“Children.. need attention: physical activity, interaction. They need to be held. And they need to be loved.” Yes, all children. T Greenwood constructs a story of love; familial, marital and parental. The lengths that one will go to for their children is astonishing, yet perfectly natural, as Ginny portrays throughout.
The plot, a telling of a life, a remedy of a morally corrupt situation, feels at times like a Thelma & Louise escapade. However, the stakes are so much higher than just a road trip. Abuse in many forms is touched upon; manipulation, disabled abuse, child abuse but the resulting hope is achieved.
A great book.

Ginny Richardson's daughter, Lucy was born in 1969 with Down Syndrome. Down syndrome was, at the time, a genetic disorder that was widely misunderstood, and therefore, children born with this were commonly institutionalized. Unfortunately, conditions at Willowridge school aren't the best, and the residents there are prone to being mistreated and living in the horrible conditions. Two years passes, and then Ginny decides to go visit her daughter, and quickly realizes that she can't stay there.

This book is heart wrenching, and I recommend it to anyone to see how far a mothers love can travel. Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Keeping Lucy was another book from T. Greenwood that I could not put down.
You are hooked from the very start and the pull to keep turning pages, literally does not let up until you have finished the book.

I would recommend this book to anyone who has a HEART!

When Lucy is born with down syndrome, she is taken away against Ginny's will and sent to live at an academy for the special needs. Three years later, when the academy is exposed for it's deplorable conditions, Ginny decides it's time to see her baby girl for the first time. When she gets there the conditions are worse than she could ever imagine; this is when she decides she must save Lucy no matter what her husband or high-powered father in law say.

Keeping Lucy was a heart-wrenching but beautiful historical fiction read. Greenwood writes so beautifully, you really come to care for Lucy and feel for Ginny. This book is a true testament to a mother's love and will for her children. It really shines a light as to how far we've come in the treatment of the disabled and mentally challenged.

Trigger warnings: child neglect, use of the R word in regards to the mentally challenged.

Thank you to St Martin’s Press for a free review copy of this book. This is a very impactful story based on true events that happened in the early 1970s in Massachusetts. Ginny goes into labour and delivers a baby girl. She is so sedated that she is really unaware as to what is happening around her. Her doctor and husband tell her that her daughter has Downs Syndrome and has many complicated medical issues. She is told that the baby has been sent to a special treatment centre. Ginny is determined to go and visit her daughter and her husband talks her out of it. Two years later information comes to light that this is actually an institution that has deplorable conditions. Ginny signs her daughter out and goes on the run with her daughter, six year old son, and a friend. She frantically tries to convince her husband their daughter can’t be sent back to the institution as she evades returning home. It is astounding and heart breaking to think there were institutions with conditions such as this in the 1970s. And to realize many parents unknowingly signed their children over to be wards of the state. This is a book that will certainly stay with me for a while.

Author T. Greenwood sets the story in 1971. The Women's Movement is gaining steam, but it is still a time when women lacked power and autonomy. For instance, a woman could not yet have a credit card issued in her name and many professions were still hostile to women. Two years earlier, when Ginny and Ab's daughter was born, Ginny only held her child only briefly before she was whisked away. Ironically, Ginny's father died when she was only ten years old and she was raised thereafter by her single, working mother. Yet when Ginny met Ab in college and the two of them bonded over their shared love of poetry, both Ginny and Ab allowed their future to be commandeered by Ab's overbearing father. Ab abandons his plans, acceding to his father's demand that he attend law school and, upon graduation, join his father's firm. The elder Richardson supplies the financing for the young couple's home, and Ginny leaves her job at the college library behind in favor of raising their son, Peyton, and spending her days ironing Ab's shirts, preparing meals, and trying to keep her husband and in-laws happy, an impossible goal because of their disapproval of her. Ginny is barely an active participant in her own life, even though she loves her husband and child.

Ab does not challenge his father, who insists that Lucy be placed in Willowridge and makes all of the arrangements by calling in a favor. Ginny does not fight for her child, instead going along as Ab tries to console her by promising that Lucy will be well cared for. They engage in a charade, letting all but their closest family members and friends believe that the child died. As time passes, Ab puts Ginny off when she suggests that they, at last, visit Lucy at Willowridge. But Ginny never forgets her daughter.

