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This Must Be the Place

by Kate Racculia (Goodreads Author)

3.49 of 5 stars 3.49 · rating details · 826 ratings · 219 reviews

A sudden death, a never-mailed postcard, and a longburied secret set the stage for a luminous and heartbreakingly real novel about lost souls finding one another

The Darby-Jones boardinghouse in Ruby Falls, New York, is home to Mona Jones and her daughter, Oneida, two loners and self-declared outcasts who have formed a perfectly insular family unit: the two of them and thet...more

ebook, 368 pages

Published July 6th 2010 by Henry Holt and Co.

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Aug 10, 2010 Sjcapanna rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010

I chose this book because it got a glowing review in People magazine. I know, People might not be the best source for literary recommendations, but I find reviews by high-faluting, snobby literary types to be just as unreliable.

I figured this book would be good in a quietly charming kind of way. You know, like the kind of book that is enjoyable not so much for the dramatic plot twists, but because of good writing and likable characters. While this book did have the latter two, it just somehow d...more

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Aug 02, 2010 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

I was intrigued by the summary of this book, though it's not a genre I'd usually pick up ~WOW am I glad I did!

This was a refreshing read that was hard to put down. There are several main characters in the book and all of them are accessible and fascinating in their own right (which is not an easy feat, mind you). Even though I didn't love all of the characters immediately, the more I read, the more endeared I became. Racculia jumps from character to character advancing the story from different...more

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Jul 06, 2010 Gail Cooke rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

We know that growing up can be difficult. Coming of age isn't easy, but it was especially onerous for Oneida Jones. And, no, as she'll be the first to tell you - she was not named after a spoon.)

In this imaginative, entertaining debut novel Oneida's home is a boarding house, the Darby-Jones in Ruby Falls, New York, run by her mother, Mona. (There is not a father in the picture as Mona had returned to Ruby Falls years earlier unwed but with baby Oneida in her arms) As if cooking and cleaning for...more
We know that growing up can be difficult. Coming of age isn't easy, but it was especially onerous for Oneida Jones. And, no, as she'll be the first to tell you - she was not named after a spoon.)

In this imaginative, entertaining debut novel Oneida's home is a boarding house, the Darby-Jones in Ruby Falls, New York, run by her mother, Mona. (There is not a father in the picture as Mona had returned to Ruby Falls years earlier unwed but with baby Oneida in her arms) As if cooking and cleaning for her tenants were not enough Mona also bakes cakes, gorgeous tall wedding cakes to supplement her income. Among the boarders are Roberta Draper known as Bert, an 87-year-old curmudgeon who occupies the top floor. "She had never married, kept herself cloistered in her rooms, and made no secret of her disapproval of everything." Also in residence are Anna, the town veterinarian and Sherman, a high school shop teacher with whom Anna was having an off again on again affair.

This was the milieu in which Oneida lived and grew, which might be a challenge for any young one but especially so for Oneida as she had no friends and she was a freak. "It was nonnegotiable. It was absolute.....but it wasn't until after her twelfth birthday that she ever considered the possibility that it was something to be embraced rathr than raged against." Why did her fellow sixth graders consider her to be a freak? Because she had "huge frizzy hair and dark eyebrows that touched in the middle of her forehead, and she demanded that Mr. Buckley teach them about Japanese internment camps." Obviously, Oneida was unique, and a few steps ahead of her contemporaries.

Life changes for everyone at the Darby-Jones with the arrival of Arthur Rook, a mysterious sad young man bearing little luggage and most importantly to him a pink shoe box. He recently lost his wife, Amy, in a tragic accident and he came to the Darby-Jones because of an unsent postcard to Mona which he found in the shoe box. He feels there is something to learn here, that he can better come to know Amy who had been Mona's best friend from childhood through high school.

As the story progresses it becomes evident that there are secrets at the Darby-Jones, especially one guarded by Mona. Kate Racculia, a wise author, drops bits of information along the way that keeps us turning pages.

