people than we realize, and while it may share features among people, it’s different in each person. One of the many, many things I appreciated about Under Rose-Tainted Skies is that Norah’s thoughts would occasionally swirl around others’ past comments that she doesn’t look mentally ill. Far too often, persons with mental illness are dismissed or doubted because they don’t “look” ill and/or they’ve become accomplished at putting on a brave face in front of others. Although significant progress has been made, society still tends to unfairly judge people with a mental illness. But by using a seventeen-year-old girl whose issues have made her prisoner in her own home, held hostage there by her own mind, Gornall humanizes mental illness in a very effective way, especially when the reader is trapped in Norah’s whirlwind thoughts that she knows logically conflict with one another, are downright ridiculous, yet can do nothing to stop them – well, short of hurting herself, that is. I wept for Norah. Repeatedly. But I also laughed with Norah because the author does not paint her in a stereotypical manner as a pathetic human being who is so crippled by her illness that she cannot do for herself. No, Norah is a very capable girl who excels at her studies and who possesses a quick wit with a sarcastic bite to it (even if her mouth doesn’t always cooperate to let her say what she means) – and I loved her for it.

I should note that I also wept for Luke. When he gets caught up in the moment and forgets to respect Norah’s boundaries, I was as devastated for him as I was for her. What made Luke such a good fit for Norah was that he’s learned to accept and live with his father’s wanderlust, so he didn’t see Norah’s OCD as the glaring oddity that she did (or many others would have). He knew Nora was different and accepted her behaviors as the eccentricities that made her who she was and did so without having to know every detail about her mental illness. But it was because he was so accepting of Norah as she was, that Luke made the mistake he did, and his remorse when he realized what he did was immediate and obvious. The notes he wrote to her broke my heart and made me cry for the both of them. Yet despite the wedge that incident drove between them, Luke was there for Norah when she was forced to face one of her worst nightmares come to life – a scene during which I wanted to chew my fingernails off because my anxiety for Norah was off the charts. While there is a lot that I loved about Under Rose-Tainted Skies, I think that perhaps the thing I enjoyed the most about the book is that the author didn’t try to “heal” Norah at the end. This is likely due to Gornall’s own struggles (revealed at the beginning of the book), knowing that to do so would have been beyond unrealistic considering the time frame of the novel, but I still appreciated the authenticity of Norah’s treatment and her daily struggles. I cannot adequately express how much I enjoyed Under Rose-Tainted Skies except to say I anxiously await the author’s next book.

Nora Dean has a disorder that will not allow her to react to life like a “normal” teen. Doing things like attending school, having a normal social life, going from the house to the car to get to a doctor’s appointment or even getting groceries off the porch, simple tasks you say unless you are her.

When the boy who just moves in next door sees Norah struggling to get her groceries off the porch; he offers to help her, and that leads to a friendship that Norah has no clue what to do with. Will Luke understand or leave when she has to tell him why she can’t do what most other people do “normally.”

For me this book was a fascinating look into the world of a person with agoraphobia, the fear of leaving the house, combined with anxiety and OCD, obsessive-compulsive disorder and more.
Ms. Gornall’s writing shows us what a person with this mental illness deals with in a thoughtful way that while it was at times uncomfortable, was very readable and for that I thank her.

If you know someone with this disorder or not, this book gives you a snapshot look at a misunderstood mental illness that can cause havoc for the person with it. I recommend this book not only for the young adult reader but for anyone who isn’t sure what a person that has this disorder deals with because after reading this it will become apparent. The author does an excellent job in this offering, and I look forward to reading more work by her. Buy this book!

Wow! I was totally hooked on this book from the very first chapter. The main character, Norah, is a teenger living her life with agoraphobia and OCD. Under Rose-Tainted Skies gives us a small taste of what it would be like to live this way. Norah first started showing symptoms about four years ago and now at seventeen, she has lived most of her teenage years being homebound.

This was both an easy and a hard book to read. That's sounds contradictory, doesn't it? What I mean by that is, while it was hard to read about someone with agoraphobia and OCD and to have to see the trials and tribulations Norah goes through on a day-to-day basis, it was also an easy-to-read story because the author writes so beautifully. The words just flowed off of the pages. This whole story captivated me and it was one of those hard-to-put-down books that we all love to discover and get caught up in. I loved this book and will be looking forward to more from this author.

Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall is a moving, at times heart-breaking, and utterly well-written YA contemporary novel that had me from the start.

