Falling Under

By Danielle Younge-Ullman

A afearless, penetrating debuta (Tish Cohen, author of Town House) about a troubled artist who has painted herself into a corner After surviving a turbulent childhood, Mara Foster has finally gained independence and success as a painter. Now in her late twenties, she lives alone, still burdened by a troubled past involving a teenaged affair with an older man and the tragic loss of her college boyfriend. But when Mara meets Hugo, the walls she has built around herself begin to crumble. Despite herself, she starts to fall in love and realizes she must either confront her dark secrets or be consumed by them. And either way, she risks losing Hugo and her second chance at happiness. Written in spare, crisp prose and marked by wry humor, Falling Under is a gripping contemporary urban tale of human weakness, friendship, and hard-earned redemption.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0452289653
• ISBN13: 9780452289659
• Release Date: July 2008
• Publisher: Plume
• Length: 356 Pages
• Weight: 0.66 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.8" x 5.4"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 12 and higher

Customer Reviews

A stunning debut

This is one of the most compelling debut novels I've read. What a combination: great writing, a compelling damaged-goods heroine who never crosses the border into being whiny, and sex scenes that reveal a lot about the participants, exploring the complex emotions (or lack thereof) that such acts of sex can contain. This is a powerful, fearless book, populated with memorable characters trying to navigate their own imperfect lives. But most of all, this is just good writing. A friend of mine put it best: it's "writing that doesn't feel like writing." There is a purity about the prose that makes it seem to pour directly from the heart of the main character, offering us a warts-and-all view into the soul of a troubled but brilliant artist. Get yourself a copy.

one woman show

When she was a young girl, Mara Foster's parents acrimoniously divorced; besides learning Santa was a fraud that Christmas Mara knew dad was never coming back. She took it personally blaming herself and it still affects her relationships as an adult. Mara always sees the dark side to humans as she suffers from the anxiety disorder agoraphobia. Men do not want to deal with Mara's issues. That is until she meets Hugo, who wants to be with her in spite of her phobias. He encourages her to move on, but to do so Mara must look deep inside herself; a thought that frightens the young woman, but enough to run from or towards Hugo remains to be seen as she loathes touching and he wants intimacy. FALLING UNDER is a one woman show as the story line deals with Mara's phobias that make it impossible for her to have an intimate loving relationship; though in some ways she does have that with her only friend who is as angst laden with demons as she is. The storyline focuses on whether besieged Mara can move past her terrors encouraged by the kind Hugo. Readers who relish a realistic study of a tormented lonely person will appreciate FALLING UNDER as the quince will wonder whether Mara finds her groove or remains tortured in self afflicted hell. PS the ending is realistic but not easy to swallow. Harriet Klausner

Absoultely awesome book

Falling Under is a fast and engaging read. From the very first page I was unable to put it down. The author's writing style is amazing. I really enjoyed this "real life" story and how the author advanced the plot with the alternating flashbacks. Great "book club" book.

Run, don't walk to buy this book!

Danielle Younge-Ullman masterfully pulls the reader into the dark, dramatic, emotional, intense and passionate world of Mara, who is fighting paralyzing anxiety issues brought on by a traumatic upbringing by dueling and dysfunctional parents. Younge-Ullman deftly navigates the tricky skill of marrying first and second person voices as she weaves the reader into Mara's world, and leaves us with hope that despite everything, a damaged soul can rehabilitate. You will not be able to put down this novel.

Gritty and engaging.

Wow, this debut by author Danielle Younge Ullman left me breathless. Gritty, dark and very thought-provoking, Falling Under is a must read.