For this reader the novel should have ended when the final secret is revealed rather than an extended explorati0on of what the future held which did seem a bit contrived as if attempting to tie up every loose end. What ever the case, THIS MUST BE THE PLACE is a meritorious first novel, and we look forward to more from Kate Racculia.

Gail Cooke (less)

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Jul 06, 2010 Stephanie D. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

When Amy Henderson dies suddenly, her devastated husband, Arthur Rook, finds a hidden shoebox of mysterious mementos, including a never-mailed postcard which leads him to the Darby-Jones boardinghouse, now run by Amy’s childhood best friend, Mona Jones. The grieving Arthur tries to decipher the meaning of his dead wife’s cryptic souvenirs, and in so doing, threatens to reveal a secret from her past.

“She was so tired of fighting with Amy’s nature. Because it was Amy’s nature to be unknown and unk...more When Amy Henderson dies suddenly, her devastated husband, Arthur Rook, finds a hidden shoebox of mysterious mementos, including a never-mailed postcard which leads him to the Darby-Jones boardinghouse, now run by Amy’s childhood best friend, Mona Jones. The grieving Arthur tries to decipher the meaning of his dead wife’s cryptic souvenirs, and in so doing, threatens to reveal a secret from her past.

“She was so tired of fighting with Amy’s nature. Because it was Amy’s nature to be unknown and unknowable, just as it was Mona’s nature to want more than people ever seemed to be able to give her.

‘I really don’t get it,’ Arthur said. ‘Why she didn’t keep in touch.’

‘Then you don’t know Amy Henderson,’ Mona said.

Arthur recoiled, slapped harder by her words than by any hand. And there were other things she could have said—other things that could have hurt her more. It was tempting to tell him all those other things about his enchanting, enchanted wife…But Mona didn’t get beyond an open mouth. She was stopped by the realization that she wanted to hurt him—really hurt him. Shake him. Smack him. She was sick of this bullshit, she was tired, and she wanted Arthur to grow up and get over it and realize that Amy Henderson had been a human being after all: a human being who could be mean and cowardly and inscrutable and not the essence of eccentric perfection, lost forever. But on the heels of that came another, more disturbing revelation: she wasn’t really mad at Arthur, she was mad at Amy, and Arthur was just her hapless undeserving patsy.”

I was charmed by the quirky and endearing characters in This Must Be The Place by Kate Racculia, each of whom are lost in their own way: gentle Arthur, who is desperately hanging onto his dead wife through the things she left behind; steadfast Mona who has born the stigma of having been an unmarried teenage mom in the small town of Ruby Falls; Oneida, Mona’s daughter, the misunderstood loner at her high school.

“If being a freak meant she was the only one in the room to realize that her teacher was a complete dumb ass, then she’d be a freak and be proud of it. In that moment, she consciously chose the lonely, superior life of freakdom. It was a life she was already living anyway, but she accepted it on the basis that it was better to be lonely and right than stupid with friends.”

I guessed the secret about a third of the way through; however, that did not stop me from being emotionally invested in the fates of Arthur, Mona, and Oneida. Two love stories unfold but I particularly enjoyed Oneida’s, which is a realistic yet sweet portrayal of first love.

Racculia deftly interweaves scenes from the past of the teenage Mona and Amy with the present to reveal what happened 16 years beforehand - what drove Amy to leave Ruby Falls, never to return, and the secret she kept until she died.

Rich with memorable characters and pop culture references (unapologetic use of Clash of the Titans and In-n-Out), This Must Be The Place by Kate Racculia has its bittersweet and funny moments.(less)

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Mar 15, 2011 Lori L (She Treads Softly) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This Must Be the Place, Kate Racculia's debut novel, is the story of a widower, a past friendship, a mother and daughter, first love, and what happens when all these different worlds collide. Really, it's a hard novel to classify as it crosses genres. It's a coming of age story mixed with elements of chic lit, but it is also a plot driven character study. And, after melding elements from these different genres, it's really quite good.

All the characters aren't perfect so they feel realistic. (Art...more

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May 29, 2010 Sharon rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

"This Must Be The Place," Kate Racculia's debut novel, is tricky to classify. Part coming-of-age story, part romance, and part mystery -- but all entertaining.

Racculia's main characters are widower Arthur Rook, boarding house owner Mona Jones and Mona's daughter Oneida. Rook comes to stay at the Darby-Jones boarding house, operated by Mona, after his wife's death. Throw into the mix that Rook's wife was Mona's beat friend in high school for the first in a series of complications. Add a cast of e...more

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Aug 05, 2010 Meredith rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arc, sent-by-publisher, young-adult, chick-lit, reviewed

Before you crack open this book, understand something vital: Whatever you think you know about these characters, you're, at best, only half-right. That doesn't mean that this is a mind-bender of Murakami proportions, though there are some pretty significant twists. It means that the characters have depth.

This is the warm, sometimes whimsical story of Amy Rook and the people she left behind. There is Arthur, her shattered husband; Mona, her erstwhile best friend, the girl who always cleaned up a...more Before you crack open this book, understand something vital: Whatever you think you know about these characters, you're, at best, only half-right. That doesn't mean that this is a mind-bender of Murakami proportions, though there are some pretty significant twists. It means that the characters have depth.

This is the warm, sometimes whimsical story of Amy Rook and the people she left behind. There is Arthur, her shattered husband; Mona, her erstwhile best friend, the girl who always cleaned up after her; and Oneida, Mona's quirky teenage daughter. On their periphery is Eugene/Wendy, boyfriend of Oneida and son of Astor, a security guard with a surprising extracurricular activity.

Mona runs a boarding house populated by quirky side characters and fondant cake creations. She makes a decent living baking wedding cakes, but has a hard time living down her spotty reputation about town (the fictional Ruby Falls, New York). As the story progresses, however, we learn that all is not as it seems, and Mona's reputation is built upon a foundation of rumor and misunderstanding that she has done nothing to contradict. When a lost and grief-stricken Arthur shows up at her boardinghouse seeking answers about his late wife, she realizes that her days of truth-dodging are over.

The story unfolds from four alternating points of view: Arthur's, Mona's, Oneida's, and Eugene's. All we have of Amy are the artifacts and people she's left behind, so all we gain is an incomplete picture of a woman who, for better or worse, was quite complex. It would be easy to dismiss her as a selfish, heartless woman who probably drank too much (several flashbacks feature her in a tipsy or drunken state). But all we have are a handful of memories and revelations that paint a rather fuzzy picture. Did I like Amy? Not particularly. That said, I also recognize that my experience with her was extraordinarily limited.

This is quite a debut. It's difficult to categorize This Must Be the Place, with its mixed bag of young adult, chick lit, and romance elements. Racculia's writing is simultaneously smart and warm, and her characters are remarkably well-developed. And the banter snaps, crackles, and pops, as all good banter should.

(Disclaimer: Henry Holt and Company sent me a review copy of this book.)(less)

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Dec 13, 2010 Sirwinthorpxiv rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Kate Racculia, in her impressive debut novel, emanates an uncompromising, purposeful, and original voice. Her brilliantly crafted novel fallows Arthur Rook, a man recently heartbroken by his young wife’s sudden death. Delirious with grief, Arthur flees his home and job in California, guided only by an unmailed postcard written sixteen years ago to a woman he has never heard of. Arthur follows it to the Darby-Jones boardinghouse in a sleepy rural town in New York.
Arthur bites off more than he ca...more

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Aug 27, 2011 Evelyn rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was intrigued by the premise of this novel by a first-time author. It's the story of a single mother and her daughter who run a boarding house in a small, upstate New York village, and a widower/lost soul who is 'guided' to them after his wife suddenly dies.

