Meredith has led a rather sad life as a child with a mother who loves a smoke and a wine bottle more than her two daughters..
Due to a emotional incident she becomes a recluse. Not leaving her home for over three years.
This book is her journey back to normality with the help of her new found friends and a Councillor.

This was such a beautiful read I devoured every page as I got caught up in the world of Meredith Maggs and her struggle to face up to all her problems. The book is both heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time as we learn what is causing Meredith to become a recluse and this is told in differing timelines.
All of the characters in the book are so well crafted but of course the main character of Meredith stands out by miles, I loved her so much and I will miss being part of her world. This was a change from my usual thriller type books and I’m so glad that I got to read it, I found myself thinking a lot about the story when I wasn’t reading always a good sign for me that it’s a book that I will treasure. Engrossing, sad, funny and a book to be savoured what more do you need.
So please pick this one up it has a bit of everything and in my opinion it’s a belter of a read!
My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Follow agoraphobic Meredith as she makes her life work, all without leaving the house. Like nothing I've read before, I found this novel touching, funny and at times heartbreaking as Meredith comes to terms with her past and we realise why her life is what it is and what she now needs to happen to change things. I enjoyed reading this novel.

This is a sensitively written book about the journey from trauma to healing. The characters are very easy to relate to and right from the start you empathise with Meredith and realise that she is an intelligent interesting person who has become trapped by her past. Her inability to leave her house is paralleled by her inability to overcome the damage she has experienced from her relationships. But despite the sadness behind Meredith and her miniscule life there are glimpses of hope from the beginning in her indomitable spirit and the love she receives from those who care about her. A well-written novel about overcoming mental health problems and trauma. With thanks to NetGalley and Michael Joseph for this digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

This is a beautiful, beautiful book and I urge everyone to read it. It’s about trauma, but it’s also about survival, hope, new beginnings and the power of friendship.

I felt gently eased in as I got to know the characters and very quickly fell in love with them. Meredith, who has so much strength and compassion despite everything she’s been through, is a wonderful protagonist. Then you have her amazing support network in Sadie, Tom (who I adore) and Celeste; and her mysterious, complex relationships with her mum and sister. Special shout-out to the gorgeous Fred the cat!

Then, as the book progresses, we find out more about Meredith and what has caused her mental health to deteriorate to the point where she has cut herself off from the outside world. I thought the way the book was structured was perfectly executed - it made me care deeply for Meredith, and then broke my heart into smaller pieces with each journey into her past!

The slow but steady journey Meredith goes on is inspiring, and the more I read, the harder it was to put this book down. A favourite for sure! Many thanks for the ARC.

Meredith hasn’t left her house for years, suffering panic attacks every time she tries. But she has a good friend in Sadie, support from a volunteer from a charity, and a new online friend.

I appreciated how this book didn’t fudge the difficulty of dealing with mental health problems and that there was no quick fix, but that Meredith’s progress was made through many small positive steps, including making strong relationships, being motivated by helping others, bravely facing her past, and having therapy. All the characters are dealing with trauma of some kind, however, which makes it a little bleak, although Meredith’s story is ultimately uplifting.

Meredith hasn’t left her home for 1214 days. She has her cat Fred, her jigsaws and her friend Sadie who visits her so it seems there is nothing to push her to go outside. Life is never that simple and Meredith’s past is always just below the surface. With a cast of characters and chapters to show the issues in Meredith’s childhood this is a beautiful study of a dark subject matter and illustrates that there is so much more to Meredith than the fact that she can’t leave her house.

I was completely drawn in by the book with its light matter of fact style and was rooting for Meredith and hoping she could move forward.

Meredith Alone hasn’t left her home in 1214 days, but she says she isn’t alone. She lives in her flat with her cat Fred. But she has a support network of her friend Sadie, her sister Fee and her friend Tom who come to see her every week.
We don’t know why initially why she is this way but as the story develops and the timeline goes back in forth in time. We learn the traumatic event that made her this way. The story also deals with Mental health.
Thank you, Penguin Michael Joseph, for a copy of Meredith Alone by Claire Alexander. As soon as I read the blurb for this book, I knew I was going to love this book. This is a sad emotional story, but an uplifting one. This has a unique storyline that will resonate with you for a long time. I loved the characters especially the main character Meredith, she reminded me a bit of myself. Since Covid I don’t go out a lot myself only for the main essentials as I am not working. But I was routing for her to get better and have a normal life. This is a brilliant first novel and I think it will do really well. I can’t wait to see what this author has next instore. 5 stars from me.