When Ginny's best friend, Marsha, draws her attention to a series of newspaper articles exposing the abhorrent conditions at Willowridge and Ginny learns that a group of parents are filing a class action lawsuit, she comes alive. She defies Ab and enlists Marsha help. Ginny has never even learned to drive, another aspect of her complicity in her own helplessness. The two of them proceed to Willowridge where Ginny manages to check Lucy out of the institution for a weekend visit and begins to get acquainted with her now two-year-old child. Discovering that Lucy has been a victim of neglect at Willowridge finally enrages Ginny and spurs her to action. But she soon discovers that she is powerless -- she has no standing to make decisions about Lucy's future. Nonetheless, she and Marsha embark on a dangerous "Thelma and Louise"-type journey. Ginny is determined that she will find a way to keep Lucy and raise her -- as she should have in the first place.

Greenwood accurately portrays a different, not all that long-ago era in America when persons with disabilities were viewed as less than. As Ginny and Marsha travel through several states, Greenwood reveals with heartbreaking clarity how Lucy has suffered from neglect and how discovering the truth transforms Ginny. Marsha, Ginny's polar opposite, is as fascinating a character -- a woman who has done all the things and taken all the risks Ginny, cocooned in her predictable and secure life, never has. But she too is at a turning point in her life and must make a decision, even as the two women continue working their way to Florida where, they hope, their plan will come to fruition and prevent Ginny from being arrested and prosecuted. As the story progresses, Greenwood credibly portrays the strong bond between the two women, as well as Ginny's gradual empowerment and increasing appreciation of and reliance upon her own ingenuity and resourcefulness. Keeping Lucy is, in a very real sense, a coming of age tale. The pace of Keeping Lucy is relentless and Greenwood's holds her reader's interest by placing Ginny and Marsha in a series of predicaments that test their strength and luck.

Ab is indisputably the most maddening character, but Greenwood tells the story of how he and Ginny met, fell in love, and married through a series of flashbacks interspersed with the narrative set in 1971. Ultimately, although Ab is not the focus of Greenwood's tale, she describes in plausible detail how Ab became so eager to please his domineering father, and how his circumstances fueled his choices and what Ginny perceives as serious betrayals of her and their children.

Keeping Lucy is an interesting look back at the way things used to be in the United States that will prove eye-opening for readers who are too young to recall those times, and remind those who do remember just how much has been achieved in terms of women's rights, social justice, and the way, as a society, we perceive and care for those with special needs and abilities. It is a thoroughly engrossing tale about motherhood, female friendships and, through her examination of Ginny's metamorphosis, confirmation that it is never too late to stand up, be counted, and do the right thing. Especially for one's own child.

Virginia (Ginny) Richardson worked in a library when she met Abbot, Jr. (Ab). He came from money because his father led a very successful law firm. Abbot Sr. had designs set on his son; he wanted him to go to Harvard Law school and follow in his footsteps. But Ab had other ideas about joining a group of aid workers for six months in Vietnam. When Ab brought Ginny to his family's sparkling and imposing mansion, Abbot Sr. made it clear that she wasn't an ideal candidate for his son's future wife. But, Ab had already secreted his grandmother's 3-carat diamond engagement ring out of the family safe and proposed to Ginny, which she accepted. Then Ginny got pregnant, which helped decide how things were going to go. Despite the less than ideal timing, Ab was elated when he learned Ginny was pregnant...so much so that he began dancing with Ginny's mother in celebration upon hearing the news. Now compromises were to be made with Ab's family. Ab would indeed go to law school, Ab's family would provide a high society country club wedding and honeymoon (when Ginny had dreamed of a quiet, small affair), and a small starter home would be provided for the newly minted family.

