"The engrossing book is studded with Morton’s reflective contemplations of her struggles. Readers will feel for her and root for her. A sensitive and absorbing portrait of a woman who is braver than she knows." -- Kirkus Reviews
In an enthralling character-driven drama, Jill Charlotte Thomas highlights the impact of parental neglect and chronic narcissism on children who are left to fend for themselves. Readers who enjoy books like The Catcher in the Rye will love The More Beyond. -- Pikasho Deka for Readers’ Favorite
Morton Guthrie is a trust fund baby who doesn’t trust anyone. People disappoint. The world may be an oyster for some, but for her it’s only proven to be empty. Her father is busy with his boyfriends, her mother is occupied having nervous breakdowns. Morton is obsessed with suicide. After two back-to-back attempts, she lands in a psychiatric hospital, and just when she has begun to trust her psychiatrist and herself, her parents invite her to join them in Manhattan for a three-day weekend. They’re staying at The Sherry-Netherland hotel on the twenty-third floor, a long drop. Against Medical Advice, Morton heads to New York in search of parental love, but narcissistic love is conditional, and she is fragile. Will she survive, or is life too big for her? Perhaps happiness for Morton is learning to live with one eye closed.
“Sharply drawn characters and brilliant dialogue give us a fascinating look beneath the placid surface of wealth, where dark currents swirl.” —Billy Hayes, author of Midnight Express
"The novel touches on serious issues with care... And it handles such intense subject matter well, pairing it with insightful meditations on the meaning of life." —Foreword Clarion Reviews
Readers will appreciate the dramatic imagery of New York City and southern California while following Morton and her endeavor to re-discover herself, her family, and the world as she sees it. —Audrey Davis, Independent Book Reviews