A beautifully written book which tugged at my heartstrings. I was eager to learn what had caused Meredith to become a recluse for 1214 days. Through flashbacks we understand what she has suffered causing her to fear going outside. The characters are portrayed realistically, each with their different personalities that come across well. I loved this book.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.

If you’re a fan of Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, you’ll like this! A fabulously likeable protagonist faces her demons in her own way with the help of new and old friends. It’s lighthearted in some places, devastating in others, but always eminently readable.

Absolutely loved this.

It has a warmth that ozzes out of it. The characters have such special bonds, though one creates issues too.

I implore anyone not to love this book.

Meredith will be discussed for years to come.

We may have all had to stay in, and not wanted too. But Meredith was, is happy at home.

Go Meredith!!

This was such an emotional read and one that I could easily relate to.

I have agoraphobia which means I rarely leave the house and when I do I have extreme panic attacks and cannot go out alone. It was very easy for my to feel for Meredith and how she struggled.

Whilst she goes through a lot, Meredith is an extremely strong character who proves that it's okay to struggle, its okay to take tiny steps to improve and that things will get better in time.

Honestly this was one of my most anticipated reads of 2022 and it did not disappoint. Go read it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Meredith hasn't left her house for over a thousand days, why?
After lockdown I found (and still do) myself very reluctant to go out so when Netgalley gave me the opportunity to read Meredith Alone I jumped at the chance.
She's happy at home, she's got her cat Fred for company, her Tesco man brings her groceries and she does her cardio workout, what could be wrong?
I thought it might be a light read but delving into Meredith's past reveals the incident that led to her present life and the matter of fact way that we are introduced to it is very dark.
I couldn't put this book down.

Unfortunately, I didn't read this book as I was unable to enlarge the font on my mobile.

What a pity!

I was really looking forward to reading Meredith Alone

Good luck with the book

An emotional read with beautifully defined characters. I really liked Meredith and her struggle with her fears is incredibly well described; the sheer physical panic when she tries to go outside versus her desire for normality.

Sadie is the friend that everyone would love to have, always there when needed, non-critical and supportive. Tom is another friend, a volunteer from a befriending charity, different from Sadie in that he doesn't know about Meredith's past just about her current struggles. Meredith's mother and her sister Fee are introduced as gradually Meredith's story is revealed and with the help of her friends and therapist she tries to move forward with her life.

This is truly a story about friendship and forgiveness but never mawkish or sentimental just a really, really good read.

I felt this book really had a feel of claustrophobia which suited the theme of the book. I honestly felt like we were in the house with Meredith as she struggled with her mental health and was fascinated by this story. Beautifully written and very honest.

What a beautiful read this was, and I absolutely loved getting to know Meredith. Highly recommend!
Thank you for the opportunity to read this ARC.

An amazing debut that follows Meredith who hasn’t left her home in three years. But really, the story is about friendships, family, and support networks. Meredith has such a traumatic past and it is tentatively explored by the author. To be honest I really felt that the author bought life to all the characters woven into this novel. It was so easy to become immersed in Meredith’s life, her routines, her history, her relationships. I think that the author absolutely nails the character development, as a reader the highlight of the book was being hopeful about Meredith’s future. As a student mental health nurse, the therapy techniques were also spot on. It was a privilege to join Meredith on her journey.

Thank you PMJ for my earc of this book. Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I just didn’t feel engaged by the story and couldn’t relate to Meredith or feel anything towards her.

Thank you to Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for the opportunity to read this book that I found both heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time. Meredith Maggs hasn’t left her her house for over 1,000 days and will she ever leave it again? This book is about strength, friendship, family and facing the past. I found this easy to follow even though it kept going back in time. All the characters were likeable and their connection to Meredith relevant. I thought how Meredith was feeling, both present day and in her past, was described really well. All the events, and some were quite traumatic, were very sensitively covered. The ending was spot on in my opinion and Meredith herself was a very likeable character who by the end I felt I knew!