The dueling chapter timelines are 1969 and 1971, which serve to weave the story along to its poignant conclusion. I grew up in the sixties and seventies, so I am quite drawn to this setting. As the book begins, Ginny, already the mother of 4 year old son Peyton, is heavily pregnant with her second child. She's at the baby shower her mother-in-law Sylvia has thrown for her at the mansion. As the affair is ending, her water breaks, and she's on her way to delivery at the hospital. Back then women were still being "put out" to give birth, and when she wakes up all is not as it should be. What should be a celebratory atmosphere of elation is instead a somber and extremely tense situation with furtive glances. Ginny wants to hold her baby girl and the nurse reluctantly lets her do so. Ginny takes in the gorgeous dark lashes and marvels over her beautiful baby girl, but is told that her child has a severe developmental disability. In blunt terms, Ginny is told Lucy is mongoloid, retarded, and will have heart problems. In accurate medical terms, Lucy has Down Syndrome, a genetic disorder. The next day when Ginny is discharged from the hospital and is looking to hold her baby, Ab sheepishly tells her that Lucy's already been taken away to Willowridge School, where that facility can handle the many challenges Lucy will face.

Four year old Peyton has been told that his little sister "went to the angels". For Ginny, it's a dichotomy where she's in deep mourning, but her baby girl didn't actually die. Ginny broaches the subject with Ab about visiting Lucy, but is told that visitation is discouraged before two years have passed. So, Ginny plods through her daily life as a mother and wife, ironing and starching Ab's shirts, caring for Peyton and their newer, more elaborate home (another perk from the in-laws). Then Ginny's best friend Marsha descends upon the home with explosive newspaper articles about Willowridge. There are photos depicting neglect, with unsanitary and inhumane living conditions at this so called "school". Now Ginny is off the rails with concern and immediately wants to visit Lucy.

To give away too many more details would be a disservice to the future reader, as they should be discovered and savored on their own- for this is an exquisitely written story. Let me just say that Ginny and Marsha take off, in "Thelma & Louise" like fashion (if you haven't seen that movie, I highly recommend it) on a mission to find Lucy.

There are a multitude of lessons of love told in the pages of this book. In 1972 investigative reporter Geraldo Rivera did an expose about the Willowbrook school that shocked the nation and ignited change in federal civil rights legislation for people with disabilities. Undoubtedly, this book was based on Willowbrook. Today, we see people with Down Syndrome living with their families, not shut away in institutions. On a personal note, my brother-in-law who is in his fifties lives with my husband, college-age son and I. He used to live downstairs with my mother-in-law, but when she passed away we gladly took him into our home. He does not have Down Syndrome, but has other mental disabilities as well as a profound speech impediment. He is a handsome, gentle, loving, well-mannered and very well-liked individual in our community. He loves to crochet blankets, do puzzles, paint by number and play video games. He used to be a diaper changing assistant when my mother-in-law watched our infant son! He keeps busy with regular parks and recreation activities our town provides for ability challenged residents. He also has won too many ribbons and trophies to count participating in Special Olympics. He goes on many wonderful trips with these programs. He's also a great help around the house with vacuuming and other home improvement projects, where my husband engages his enthusiastic assistance. Not to mention his mastery of the Keurig coffeemaker, when he gladly makes me a perfect cup of coffee. I digress from the book, but in summation the interaction between Lucy and Ginny, where she first received real love, was a conduit to learning. My heart is full after reading this book. I read it within two days, which is unheard of for me. It is probably the best book that I've read this year, and I highly recommend it.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press who provided an advance reader copy via NetGalley.

First of all let me say that I love anything by this author so far. It is a story of the horrors Inflicted on the disabled Inside the institutions of the past
Having worked in special ed for many years. The mother‘s guilt is so real. The characters are real
It reminds me of the breakthrough that Geraldo Rivera exposed at the Willowbrook mental institution.
Thank you for writing this book and I hope there are more to come from you

It’s 1969 and Ginny Richardson goes into labor with her second child at the baby shower hosted by her mother-in-law. After a hazy delivery, she’s informed that her baby daughter, Lucy, has serious health issues and has Down syndrome. Still in a fog aided by sedatives heaped upon her, husband Ab convinces her that the child needs to be institutionalized and isn’t expected to live very long. Ginny only has a few moments with her daughter before she’s taken. Two years later, her best friend, Marsha, shows her a newspaper exposé on Lucy’s institution that is cause for high alarm. It sets Ginny on a path and journey not only to rescue her daughter but awaken herself from an unfulfilled life.

