The Drowning GirlThe Drowning Girl
Score Modern
What it's about
A young artist with schizophrenia struggles with her perception of reality, including a ghostly woman who appears to her in mysterious ways. Caitlín R. Kiernan's haunting novel explores memory, madness and the stories we tell ourselves.
Why it's worth reading
It was a Nebula Award finalist. It's a complex, unsettling literary ghost story.
You'll love it if you liked
The Haunting of Hill House
Piranesi
We Have Always Lived in the CastleGood to know
Its narrator is unreliable by design. It's more eerie than scary.
By the numbers
- Readers59 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics24 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller6 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz1 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #271 of the 459 fantasy books we rank
- #990 of the 1,573 modern books we rank
- #1833 of the 2,816 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Dark, Gripping
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Quick answers
Is The Drowning Girl worth reading?
Yes. It was a Nebula Award finalist. It ranks #1,833 of the 2,816 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 65.3 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is The Drowning Girl about?
A young artist with schizophrenia struggles with her perception of reality, including a ghostly woman who appears to her in mysterious ways. Caitlín R. Kiernan's haunting novel explores memory, madness and the stories we tell ourselves.
How long does it take to read The Drowning Girl?
About 8 hours (332 pages), or about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after The Drowning Girl?
If you liked it, try The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, Piranesi by Susanna Clarke or We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson.