The Only Girl in Town

by Ally Condie Narrated by Elena Rey

Overview

“An eerily beautiful and lyrical story of loss, grief, and how quickly relationships can change, while also changing us.” -Robin Benway, National Book Award winner and bestselling author of Far From The Tree and A Year to the Day

“Fast-paced, unputdownable, and full of heart and complicated emotions. An unforgettable story.” -Yamile Saied Méndez, Pura Belpré Award-winning author of Furia, a Reese's Book Club selection

What would you do if everyone you love disappeared? What if it was your fault?

For July Fielding, nothing has been the same since that summer before senior year.

Once, she had Alex, her loyal best friend, the one who always had her back. She had Sydney, who pushed her during every cross-country run, and who sometimes seemed to know July better than she knew herself. And she had Sam. Sam, who told her she was everything and left her breathless with his touch.

Now, July is alone. Every single person in her small town of Lithia has disappeared. No family. No Alex or Sydney. No Sam. July's only chance at unraveling the mystery of their disappearance is a series of objects, each a reminder of the people she loved most. And a mysterious message: GET TH3M BACK.

From the #1 bestselling author of the Matched series, The Only Girl in Town is a searingly candid reckoning with both love and loneliness that perfectly distills the messy, beautiful realities of growing up, growing apart, and the courageous act of self-discovery.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

08/07/2023

One summer day, rising high school senior July Fielding is walking back to her car from an afternoon at Fall Creek when she has the sudden realization that she’s all alone—not just in the woods, but in her town as well. Her family isn’t at home, no one is answering her texts, and when she tries to leave town, an invisible barrier prevents her from crossing city limits. As July frantically tries to uncover who or what is leaving her mysterious “GET THEM BACK” messages and determine where everyone went, alternating sections titled “Once” and “Now” chart her life before and after her loved ones’ disappearances. But as July delves deeper into the current mystery, memories of previous drama begin to unfurl, blurring the line between past and present. Liminal-feeling therapy session interstitials provide glimpses into July’s struggles with her mental health. July’s raw and sometimes unreliable narration amps up the suspense in this cleverly rendered speculative read by Condie (The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe), who ruminates on issues of anxiety and depression in a way that feels at once fresh and grounded. Characters read as white. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jodi Reamer, Writers House. (Sept.)

From the Publisher

Praise for #1 Bestselling Author Ally Condie

#1 New York Times Bestseller• USA Today Bestseller• International Bestseller• Edgar Award Finalist


The Matched Trilogy
“This futuristic fable of love and free will asks: Can there be freedom without choice? The tale of Cassia's journey from acceptance to rebellion will draw you in and leave you wanting more.” –Cassandra Clare, New York Times-bestselling author of The Infernal Devices trilogy and The Mortal Instruments series

★ “A fierce, unforgettable page-turner.” –Kirkus, starred review
 
“Strong feminist ideals and impressive writing.” –Los Angeles Times
 
★ “Cassia’s metamorphosis is gripping and satisfying.” –Publishers Weekly, starred review

“A Must Read.” –Girls’ Life Magazine

The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe
“A compelling, serpentine journey into the heart of grief, the way it can threaten to destroy, and what it looks like to survive.” –Sabaa Tahir, National Book Award winner and #1 bestselling author of All My Rage
 
“With its wonderful subversion of gender tropes and achingly real characters, The Last Voyage of Poe Blythe takes readers on an epic journey to unearth life’s true treasures. Ally Condie has knocked it out of the park.” –Renée Ahdieh, #1 bestselling author of The Wrath & the Dawn series
 
Atlantia
“Utterly captivating. A heroine unlike any I’d met before, a setting I’d never glimpsed, a story I’d never imagined. Atlantia is fresh, wild, and engrossing. I love Ally Condie.” –Shannon Hale, bestselling author of Austenland and the Best Friends series

School Library Journal

11/17/2023

Gr 9 Up—From "Matched" trilogy author Condie comes this new novel. The story opens with July Fielding experiencing a nightmarish reality: everyone in town has disappeared. Or have they? She does find her cat, Yolo. Upon visiting her high school, July discovers that someone has written "Get Th3m Back" on the marquee. Readers and July are left with more questions than answers as that phrase appears in other places. As the book continues, July discovers objects referencing locations around town and memories of the summer before her senior year. The plot builds expertly, pulling readers in as they wonder what trauma July experienced and how the story will resolve. Through flashbacks, text messages, and counseling sessions, readers gain tidbits of July's summer. The ending may leave readers wondering what just happened, but the story is a relatable coming-of-age tale and one can forgive this abrupt landing. Plus, (spoiler alert) it has a happy ending. Condie's sparse text could be enjoyed by teens at a variety of reading levels. She also chose to leave the characters as mirrors in terms of ethnicity and physical characteristics. VERDICT Recommended where Condie's other titles circulate well.—Sarah Sieg

Kirkus Reviews

2023-07-27
A teenage girl finds herself alone after everyone else in her town mysteriously disappears, leaving her scrambling to figure out how to find them all.

One late summer day, everybody in July Fielding’s town disappears. She is left to piece together what happened, following a series of cryptic signs she finds around town urging her to “GET THEM BACK.” The narrative moves back and forth between July’s present and the events of the summer before, when her relationship with her best friend, cross-country team co-captain Sydney, starts to fracture due to a combination of jealousy over July’s new relationship with a cute boy called Sam and sweet up-and-coming freshman Ella’s threatening to overtake Syd’s status as star of the track team. The team members participate in a ritual in which they jump off a cliff into the rocky waters below at the end of their Friday practice runs. Though Ella is reluctant, Syd pressures her to jump. Short, frenetically paced sections move the story along quickly, and there is much foreshadowing pointing to something terrible that occurred at the end of that summer, which may be the key to July’s current predicament, but there is much misdirection too. Ultimately this is a story without enough setup to make the turn the book takes in the end feel fully developed or earned. All characters read white.

A high-concept premise that falls short in its execution. (Fiction. 14-18)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940178182857
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	09/19/2023
Edition description:	Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

I am walking back from the water when it happens. I am looking down at my hands in the late-summer sun. It is the time of day when afternoon slides into dusk. I am looking at them, thinking, these are my hands, that is so strange.
 
My hands are my hands. Like in kindergarten when you have to practice writing your name over and over again until it looks so weird. You start to wonder, Is this really my name? This can’t be my name. Like a straggle of string unraveled from a sweater, a trail made by a snake in the mud.
 
I am thinking that and then
 
I feel the world
 
empty around me.
 
Cicadas stop screaming.
 
Cars stop humming along the road past the edge of the wood.
 
My phone, which had been buzzing buzzing buzzing in my pocket, goes silent. When I pull it out, it’s cold and dead. When I turn it on, there is no signal.
 
In the distance, the water splashes over the spillway, but no one calls or cries out.
 
I know before I know
 
that everyone is gone.

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