The writing was very uneven; at times captivating and beautifully realized, at other times unbelievably muddled, confusing and unclear. It felt as though an editor had lost patience with parts of the book, and simply deleted some of the de...more

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Jan 02, 2011 Sheryl rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Much of the plot seemed unbelievable, but is so engaging and well written, I kept reading. Arthur Rook is a socially awkward photographer who is married to the quirky Amy, who creates monsters for Hollywood. When she dies unexpectedly, Arthur rifles through his home looking for mementos of her life, hoping to learn more about her. Hidden away in her closet, is a pink box with scraps of paper, plastic trinkets, and a mysterious postcard alluding to her past life. Without telling anyone, he drives...more

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Jul 12, 2011 Laura Thompson added it · review of another edition

I am glad I read this book. It was a good read. I hated some things (a character named Oneida...what a gawdawful clunky name to have to read 300 times...I loathed it), I loved others (one of the main characters made monsters for movies...THAT is an original profession in a book, how refreshing), but overall, I like it. It could have done without the post script chapter (8 Years Later)...I wish I hadn't read it. I really felt the book was complete without it. To me, that chapter was the author's...more

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Jul 12, 2010 Laurel-Rain rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The story begins with a boardwalk scene, a young girl, and a postcard.

We then leap ahead sixteen years to a couple living an ordinary life in LA; he, Arthur Rook, is a photographer, and she, Amy Henderson Rook, creates special effects in movies. They are just living day to day.

Then it all changes with a freak accident that leaves Amy dead and Arthur blindsided. Armed with a pink shoebox containing Amy's collection of objects he sees as "clues," and with a postcard and an address in Ruby Falls, N...more The story begins with a boardwalk scene, a young girl, and a postcard.

We then leap ahead sixteen years to a couple living an ordinary life in LA; he, Arthur Rook, is a photographer, and she, Amy Henderson Rook, creates special effects in movies. They are just living day to day.

Then it all changes with a freak accident that leaves Amy dead and Arthur blindsided. Armed with a pink shoebox containing Amy's collection of objects he sees as "clues," and with a postcard and an address in Ruby Falls, NY, Arthur takes off on a journey toward answers.

His search leads him to the Darby-Jones boarding house and the proprietor Desdemona (Mona) Jones, whose life is anything but ordinary, surrounded as she is by a cast of intriguing characters who are the residents. Her daughter Oneida, awkward and friendless, is the part of her life that is important and real. And the past—the part of her life that was connected to Amy Henderson—is not something she talks about.

Arthur's residency in the house begins mysteriously; he says nothing about Amy or her box. Instead, he tries to sort through clues he finds here and there. Then an accident and an injury creates a shift between Arthur and Mona, as she sees him in a new light; someone who needs her. She nurses him back to health, they go out on jobs together (she is a wedding cake baker, he does the photography), and in this process of a developing alliance, they begin to share bits and pieces of their past.

Told from the perspective of the primary characters—Arthur, Amy, Mona, and Oneida—this story unfolds gradually into a multi-layered tale of human connections.

I liked the author's way of slowly revealing the secrets, so that when the bits and pieces were brought to light, I was stunned, but at the same time, I thought "oh, yes, of course!" There was something quirky and endearing about each of the characters that made me care greatly about what would happen to them.

From the "before" until the "after," which was like an epilogue eight years later, the reader was gifted with a wonderfully satisfying feeling of fulfillment.

A very unique story that I will not forget, "This Must Be the Place: A Novel" resonated with me in the way that satisfying stories often do, which is why I decided on a 4 starred review. The only reason I didn't grant 5 stars was that the back and forth progression of the story (from the adult characters, the past, the present, and the teenage characters) left me occasionally disconnected from the flow of the tale. Nevertheless, the story was fascinating and memorable. (less)

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Nov 30, 2010 Judith rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Our hero is rendered speechless by his first visit to "In & Out" and meets his future wife when she rescues him by ordering for him. This cute-meet foreshadows the rest of the story. His wife dies dramatically in the first chapter and in his despair he tears apart their apartment looking for. . .? a shoe box filled with his wife's adolescent memorabilia. This naturally leads him to immediately leave L.A. and head for her hometown of Ruby Falls, N.Y. There he tracks down his wife's best frien...more

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Jul 31, 2010 Lila rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary-american-fiction, own-it

