There’s No Place Like Here: Book Review

In times when I lost something, a pen or book, I always sulk and complain where it went. My father, which has no help at all, will then tease me and say, “Find it with your hands, not with your mouth”. When all hope is lost, I pondered about how I taken it for granted. But just give me days and I will forget it. However, in Sandy’s case, she won’t.

Sandy had been obsessed in finding her lost things since an incident of Jenny-May Butler’s sudden disappearance. From a single sock to a memorable diary, she would strip their house naked just to find it. But not all search cases ended up with satisfaction. Eventually after realizing that she had potential, she started an agency on finding missing persons.

On her search for Jack Ruttle’s case, she had wandered to a path that she has been long looking for. A path that led to place called “Here”, where all missing things stayed, even missing people. Now, she had satisfied her lifelong search but it conjured another one. How could she find her way back home?

At first, it was absurd that there was actually a place where missing things stayed, that they were not merely mislaced. At some point, I fully believed the premise. Cecelia Ahern had created a fantasy world closely linked to the real world that it might actually exist. The world had its own politics, education and government.

The story didn’t just circle around Sandy’s isolation but also of Jack’s quest to find her. Jack believed that as soon as she found Sandy the quicker they could solved his case. As Jack questioned Sandy’s relatives we get a picture of what Sandy really is: An obsessive compulsive woman that labeled all her things with her name. A desolate person that was truly dedicated to her job. This was an excellent choice; it was not just backstories but it also moved the plot through the climax.

However, there were evident flaws in the story that you may think the whole story was nonsensical. Ahern didn’t explained or strongly hinted how the system of the world “Here” and the real world works. Things just come and go with no particular reason. It would be wise to take the story at its face value. It will ruin your reading experience if you don’t.

I would not say the book was great but certainly it was good. It was unique. The concept of her fantasy world was portrayed perfectly. You will have no struggle in knowing the characters at all. Sure, the cover can be deceiving that it tells us that this book would be another pointless-cliché, thoughtless story. But those who have read it knew better.

Rating: ★★★☆☆