The story is about Norah Dean who has agoraphobia and OCD. One day, after a not so helpful delivery man leaves the groceries outside forcing Norah to struggle with how to bring them inside, she receives unexpected help from her new neighbor, Luke. What was an awkward moment, opens the door so to speak, for a budding friendship and maybe new relationship with Luke, if she can find a way to let him in.

I really enjoyed this novel. Ms. Gornell has created a very character-driven story that feels real, honest, and pulls at your emotions as you read about Norah's struggles to try to have someone new in her life and to keep them in her life as she continues to struggle with the everyday fears, frustrations, and limitations that she has to deal with. There were moments within the novel that brought about tears because I felt strongly for Norah and Ms. Gornell's words echoed for me.

...I could see all the broken parts of me. Why can’t I be normal? Why can’t I think the way normal people do? I so desperately would have liked to have him as a friend.

“How can I expect people to empathize with a sickness they can’t see?”

Besides the feelings this novel evoked, I also liked Norah's relationship with her mom and the friendship/romance with Luke. I am a big fan of romance within stories, but I'm glad this romance didn't eclipse the true story which was of Norah herself. Instead, it added and helped move her along her pathway.

Overall, Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall was a wonderful novel that I very much recommend. I look forward to reading more by Ms. Gornell.

(I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book I received from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my fair and honest review.)

I was so excited to read this one but that excited died a very fast death. This book is for the lover of the snark. It was very sarcastic, snarky, and just way-way over the top. The character didn't seem real and it felt like another book out there of its kind. Just with little things changed. The romance in this was just ugh. It was another thing that just didn't seem real and was just blah. Luke sounded like he was scripted and it just didn't work out for me. If your looking into this book I would try the library first to see if its something you really want to read. You will know early on if your going to love or hate this one.

This book is unlike anything I’ve read before. The main character Norah is a teen who struggles with OCD and agoraphobia. She is home schooled and only leaves her house to go to therapy. When a new family moves in next door, Norah see Luke for the first time and things get interesting. Then one day, he helps her get her groceries inside and their relationship starts to develop. Norah is nervous and terrified. How much should she tell Luke. She doesn't want to scare him away by telling him the truth, but she she likes him. As their relationship grows into more Norah is afraid that she is holding him back from living his life.
The exploration of mental illness was handled really well in this book. Norah was not instantly cured or fixed because she meets a cute guy. This book opened my eyes to the difficulty and struggle of dealing with mental disorders. Also, it made me feel terrible for Norah because no one understood her, some people have even told her to “get over it,” which is so hurtful and dismissive. I have been guilty of thinking similar thoughts and this opened my eyes to my mistakes. This book was tough to read sometimes. Norah’s life isn’t easy and she struggles so much with things many people would think are simple.
The romance in the book was okay. Luke was a little too perfect for my taste. I have never known a 17 year old boy to be so understanding and accommodating. He said and did all the right things almost all the time which made him somewhat unbelievable.
I would recommend this book to anyone who wants an honest look into the mind and struggle of someone with mental illness. This book felt incredibly realistic and was an eye opener for me about the struggles and hardships of dealing with mental illness.

Sick lit, as of late, seems to be moving back toward the mental illness realm after spending time with various terminal illnesses. <i>Under Rose-Tainted Skies</i> has some different things happening, from the OCD area to the whole shut-in idea, and it ultimately doesn't really offer much in the way of new ground.

It tells the story of a girl, Norah, who is so crippled by her agoraphobia that even going to the front porch is a problem. A new cute boy is across the street, tries to strike up a friendship, and it's just more and more complicated when feelings get involved.

The overall tone of this book is very straightforward, and I think the big flaw is that we don't ever get an opportunity to really feel sympathetic to Norah, as she's a character who doesn't seem to recognize anything happening to her and gets very "woe is me" while rejecting the help she needs. It's a realistic portrayal in a sense, but it's not one that lends itself to a quality narrative, especially in a genre that's littered with similar books, both modern and in the past. The love interest is almost too perfect in a way, as well, which simply plays off of Norah in a bad way as well. Some more obvious flaws would have helped.

Overall, this is fine. It's not great, but it isn't terrible, either. With so many other books in front of it along the way, this isn't one I would put at the head of the line, but if this is your favored genre, it might be worth a look.

3.5 Stars

This book. I’m still reeling. What a whirlwind. Norah suffers from a heavy and debilitating combination of agoraphobia and OCD, that effectively makes her housebound. Her mind runs a mile a minute with scenarios that rival 1,000 Ways to Die. Things that the average person would never think of, statistics, all merge into a fatalistic and fearful main character.