Though the story begins with Lucy’s birth, it transitions throughout to Ginny’s life before she married Ab Richardson and thereafter. She’s from a humble background in Amherst, Massachusetts and he’s from a family of privilege in Dover. It helps explain Ginny’s seeming passivity about Lucy’s separation at the time of her birth and Ab’s transformation from an idealist to the stereotypical corporate lawyer in almost total submission to his father’s will. The timing of each change coincided with Ginny’s gradual emergence from complete dependency to more control of her life. Lucy’s story was beyond heartbreaking but she was a symbol for so much more, offering Ginny a lifeline back to who she once was before her father-in-law manipulated her and his son into an unfulfilling life path.

I also loved Ginny’s friend, Marsha, who embraced life with gusto and helped provide a glimpse into a Ginny of the past. It was interesting to see how their relationship shifted as Ginny gained strength and Marsha’s vulnerabilities were unmasked. There was no power change, just a coming together of equals. It was easier to embrace Ginny’s transformation because of this relationship...you knew Marsha wouldn’t have been friends with who she had become.

This is a complex story that could lead you to distraction because of Ginny’s decision to remove her daughter from the institute and embark on a road trip to save her. It is equally about how someone can find themself adrift when they don’t follow her or his own heart. Ginny and Ab had such promise as a couple and it was painful to see their descent into a life that didn’t make either of them happy. I also loved how Lucy was presented, not just as a Down syndrome child but as a person in her beauty with all her limitations and strengths. She helped Ginny regain herself and independence, throwing a lifeline to her husband in the meantime. It’s a lovely story in the midst of some real ugliness.

Historical fiction could possibly be my favorite genre and this book proves my love. To learn about something while being entertained is ideal! In Massachusetts in 1969, Ginny Richardson has married into a wealthy family with expectations for each of the members. When she births a child that is less than perfect, she is taken away and Ginny starts living a new normal. It is brought to her attention two years later that the place that she thought was raising her daughter right is a hell hole and she sets off on an adventure that she didn't think she could even do.

I adored this book. The characters, the story, the adventure - they were all so good. I read this book in one day because I just couldn't put it down, I wanted to know what was going to happen next. Ginny and her best friend Marsha were pure fun. The road trip adventure was so fun to follow with two children and two single ladies driving south in hopes that Ginny can get to know her daughter and possibly fight to get to keep her.

I was such a fan of this story and the writing. It was my first T Greenwood read and I am intrigued to check out some of her backlist very soon.

This engaging story is about a mother who saves her daughter with Down's Syndrome from a disreputable institution, and takes off with her 6 year old son, leaving her husband, whose law firm is defending that institution. Her husband's father owns the law firm, and got Lucy sent there right after her birth. A very good read.

Keeping Lucy, by T. Greenwood, captured me from the first page, and drew me in so deeply that I was unaware of turning pages or the passage of time. It is a family drama of love and devotion to your children and your spouse and discovering your boundaries. It is about tragedy and loss. It is about friendship and the generosity of others when you least expect it.

Greenwood flawlessly evokes life in the late 60’s and early 70’s. From male dominance as a cultural norm to the absence of cell phones, life was very different back then. It is also a reminder of how bad care could be for the mentally disabled, often resembling the attitudes and asylums of the 18th century.

I fell in love with almost all of the characters, including the feckless husband. Even minor characters are portrayed with compassion and nuance. My only regret is that the story wraps a little too neatly…reminding me just a tiny bit of Hallmark movie. Nonetheless, I highly recommend this novel.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review. It was my pleasure!

Giving this author two stars is breaking my heart because I loved her book Rust and Stardust to the moon and back. I am hopeful about reading more books by T. Greenwood because I see other two star reviews from people who have read and loved all of her books, so that makes me feel better.

