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thebookishalibi 's review for:
Coram House
by Bailey Seybolt
CORAM HOUSE is a haunting, surprising novel steeped in grief and shadowed with gothic undertones. Alex, an investigative writer, is tasked with ghostwriting the history of a Vermont orphanage. As she sorts through the accounts of so much harm, she finds the untold story of a boy who disappeared at Coram House fifty years earlier. This is not a thread she can let go, but following it makes this much more than a job for her.
From the very first page, I was drawn in by its atmosphere - there’s just something about a mystery set against the biting cold. The setting does so much heavy lifting here, including the House itself, which feels almost like its own character. Grief isn’t just a theme in this book - it’s a lens through which everything is seen, blurring the lines between good judgment and desperation.
I was impressed with how seamlessly the story wove in true historical cases. Alex’s two previous investigations are based on real events, and it added a layer of weight to the work she is doing at Coram House. That said, some of the content - especially related to child abuse - was difficult to read. It’s handled with care, but it still left me shaken.
This is a powerful and engaging read that
lingers long after the final page. CORAM HOUSE is a gothic mystery that doesn’t just ask the reader to solve a puzzle—it asks us to sit with our grief and wonder what we might be capable of under the weight of it.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the advance copy. All opinions are entirely my own.
From the very first page, I was drawn in by its atmosphere - there’s just something about a mystery set against the biting cold. The setting does so much heavy lifting here, including the House itself, which feels almost like its own character. Grief isn’t just a theme in this book - it’s a lens through which everything is seen, blurring the lines between good judgment and desperation.
I was impressed with how seamlessly the story wove in true historical cases. Alex’s two previous investigations are based on real events, and it added a layer of weight to the work she is doing at Coram House. That said, some of the content - especially related to child abuse - was difficult to read. It’s handled with care, but it still left me shaken.
This is a powerful and engaging read that
lingers long after the final page. CORAM HOUSE is a gothic mystery that doesn’t just ask the reader to solve a puzzle—it asks us to sit with our grief and wonder what we might be capable of under the weight of it.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for the advance copy. All opinions are entirely my own.