Where do I even begin? The author and the main character share their mental illnesses so the writer is painting her experience vividly and with authority. You can feel it in every thought, every action, the way Norah’s mind expands and she closes in on herself. It’s heartbreaking, terrifying, and absolutely puts you in the character’s shoes. Every fear, every anxiety is magnified and coupled with her OCD quirks that won’t allow her to step outside of her comfort zone and there’s no telling what will set off her spiral into fear and depression. Norah tries hard to control everything to alleviate her fears and when she can’t, she turns to self harm. Those moments are especially poignant. Many times her self-loathing, frustration, and anger with her illness pours off the page. She hates that she can’t be normal. At first Norah is hard to sympathize with because her OCD and agoraphobia is so pronounced. As someone who doesn’t suffer from these illnesses, you’ll think, why can’t she just get over? What’s the big deal? You might even get a little annoyed. But as the story progresses, you get it. 100%. You understand that Norah has no choice, that she struggles and fights and her mind overwhelms her. And it’s gut-wrenching what she goes through, how every little action consumes her and forces her to act a certain way despite what her heart years for. I mean, wow.

The story is basically Norah opening herself up to new experiences, facing her insecurities through baby steps, and learning to hope for a future where she won’t be limited, where she will have the freedom to embrace her dreams of travel and dating like a “normal” girl. Under Rose-Tainted Skies straddles a fine line and where I think it might face some critique fire is in terms of romanticizing mental illness. Many times, a guy or girl will come in and suddenly they’re the miraculous cure, and IMO if love can help, I’m all for it, but lately readers have objected to that sort of cure-all at the site of a hot guy. Luke, to me, is a spark that ignites her, he lights her up and makes her dream again-he’s a catalyst not a savior. Norah still makes choices, heck yes she has a huge crush because the guy is smoking hot, awkward, and so understanding, but he by no means swoops in and saves her, she fights and makes choices and slowly copes-she’s not cured because that’s totally unrealistic. This is a real, gritty picture of mental illness and how it wreaks havoc on every aspect of the individual’s life.

What I felt the story was missing was more encounters with Norah’s mother, and her therapist. They both are strong women that have a huge presence in Norah’s life and while you get that impression and there are short scenes, I would have loved to see more of the cute interactions with Norah and her mom, and maybe a bit more on what Norah was like before her accident.

The pacing was so-so, but fit for contemporary. There’s definitely a build up in feelings, curiosity, and yearning. The twist near the end was unexpected, but worked well.

Luke and Norah together are made of awkward and silly and smiles and sometimes walking on eggshells, but it’s worth it just to see Norah overcome and work through her illness. They’re so cute together and so weird. Totally endearing and it’s really refreshing that all the instalust and love that have been permeating YA lately is not present.

Louise Gornall’s ‘Under Rose-Tainted Skies’ is compelling

“UNDER ROSE-TAINTED SKIES,” by Louise Gornall, Clarion Books, Jan. 3, 2017, Hardcover, $17.99 (young adult)

One of the reasons I love reading so much is because it takes me to places I’ve never been. Sometimes the journey is magical and ethereal, other times it’s fraught with danger and adventure. Then there are the journeys that are difficult. They can be emotionally draining and at times hard to push through, but in the end, very rewarding. “Under Rose-Tainted Skies,” by Louise Gornall is one such book.

At the center of “Under Rose-Tainted Skies” is Norah, a teenagers suffering from agoraphobia (the fear of places and situations that might cause panic, helplessness, or embarrassment) and OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder).

Norah can’t leave her house. Going to the doctor is a major undertaking. Even going in her backyard is a struggle. She wasn’t always this way, but now this is her reality, and it’s one that she’s learned to live with.

That changes when her mom goes out of town for work and the weekly groceries mistakenly get left on the front porch. It’s while she’s struggling to get the bags with a stick that she meets Luke, her handsome new next-door neighbor.

Luke is unlike anyone she’s ever met. He’s kind and funny, and for some reason, he finds Norah’s illnesses intriguing rather than weird or silly. As their friendship blossoms from simple notes slid under Norah’s door to real conversations, Norah finds herself in a terrifying and equally exciting new place — normalcy.

