I liked this author's first book, Saint X, even though I did not necessarily like the individual characters or their behavior. The same might be true for this book; readers know that they are in for something different with ELSEWHERE when the first-person, female narrator talks about her isolated little town where the only game they play is "Mothers" or "strangers." However, since strangers never visit there, it is a real toss up as to how they will be portrayed. What kind of place never has visitors from the vague Elsewhere? I've actually read the entire book, and it remains eerily different to the very end. I found it to be a page-turner, always hoping to solve the mystery. There is always something that you can't quite put your finger on, sort of like the short story "The Lottery," until the very last page of course when you learn that the winner of this lottery which no one but the old curmudgeon likes is actually the loser. As in losing one's life in a slow, painful, vicious manner. There seems to be a warning that people absolutely must speak up and work to change laws that your heart and soul tell you are wrong in every way. For me, the book was a very strong 4; I was very happy to have the opportunity to read it as an ACR. I mention the book to others but always with a caveat that it may not be for everyone, just as Shirley Jackson's story or Margaret Atwood's book The Handmaid's Tale might be too depressing for some readers.