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A review by nikereadsbooks
Welcome to Dorley Hall by Alyson Greaves
5.0
Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for a free review.
Welcome to Dorley Hall was a book I wanted to read for a long time and it did not disappoint my expectations, but far exceeded them. I don’t really know which genre I would put this book in, honestly, because there is mystery surrounding the whole Dorley Hall project, where it came from, how is it functioning, there’s the sheer angst the characters are going through, there are day-to-day troubles the girls who exited the program are facing, but this book has genuinely funny parts where the writing is extremely witty and charming.
Stef was such an interesting character, a deeply closeted trans woman who decided to go through a forced feminization program, and the way he was written made me care so much for him. Stef was literally at the wrong place in the wrong time, but it was clear from his point of view that this was the only choice he could make. I deeply sympathized with the way he decided to embrace his situation, and really loved his characterization of a deeply closeted trans woman – not just the way he viewed himself and his body, but also the way he saw himself undeserving of she/her pronouns and how he viewed his potential transition and the program.
Christine was also such a great character, as it added so much depth to the story to see the whole Dorley program from the point of view of someone who was in the later phases of it, but not being a trans woman. I think the whole conversation Christine and the others had about the differences between being a trans woman and transitioning versus the girls who went through Dorley Hall was such a great addition. Christine’s guilt and empathy makes her such a well developed character and her parts in the book were really nice as they added so much context to Stef’s story.
Overall, this book is really good and I think it serves perfectly as the first one in a trilogy. It establishes characters and the whole setting of Dorley, while also leaving so many things for the next books to uncover.
Welcome to Dorley Hall was a book I wanted to read for a long time and it did not disappoint my expectations, but far exceeded them. I don’t really know which genre I would put this book in, honestly, because there is mystery surrounding the whole Dorley Hall project, where it came from, how is it functioning, there’s the sheer angst the characters are going through, there are day-to-day troubles the girls who exited the program are facing, but this book has genuinely funny parts where the writing is extremely witty and charming.
Stef was such an interesting character, a deeply closeted trans woman who decided to go through a forced feminization program, and the way he was written made me care so much for him. Stef was literally at the wrong place in the wrong time, but it was clear from his point of view that this was the only choice he could make. I deeply sympathized with the way he decided to embrace his situation, and really loved his characterization of a deeply closeted trans woman – not just the way he viewed himself and his body, but also the way he saw himself undeserving of she/her pronouns and how he viewed his potential transition and the program.
Christine was also such a great character, as it added so much depth to the story to see the whole Dorley program from the point of view of someone who was in the later phases of it, but not being a trans woman. I think the whole conversation Christine and the others had about the differences between being a trans woman and transitioning versus the girls who went through Dorley Hall was such a great addition. Christine’s guilt and empathy makes her such a well developed character and her parts in the book were really nice as they added so much context to Stef’s story.
Overall, this book is really good and I think it serves perfectly as the first one in a trilogy. It establishes characters and the whole setting of Dorley, while also leaving so many things for the next books to uncover.