Racculia’s wonderful novel centers on Amy, who is dead in reality but seems to be very much alive in the minds of people whose lives she entered and affected irrevocably. Mona (short for Desdemona, I love this name) Jones and her daughter, Oneida are two of the mentioned people. They own the Derby-Jones boardinghouse in New York and make it a home to a few renters. Life couldn’t be more peaceful, bordering on boring even. Oneida is a nerdy teenager with no real friends, Mona runs the house and h...more
Racculia’s wonderful novel centers on Amy, who is dead in reality but seems to be very much alive in the minds of people whose lives she entered and affected irrevocably. Mona (short for Desdemona, I love this name) Jones and her daughter, Oneida are two of the mentioned people. They own the Derby-Jones boardinghouse in New York and make it a home to a few renters. Life couldn’t be more peaceful, bordering on boring even. Oneida is a nerdy teenager with no real friends, Mona runs the house and her wedding cake business and everything seems to be as it should. Until one day, a new renter arrives. It happens to be Andy Rook, a devastated and a slightly deranged husband of a newly deceased Amy. In his denial that his wife is truly dead, he decided to open a mysterious pink box that belonged to Amy hoping to find something that could keep her alive for him. What he finds brings him to Ruby Falls, New denial that his wife is truly dead, he decided to open a mysterious pink box that belonged to Amy hoping to find something that could keep her alive for him. What he finds brings him to Ruby Falls, New York and Mona Jones, and Oneida, and a lot more secrets than he bargained for. The pink box and its contents hold a story of Mona’s and Amy’s friendship, of their lives and ultimately tell the truth that Andy might not be prepared to hear. But you, my dear reader, better be prepared for one hell of a story within the pages of This Must Be the Place.

To describe this book in only a few words really is nearly impossible but were I to make an attempt, I would call it rich and succulent. That was my first impression when I finished it. I loved the characters, all of them brought something to the table that wasn’t there before. Kate just did a wonderful job by making them all so different and yet fit so well into one big picture. There is Oneida, the nerdy teenager and Eugene “Wendy” Wendell, the feared boy who falls for Oneida’s strangeness. Their budding relationship, the newness and sometimes even hilarity of sexual intimacy was exactly the way I imagine teenage relationships go nowadays. Both of them were really endearing. And then there is Mona with her secrets and beauty she is completely unaware of, poor Andy, whose perfect picture of his wife is being shattered into pieces right in front of his eyes, and finally dead Amy, who seems to be quite alive in the lives of people she affected in one way or another. Truly, a beautiful cornucopia of characters. All I needed to do is just relax and enjoy. I honestly fell in love with each and every one of the people. I laughed when reading about their antics, I cried at the depth of love and friendship, and I pondered on what really makes a family.

I know I will be coming back to visit Ruby Falls more than once. This Must Be The Place is a keeper, take my word for it. It's a perfect summer read, a perfect winter read, a perfect any time of the year read. It's light but asks important questions, it's a coming-of-age story in more ways than you'd expect and once finished, it leaves you wanting to go back to the first page and start over again. Kate Racculia's book is exactly all I love about contemporary American fiction and I hope that tons of people will get to love it too.(less)

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Aug 01, 2010 Kristen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: from-the-publisher, contemporary, we-own

Kate Raccula's debut novel impressed me with its warm, loveable characters and unique storyline. As Oneida Jones comes of age in a sleepy town, she feels lonely and freakish. On the lookout for kindred spirits, we follow her through some of high school's twists and turns. Not formulaic or trite, this thread is the most conventional of the novel's woven storyline.

Oneida's mother Mona shows her own individuality and boldness by being a single mother in her hometown, running her family boarding ho...more

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Jun 07, 2012 Jean rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone who likes a love story tinged with sadness

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm not a "real-life" love story kind of reader. But I decided to give this book a chance for a variety of reasons, and wound up loving it. The premise is rather depressing - it's about a man trying to deal with the tragic and sudden death of his wife - but it quickly became a combination love story/story about conflict between mother and daughter that had you rooting for all parties involved. It was also a stark reminder that people always have secrets, and we don...more

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May 05, 2011 Emily rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Emily by: Tom

