Maxine's parents have had to do perhaps the worst possible thing: confirm the identity of her brother Derek's body by the clothes he was wearing when he disappeared. So the brother who was missing is now officially dead. But then the worst possible thing really happens: Maxine receives a telephone call from somebody saying he is her brother. She can hardly believe her ears. Has Derek come back from the dead? In this pacy thriller the author manages to confront many issues including: how different people deal with grief, the very underrated effect of severe bullying at school and sibling rivalry - all in a fast-paced compelling narrative voice.

 

There are 208 pages in this book. This book was published 2011 by Bloomsbury Publishing PLC .

Cathy MacPhail has won numerous awards, including the Royal Mail Award for Grass, and Out of the Depths has recently been shortlisted for the Scottish Book Award. Cathy's work is enormously popular with young teenagers, her trademarks being pacy and topical storylines. Cathy lives in Greenock, Scotland.