Come Back: A Mother and Daughter's Journey Through Hell and Back (P.S.)

Come Back is a true account told in parallel first-person narratives by Claire Fontaine and her daughter Mia. The book chronicles how an honor student from a prestigious Los Angeles prep school descended into drug addiction, eventually shooting heroin in rural Indiana, while living a secret life unknown to her family for over a year. Claire's account describes discovering her daughter's disappearance and hidden life, Mia's manipulation of those around her as she sought refuge in criminal and heroin-using communities, and the childhood secrets underlying her addiction. The search for Mia involved dead ends, coincidences, and what both experienced as miraculous moments. Resolution came through boot camp schools on two continents—Mia attended a behavior modification school for nearly two years that helped her address depression and self-hatred, while Claire participated in her own transformative program. Mia's narrative details the culture shock of the extreme school environment and her path toward self-esteem and courage. The book portrays the relationship between mother and daughter through their shared experience of crisis and recovery.