My "Company" husband's cousin wrote this book so he recommended it to me! It was really great read with interesting and well thought out characters. There are several storylines intertwined. I would classify it as a coming of age novel even though two of the main characters are already adults. Each character's journey was interesting and I loved how all of the stories came together. The premise was a little "P.S. I Love You"-a young wife dies and leaves the husband behind with questions. He disc...more

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Jun 30, 2011 Barbara rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, our-book-club

I am a sucker for originality. I loved this book! Kate Racculia has created an original story, with original characters and writes with a beautiful original voice. Just up my alley!! This Must Be the Place is a story of people who are not seeing their world clearly due to a series of secrets which keeps them at arms length from the people in their lives. As they find love, they find the importance of the secrets diminishes, and each of them are in a position to see and feel what matters to them...more I am a sucker for originality. I loved this book! Kate Racculia has created an original story, with original characters and writes with a beautiful original voice. Just up my alley!! This Must Be the Place is a story of people who are not seeing their world clearly due to a series of secrets which keeps them at arms length from the people in their lives. As they find love, they find the importance of the secrets diminishes, and each of them are in a position to see and feel what matters to them and what is available to them in their lives. All of this is done with a great sense of humor and wonderfully descriptive prose.
Arthur, a photographer, and his wife Amy, a special effects genius making monsters for films, meet, fall in love, marry, and live in Los Angeles. When Amy is killed accidentally, Arthur realizes he has almost no knowledge of Amy prior to her moving to Los Angeles and has no idea what her final wishes may have been. In a closet he discovers a shoe box containing mementoes of Amy's life including a post card written by Amy to her friend Mona sixteen years ago, but never mailed. Arthur believes the post card will lead him to Amy's past and help him to see the direction of his future. He heads to Ruby Falls, NY to find Mona and hopefully the answers he seeks. Meanwhile, Mona is a single mother running a boarding house, baking wedding cakes and raising her daughter, Oneida. But, Mona is keeping the secrets of her and Amy's lives and is uncertain if they should be shared with Arthur. As the story unfolds, we find there are other secrets being kept by tennants of the Darby-Jones boarding house, by Oneida and by Oneida's classmates. As the characters risk trusting others with their secrets, they learn to trust themselves, as well, and begin to see how their past ties them to their future.

A book to savor. A laugh out loud, yet poignant tale of friends, family and others connected through Amy who discover that love is still present or can grow despite the revelation of the worst of secrets.(less)

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Apr 21, 2013 Mathilde rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am surprised I made it all the way through this book. I listened to parts of a couple disks twice, by accident, and didn't even realize I had already listened because the story was so tedious I had trouble concentrating. I ended up putting this book aside and listening to another, but then through some misguided need to finish books (which I am trying hard to overcome) I slogged through the rest.

Why didn't I like it? I really just found the story boring (maybe it would be a good short story,...more

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Jul 21, 2010 Elisha Condie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: book-clubs

I must admit I always have problems with books where I sincerely don't like a major character (Amy, in this instance). I did like Desdemona. I thought the storytelling was clumsy - the love story of the teenagers was slightly creepy, the big secret was laborious in the reveal, and then it just ends suddenly on an unexpected up note which I can only compare to when an old song is being played and ends on one of those trumpet notes that starts out strong and then whines out like a balloon losing...more

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Jun 15, 2011 Benita rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book was quirky and satisfying. I found myself thinking as I was reading it (and after) about how much DO we change as we grow older? What is the "true" us and how much do people know this essential part? I also liked how it made me think about friendships and the imbalance that can sometimes exist there.

I also felt it captured that horrible time in a teen girl's (esp. a smart girl) life really really well. Oneida is a bundle of contradictions (hubris and uncertainty, emotional and calm, et...more

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Apr 28, 2011 Tara Woolpy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I found this a very sweet story. The narrative is rich with complex issues like death and betrayal, and yet there is a bouyant optimism throughout. The story centers around an absent character - Amy Henderson. She never appears in person and yet the search for an understanding of her permeates every story line. I fell in love with all three of the major characters, Arthur, Mona and Oneida. I can wholeheartedly recommend this book. Here's my favorite line: "Once again Mona was desperate for new b...more

