(Image from Barnes & Noble)

"You don't know anything, you moronic jerk, I feel like screaming. Because for all his supposed Aura collecting, he has no idea how much Mom truly terrifies me. He has no idea that when I look at her, I'm not staring at a person, but a mirror. I'm seeing me, exactly as I'll be in the future" (135).

Most little girls want to grow up to be just like their mothers. Maybe Aura did, too, back when her mother's manic episodes seemed bright and fun. At 15, she now recognizes the episodes for what they are - scary as hell. Aura used to be able to talk her mom down, but these days, she's so far gone that Aura hasn't the faintest idea how to deal. The only thing she knows for sure is that she never, ever wants to be like her mom.

A gifted artist, Grace Ambrose is the kind of woman who paints fanciful murals on the walls, makes masterpieces out of old pianos, and dangles dozens of carved mermaids from the kitchen ceiling. She's also the lady who smashes into mailboxes she swears are in the middle of the road, runs screaming from buildings she thinks are on fire, and drops lit matches on her bare toes while trying to "fix" trinkets that were never broken in the first place. She's talented, creative, and crazy as a loon.

Aura has promised never to institutionalize her mother, never to insist on medication. Everyone knows Aura's promises are "like locks with no key" (47), but things are getting too complicated too fast. With no one to count on but herself, Aura does everything she can to fix the problem - from hiding to lying to hovering to playing her mother's insane little games. She even sacrifices her own art - the one thing that brings her solace - to keep the insanity at bay. But the crazy just keeps coming. Can Aura save her mother on her own? Or will the darkness that's been passed down for generations in her family swallow Aura whole?

A Blue So Dark, Holly Schindler's debut novel (available May 28, 2010), explores what it means to have mental illness lurking in the thick leaves of your family tree. It shows the terror, the guilt, and the anguish experienced by not just the schizophrenic patient, but also by those who love her. Brutally honest and heartbreakingly real, this is a read that is as painful as it is enlightening. Aura Ambrose is so skillfully drawn you want to pluck her out of the pages and wrap her in your arms. Seriously, I was surprised to see a photograph of Holly Schindler - I fully expected the author to be about 15. That's how authentic her voice is. She writes in vivid, Technicolor prose that thrills over and over with its fresh, visual appeal.

If you prefer happy, bubbly stories, steer clear of A Blue So Dark. It's exactly what it promises to be - dark. It's also an intense, compelling story that will grab you from the very first word. An absolutely stunning debut, this book promises good things to come from an author I will be watching very, very closely.

(Readalikes: Dirty Little Secrets by C.J. Omololu; The Tricking of Freya by Christina Sunley; The Memory of Water by Karen White)

Grade: A-

If this were a movie, it would be rated: R for language

To the FTC, with love: I received this book from the generous folks at Flux. Thank you!