The Drowning Girl

A complex haunting novel that explores a schizophrenic young artists struggles with her perception of reality including an intriguing ghostly woman who appears to her in the most mysterious ways. India Morgan PhelpsImp to her friendsis trying to write her memoir but she struggles with the unreliability of her own mind. Suffering from schizophrenia as well as comorbid anxiety and OCD Imp has a difficult time separating fantasy from reality. But for her its most important to tell her truth. And for Imp that truth comes through a stream-of-consciousness tale of her love story with her transgender girlfriend as well as Imps obsession with a mysterious woman whom she finds naked and mute at the side of the road. Imp must push past her mental illnessor work with itto piece together her memories and tell her story. A rich exploration of mental illness gender identity and creative process The Drowning Girl delivers an eerie and powerful story of a womans efforts to discover the truth thats locked away in her own head. Caitln R. Kiernan moves firmly into the new vanguard [] of our best and most artful authors of the gothic and fantasticthose capable of writing fiction of deep moral and artistic seriousness.Peter Straub