A review by soobooksalot
The Broken Girls by Simone St. James

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

"Mary Hand, Mary Hand, dead and buried under land. She'll say she wants to be your friend. Do not let her in again."
 Spooky October reading excellence!
 I loved Simone St. James's The Sun Down Motel last year so I saved The Broken Girls to enjoy this year's pre-Halloween reading. And it was a total win!
 This is a dual-timeline story, starting in 2014 as freelance journalist Fiona Sheridan prepares to write a story about the renovation of Idlewild Hall, once a boarding school for troubled girls. It's also where Fiona's sister Deb was found murdered 20 years earlier. 
 We are then taken back to 1950, to the heyday of Idlewild and it's students. One of their own disappeared under circumstances never explained. 
 Both timelines include sightings and stories of Mary Hand, a spectre and legend of the area; as well as the real-life horrors of the Ravensbrück women's concentration camp.
 It's a detailed and atmospheric story, one that's easy to get caught up in. The Broken Girls is both a crime thriller and gothic mystery - a great combination! Recommended!
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