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Nov 10, 2010 Amy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I ended up skimming through this book. There were 2 stories going on, and only one really interested me. It's am interesting read about a man whose wife passes away at the age of 32. He then realized he didn't really know her, didn't know her wishes, etc, etc. He finds a postcard in her only box of secret belongings and sets out to meet the person the postcard was written to (but never sent). We meet her former best friend and the best friend's teenage daughter, and learn more about the dead wif...more

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Aug 23, 2010 Phoebe rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Lisa, Kezia, Sue

Recommended to Phoebe by: Ann

L.A. photographer Arthur Rook goes half crazy when his wife is killed. He yearns to find something of her again, and happens upon a shoebox full of mementoes, which lead him to Mona, proprietor of the Darby Jones hotel in upstate New York. Mona is drawn to him but knows nothing of his connection to her former best friend. When she finds out, she realizes that a long-kept secret of her own, involving teenage daughter Oneida, may need to be shared. I loved Mona, and the plot thread between her and...more

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Nov 16, 2010 C. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, first-novel

This Must Be The Place
Kate Raccullia

This is Raccullia first novel. It is about the secret left behind by a woman after her death in an accident and the grief of her husband, the widower Arthur Rook. After finding a 16 year old postcard his wife had never mailed, he starts his journey that will take him from California to a small town New York, in search of understanding his wife's past. The address is a boardinhouse owned by Mona Jones, her old time best girlfriend and her daughter Oneida. The s...more

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Jul 31, 2010 Beth rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arcs, read-in-2010

In the beginning of the book, I thought Arthur was going to be the main character. He takes his deceased wife's mementos in a pink shoe box to seek out Mona to find out more about his wife's past. However, after getting more into the book it seems as though Oneida is the main character and it becomes more of a coming of age story. All the characters in this book are not exactly likable but that is okay. Some of the tenants in the Darby-Jones Boarding House are quite peculiar but they do make for...more

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Nov 15, 2012 Vicky rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: never-finished

Great reviews of this and I really tried to like it. I got to page 60 of 300 some but had to quit. I found the characters unbelievable. Main character's wife died. He found a box of memorabilia in her closet and went to a town that led him to. He knew NOTHING about his wife's past. How believable is that? He booked a room in a boarding house and didn't come out of it for 4 days. Meanwhile the owner, her daughter and the tenants made fun of him. What kind of owner would do that?? He came out fina...more

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May 05, 2012 Tina Redmond rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved this book. The characters are so quirky (something I love) and this book is full of quirky characters. There are references to LA (where my son lives) and it's set in Central New York (where I live) So it was cool to see these references to places that I knew of. This is one of those books that I couldn't wait to see what happens but at the same time didn't want it end. There are references also to Joseph Cornell collages which sparked in interest from me. I have since done some studying...more

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Jul 09, 2010 Bridget rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Mona has raised Oneida all by herself. They now live in a boarding house, called the Darby-Jones, that Mona is responsible for. The tenants of this home are a curious bunch. Considered a freak, Oneida has never had an friends. When a new resident, Arthur, comes to Darby-Jones, the residents lives are forever changed.

There are certain books that touch you in ways that you cannot begin to describe. That's how I felt about This Must Be the Place. It's amazing novel. Book readers everywhere will be...more

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Oct 18, 2011 Tom Walsh rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm not quick to compare one writer to another but if you liked Audrey Niffenegger's second novel, "Her Fearful Symmetry", you'll be washed away with this one. There are a few implausible scenes and developments, but I think any site calling itself "goodreads" has to include this as a good read. The plot is terrific, and although some of the twists and turns are predictable there is a fair share of surprises - a bit like life, I suppose; which is exactly why I'm enthralled with this novel. There...more

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About Kate Racculia

Kate grew up in Syracuse, New York, and attended college in Buffalo, where she studied illustration, design, Jane Austen, and Canada. After a year in Philadelphia spent dressing up as your favorite childhood characters at a Barnes & Noble (her interpretation of Arthur the Anteater made a small child cry), she moved to Boston for graduate school, where she received her MFA from Emerson College....more

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