Book Review: Wildthorn

Author: Jane Eagland
Title: Wildthorn
Publisher: Plume
Publish Date: September 6, 2010
Rating: 4 Stars
Book Blurb: They strip her naked, of everything—undo her whalebone corset, hook by hook. Locked away in Wildthorn Hall—a madhouse—they take her identity. She is now called Lucy Childs. She has no one; she has nothing. But, she is still seventeen—still Louisa Cosgrove, isn't she? Who has done this unthinkable deed? Louisa must free herself, in more ways than one, and muster up the courage to be her true self, all the while solving her own twisted mystery and falling into an unconventional love . . .

Originally published in the UK, this well-paced, provocative romance pushes on boundaries—both literal and figurative—and, do beware: it will bind you, too.

Review: Wildthorn is one of those books that starts out slowly, but when it picks up it takes such a strong hold on you that you forget about the slow parts and as you get further in, you realize that the first part needs to be slower then the rest, so that the full impact of the story hits you properly, like a ton of bricks.

Lucy Cosgrove, thinks she's going to help a family in need of a companion, but ends up in Wildthorn, an asylum. To make matters worse, she's admitted under the name Lucy Childs. When she tries to explain who she is, she ends up sounding more and more mad, and soon she wonders if she is indeed mad. She's also a bit different from the other girls of her time, she longs to attend the newly opened medical school for women and she's discovers that she's more attracted to girls.

The asylum is a most unpleasant place to say the least and Lou fights to get out, while the author takes you slowly through the events that lead up to her entering Wildthorn. The author also shows you Wildthorn from every possible angle, the Fifth Gallery where the patients are treated well, down to solitary and the descriptions are truly terrifying. You long for Lou's release, knowing that she doesn't belong there.

As the story starts to unravel, you cheer for her and her newfound friend Eliza, who worked on the Fifth and helps her all that she can and becomes the closest friend she's ever had.

This is a young adult novel but I would say that it should be read by those 15 and up because some of the subject matter is very strong.

This is definitely a really good read and one not to be missed.

~ my copy of Wildthorn was provided by NetGalley