Author Louise Gornall wrote “Under Rose-Tainted Skies” in part from her own experiences with mental illness. Her background gives the book an authenticity that literally throbs on the page. That means there are hard parts to read. Norah’s head is not an easy place to be. The intensity of her anxiety is overwhelming at points, and I found myself occasionally rushing through sections just to move past it. While this could be problematic with some books, it’s not here. The reality of what Norah — and people in the nonfiction world — face everyday can’t easily be stripped away. You leave the book with a very strong sense of truth.

What makes “Under Rose-Tainted Skies” work is Norah’s relationship with Luke. It’s in those sometimes-little, sometimes-big moments that Norah becomes more than her illness. Luke is the kind of guy you’d want your daughter to date, and that helps, too. Additional scenes with Norah and her mother and Norah and her doctor help to flesh out what is a strong and worthwhile read.

Review - Under Rose-Tainted Skies
Under Rose-Tainted Skies by Louise Gornall

* Read via NetGalley for review

My Favorite Quotes/Lines:

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m deeply concerned about my carbon footprint, but I’ve watched enough horror movies to know that when I’m home alone, I’m 98 percent less likely to die if the lights are on.”

“Why do people keep telling me to be myself? Honestly. It’s like they’ve never even met me.”

4 out of 5 gnomes

This book shows how harsh a mental illness can be. I like that the story doesn’t pull any punches and shows the good and bad days.

It’s great that her mom is in the picture and that she is so understanding of everything. I think it would have been interesting to see things from her point of view too but what we do learn is still important.

Then there’s Luke who has the whole boy next door thing going on. The slow build between him and Norah is well done. It all just comes down to understanding.

The ending was unexpected but I think it was well done. I also really liked that love doesn't magically fix everything and that it will likely be an ongoing struggle. The story does leave you with hope for the characters too.

I would like to start off with saying that I shouldn't really trust comparisons, and yet here I am, reading a book because it was compared to Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon, which I loved! Under Rose-Tainted Skies did have an awesome writing style, what with Norah's voice being authentic and all. It was very easy to relate to her and I thought that it was a more accurate portrayal of someone living with mental illness. I didn't like the fact that it was entered around a love interest though, even if it's in the YA genre. Also, while it ended in a hopeful way, I wish to have seen more of Norah during her recovery, rather than just the climatic event that led her to it. In this case, I would give the book a 3.75 star rating, but it was a good book overall.

Under Rose-Tainted Skies tells the story of Norah Dean who suffers from agoraphobia and OCD. Leaving her house is a struggle on the best of days, when she has to go to therapy, on the worst of days, it just plain doesn't happen. This has been Norah's life for four years. She's built a routine, she's interested in music and reading. Takes online courses to finish high school, and sometimes has dreams where she is able to travel outside of her home without the world crashing to the ground around her. But those dreams are put on the back-burner.

One day, Norah notices the new boy moving in next door. She catches his attention too, and soon Luke and Norah are navigating a somewhat awkward friendship that makes Norah question everything she feels and thinks. Could she be more with Luke than friends? Or will she continue to be restrained by her illness?

First off, I know it seems as though a lot of emphasis is put upon this burgeoning relationship between Luke and Norah, but in reality this book is all Norah's. Luke's friendship / maybe more relationship adds another layer to everything already piled on top of Norah's psyche, but it's more a pathway for her to begin to, hopefully, get to a place where she's able to leave the house, where she's able to touch someone without having a breakdown. It's a challenge, and Norah is such a strong and brave character that, despite initial misgivings, she takes the challenge and tries. Luke represents a change up in Norah's safely built routine, kind of a catalyst that makes her rethink what her mind and heart have been telling her for four years. So while what Luke and Norah develop is very sweet and cute, and while Luke was represented in a great way in that he doesn't back down from what many would think is too complicated a situation, everything in the story, I thought, was very internalized for Norah. Norah needed to be the one to take the first steps.

There was kind of a monotony / repetition to Norah's action, but I took this as clear representation of what someone with agoraphobia / OCD would go through everyday. Plus, by the end, I felt I had a better understanding of someone who does suffer from these illnesses goes through everyday. I think that's very important to have the issues appeal to everyone, not just others who suffer, but those who don't as well, and Under Rose-Tainted Skies really paints the picture quite starkly. But also, the book doesn't fall into a depressing read. I felt Norah's attitude was quite refreshing. True, she also has bouts of depression and her thinking can get a little dark, but for the most part she understands, and even comments upon the fact, that her situations her anything but "normal" and she kind of takes a tongue-in-cheek attitude, for the most part.

