Genre: Historical Mystery
The Analysis:
I was excited about this read. It has sat on my kindle for a full year though. The House of Closed Doors by Jane Steen, let’s book review it.
Heres the Blurb:
Heedless. Stubborn. Disgraced.
Small town Illinois, 1870: “My stepfather was not particularly fond of me to begin with, and now that he’d found out about the baby, he was foaming at the mouth”
Desperate to avoid marriage, Nell Lillington refuses to divulge the name of her child’s father and accepts her stepfather’s decision that the baby be born at a Poor Farm and discreetly adopted.
Until an unused padded cell is opened and two small bodies fall out.
Nell is the only resident of the Poor Farm who is convinced the unwed mother and her baby were murdered, and rethinks her decision to abandon her own child to fate. But even if she manages to escape the Poor Farm with her baby she may have no safe place to run to.
I like the cover. The fact that Nell is looking away institutes this level of sinister-ism. You wonder what’s she looking at and is it something that might hurt her. Combined with the realistic clothing and the fact that she’s pregnant. It made for a must grab book. Comment below what you think?
Now The Story:
Book Info:
Pages: 290
Author: Jane Steen
Available: On Amazon
Let’s just jump in head first with the most prevalent theme
I rolled my eyes when she referred to the headmistress and said that she had never met a lady with a profession outside of herself. Like girl you aint got no job.
However, reminiscent of Looking for Home, I was just happy to be reading about a headmistress with a heart of gold. All the poor home troubles were from outside sources. The headmistress wasn’t the source of strife or trouble, drunk off power, greed and an evilness so proficient in these types of stories.
Otherwise, this mystery left me emotionally gripped. I remember needing to take a break just because my heart
I wasn’t even sure I liked Nell and I was riveted. So this was a loss. Overall the book has its captivating moments, but it’s unusually long. And I couldn’t help but wonder if things could have been sped up a bit. And I found those cutting room floor chapters stuffed on the end.
My confusion also took shape because the climax was over and there was still several chapters left. Leaving me to wonder just what the hell was this book about.
The blurb leaves you to believe that the novel is about Nell’s time at the home for unwed mothers but that’s only half the story. As it pivots back to her childhood home. And the troubles she faces there with her stepfather. By the end I found myself wishing for the story I thought this would be. A murder mystery at a poor home. By the end, it had pivoted to the after effects of getting her life together.
After that, it didn’t take long to figure out what passages they should have cut. I was trudging through it wondering why yet another subplot had been introduced. This is a series that follows Nell’s journey and I wish that was communicated better. I never really grew attached to Nell so I
Story At A Glance:
Recommendation: No
The Ratings:
Book Cover Appeal:
🍓🍓🍓🍓🍓
Story & Narration:
🍓🍓🍓
Romance:
Not Applicable
Sex Scenes:N
Not Applicable
