‘Under This Red Rock’ is thriller for young adults

Ohio teen Neely Hawtrey yearns for a world “where she had a happy family and all of us were sane.” She won’t get it.

“Under This Red Rock” by Cardington author Mindy McGinnis is a disturbing psychological thriller for young adults; it includes themes of mental illness, drugs and suicide.

Neely lives with her grandparents; she has inherited schizophrenia so they are not unfamiliar with her delusions. They don’t know about the little girl under the bed and the man in the closet, whom she can hear but not see. She’s gotten a job at the nearby tourist attraction, a combination cavern tour, zip line and canoe rental. She’s intimately familiar with the cavern, and it is the only place where her hallucinatory companions can’t reach her.

Neely becomes mesmerized by Mila, the leggy blonde who trains her, and tries desperately for Mila’s attention. She doesn’t tell Mila what happened to Neely’s parents and brother and cat and about that long-ago slumber party.

Formerly ostracized, Neely becomes friendly with another of her co-workers, and on amicable terms with most of the others. One is a sexual predator.

When Mila dies in a horrific fashion, Neely and her co-workers are questioned. Of course she didn’t do it. Of course not. But her delusions are growing and now following her into the caverns. Do they protect her or lead her astray? The revelations come fast.

Though the book qualifies as a thriller, there are elements of mystery as Neely tries to figure out who killed Mila.

McGinnis excels at writing about teen girls in harrowing circumstances: “Heroine,” in which a high school athlete becomes addicted to opiates after an injury, and “Be Not Far from Me,” a survival story about a badly injured high school track star lost in the Smoky Mountains. These grueling stories may sound similar, but each is distinctive. Neely is a sympathetic character but is necessarily an unreliable narrator, and her account will keep the reader wondering how much is true.

“Under This Red Rock” (336 pages, hardcover) costs $19.99 from HarperCollins. It is recommended by the publisher for readers 14 or older, and trigger warnings should be respected.

McGinnis will be among about 120 authors and illustrators who will appear Saturday at the Ohioana Book Festival in Columbus; see event listing below and the author list at ohioana.org.

Events

Shaker Library (16500 Van Aken Blvd.): Lauren R. Pacini, author of the forthcoming “Empire Builders: An Illustrated History of the Rise and Fall of Cleveland’s Van Sweringen Brothers,” presents “The Heights Before the Van Sweringens, 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Sunday.

Mac’s Backs (1820 Coventry Road, Cleveland Heights): Poets Katie Peterson (“Fog and Smoke”) and Walt Hunter (“Some Flowers”) read from their work, 4 to 5 p.m. Sunday. At 5 p.m. Saturday, George Bilgere reads from “Cheap Motels of My Youth.”

Hudson Library & Historical Society (96 Library St.): In a virtual event, Duke University biomedical engineer Rachel Lance talks about “Chamber Divers: The Untold Story of the D-Day Scientists Who Changed Special Operations Forever,” 7 p.m. Monday. At 6:30 p.m. Thursday, journalist McKay Coppins appears in person to discuss “Romney: A Reckoning.” Register at hudsonlibrary.org.

Cuyahoga County Public Library

(25501 Shaker Blvd.): Sarah Cart appears in a Zoom event to talk about “On My Way Back to You: One Couple’s Journey Through Catastrophic Illness to Healing and Hope,” 7 to 8 p.m. Monday. From 7 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Ohio State University French Professor Benjamin Hoffman discusses his novel “Sentinel Island,” about people on the remote island in the Bay of Bengal. Register at cuyahogalibrary.org.

Elizabeth’s Bookshop & Writing Centre (647 E. Market St., Akron): Poet Mercy Tullis-Bukhari reads from “The Little Deaths,” 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Cuyahoga County Public Library

(Parma-Snow branch, 2121 Snow Road): Allan R. May discusses “Petro: Cleveland’s Handsomest Public Enemy,” about 1940s murderer and burglar Julius

Petro, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Lakewood Public Library (15425 Detroit Ave.): Paul Landis signs “The Final Witness: A Kennedy Secret Service Agent Breaks His Silence After 50 Years,” 7 p.m. Wednesday.

Dover Public Library (525 N. Walnut St.): In observance of National Child Abuse Prevention Month, Patricia S. Sherman talks about “The Blue Swing: Child Abuse, Choices and Living Without Anger,” 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Register at doverlibrary.org.

Wadsworth Public Library (132 Broad St.): Cleveland resident Liz Ferro, founder of the running organization Girls With Sole, talks about “Finish Line Feeling: Running with Power,” 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday.

Loganberry Books (13015 Larchmere Blvd., Shaker Heights): In observance of Independent Bookstore Day, authors including Miesha Headen, K.P. Kulski, Leigh Mascolino, Susan Petrone and Quartez Harris, beginning at 10 a.m.

Columbus Metropolitan Library (96 S. Grant Ave.): The Ohioana Book Festival features about 120 Ohio authors and illustrators, including Cinda Chima, Jane Turzillo, Tom Batiuk, Lindsay Bonilla, Tameka N. Ellington, David Giffels, Anastasia Hastings and Thrity Umrigar, 10:30 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

Medina County District Library (210 S. Broadway St.): The Read Local: Author Fair will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday. Authors include Laura Freeman (“Tangling a Web of Deceit”), Cari Dubiel (“How to Remember”), Glenn Somodi (“Olly & the Spores of Sapphire Creek”) and Amanda Uhl (“Healing Kiss”). See the list at medina.lib.oh.us.