I really liked Norah's story. It was one that I didn't want to put down. I just wanted to find out where we would leave Norah in the end. I was rather impressed with the journey we're taken on, overall.

Disclaimer: I received an e-ARC of this book. I chose to review it and this in no way impacts my opinion of it.

I was very excited to see that Under Rose-Tainted Skies had a read now option on Netgalley and I clicked the read now button so fast I almost put a dent in my phone screen. I had been dying to read this novel and couldn’t wait to get my hands on it as quickly as possible, and I’m am extremely happy to announce that it did not let me down one bit.

I didn’t know exactly what I was in for when I started reading, but I was grabbed almost instantly. Louise has such a way with words that it took hold of my mind and wouldn’t let me rest until I had finished the book.

Under Rose-Tainted Skies was an eye opener of a book that absolutely blew me away. I have never known anyone in my life so far that has suffered a mental illness quite like the one Norah suffers from, and so this was my first time experiencing anything like it. I say experiencing because the writing in this novel was so magnificent and on point that I legitimately felt like I was a fly on the wall of Norah’s home.

I absolutely loved how kind, understanding, and gentle Luke was with Norah and how he tried his best to learn what he could about her illness and help her in any way he could. He was such a sweet character that I instantly fell in love with him as Norah found herself falling.

I highly recommend this novel to everyone and I cannot wait for it to be in bookstores so I can go and buy myself a hard copy. This novel blew me away and it instantly became one of the best I’ve read this year.

4 “Not an easy read” Stars

ARC via NetGalley

Thank you, Clarion Books!

Warning #1: Due to the holiday season and the lack of Internet access, I’m keeping my reviews short & sweet. Back to the normal speed next year. Merry Christmas & Happy New Year, guys!

This was one of the hardest books I read in 2016. Being inside Norah’s head wasn’t an easy task, as it wasn’t supposed to be. As a person that has agoraphobia and OCD, Norah’s mind is a chaotic place to be in, and the author succeeded on showing that. It was the kind of uncomfortable that we need to feel, because it allows us to understand a little better of what happens with people with mental health issues. Of course I’m not saying all of them feel the same, but for someone who had little experience (my fault, completely), this book was enlightening.

I appreciated how the romance helped move the story along, but didn’t take over. This was Norah’s story, and she was the star of the show. All the focus on Norah made the book a heavy read, but I don’t think it could’ve gone otherwise. Her relationship with her mother was healthier than I expected it to be, and her friendship and romance with Luke was sweet. The boy (who sometimes seemed too good to be true, for my cynic self) understood Norah in a way not many people would, while managing not to become the only reason for Norah’s development.

The ending was a bit abrupt, but I liked how it didn’t present a magical solution to all of Norah’s problems. I’m glad I got my hands on this book!

Seventeen year old Norah has agoraphobia and OCD and has rarely left the confines of her home for the past four years. Her mother and therapist are only people she is close to until, Luke, a sweet and funny high schooler moves in next door. Author Louise Gornall writes with honesty and eloquence through the voice of Norah, the protagonist, and snares the reader into seeing the world through Norah's eyes. It is an empowering and painful view. The author does not gloss over Norah's attempts to self harm herself and the myriad of emotions that Norah experiences during her anxiety attacks. But, Norah's attempts to help herself, and the support the secondary characters offer her are heartening. This book is geared toward the high school market. I would recommend it, but not unreservedly. It is a perfect fit only for a mature reader I think. Excellent job of writing!

Norah has agoraphobia and an acute case of OCD. One day, while her mom is away, groceries are to be delivered to the house but the delivery guy leaves the bags on the porch. As Norah tried desperately to "fish" for the bags without leaving the house, her new neighbor, and cute guy her age, Luke comes to help her. They forge a relationship that tests her insecurities and fight for some sense of normalcy.

The author does a good job of putting you in Norah's head as the entire story is told from her point of view. It is faintly reminiscent of Everything, Everything: both main characters cannot leave their house, form a relationship with their cute neighbor boy and have mothers who would do anything for them. Unfortunately it's hard not to compare the stories even though the main theme is completely different. This story deals with a mental prison while the other story deals with a physical medical condition. So while I understand why people continue to compare them, as I couldn't help either, they do deal with very separate issues. It is well written and a fantastic YA contemporary book. I upped my rating to 4 stars as I debated on it or a while. And then I read the authors note at the end and realized that although it is a fiction story, the majority is based on her own experiences and issues. Kudos to her for putting herself out there so blatantly.