There were too many big coincidences, plot conveniences, and overly (sometimes unbelievable) shocking dramatic events. Too many of the tricks and crutches weak writers use. All of the college days/early marriage flashbacks strongly reminded me of Love Story by Erich Segal. There were two or three cheese romance scenes, too. There were also strange repeats of information, for example every time the MC smoked a cigarette we are retold that she doesn't smoke very often; and when the MC arrived at a place near the end of the story we are retold why she arrived after everyone else, but we already knew because we read those scenes. Once again I am asking where was the editor?

The last 7% of the story was what I was expecting the entire book to be like. Chapter thirty-seven was glorious. This book has really left me scratching my head

This was my first book by Greenwood and it will not be my last. The cover is what initially caught my attention and peaked my curiosity about this story. Little did I know that a beautiful cover would hold a story about a mother's love that refuses to give up or give in.

Ginny demonstrated that a mother often will go to any length to protect her child. It was a good reminder how far our world has come in accepting and inclusion of those with disabilities. There is language used in the story that I remember hearing as a young child.

The only reason that I am not giving this 5 stars is for two reasons. 1) There were parts of the story that were included that held no importance to the storyline. i.e. The one chapter about Ginny and the kids going to Disney World on opening day. It felt like filler to make the book a certain page number. 2) Ab changed his mind way too easily. I just didn't feel like his change of heart would have come that easily but that is just my opinion.

Overall this is a fabulous book that I would highly recommend.

Keeping Lucy isn't normally my kind of read, but I remember the scandal that inspired this one, so it drew me in. The story absolutely broke my heart while simultaneously infuriating me to no end. I know that places like Willowridge existed. As I said, I remember the scandal, but that didn't make it any easier to read. Ginny's visit to Willowridge doesn't take up as much space on the page as I had expected, but her problems with getting Lucy well and reasonably fit do, and none of it was easy to read about. There were things that happened that bothered me - Marsha's actions and language even around children, Ab's father and his high-handed treatment of his family, that kind of thing - but the things that bothered me the most were Ab's and Ginny's actions at the beginning. I really wanted to give Ab a good shake and tell him to just man up, and it was equally hard to understand Ginny and the way she bent to Ab's wishes, or more accurately, Ab's father's wishes. And then there's Marsha. She's a little over the top in that she's almost everything we think about in a bad role model for children. So much so that she's almost caricature-like, which was the biggest drawback for me. Marsha aside, when I stopped to think about the generation of people here, I wasn't quite so upset with Ab and Ginny. I still wanted to shake Ab, but Ginny's action made a little more sense given the circumstances. The stigma surrounding children like Lucy was a huge factor in life in that time, and certain things were expected of people. That doesn't excuse any of it, but it was what it was, and I believe that stories like this one do have their place. We should always remember our history lest we repeat it. I think Keeping Lucy is going to be one of those books that you either like or you don't. I don't think there's going to be much straddling the fence on this one, especially in this day and age when we know so much more about what's good and bad for a child, or at least we think we do. In the end, I do wish there had been a little more peeling back the layers surrounding Willowridge, but the author has still written a compelling story that I found hard to put down.

Keeping Lucy was a story that touched me to the core, as this was the time-period of my birth, and, well, what-if? Or, what if Lucy had been my child? What happened to Lucy, and Ginny, was horrible. We could ask how it could have happened, how Ginny could have let it happen, but we live in a different time and most in different situations. Ginny married into family worlds away from how she grew up. She wanted a simple life for her family, but when circumstances changed; her father-in-law’s influence was far-reaching. When Lucy was born with Down’s syndrome, everyone painted a dire outlook for her future. They didn’t give Ginny any chance for lucidity, and by the time she was able to think clearly, her husband (and father-in-law) took the decisions out of her hands. When her best friend lets her know about the expose on the “school,” she realizes it’s past time to see where her daughter is. Ginny was never a bad person, and once she had Lucy in her arms, she faced hard truths and it was time to realize she could stand on her own, stand up for her daughter, and be the person she always wanted to be. I adored Marsha, she is definitely the best type of friend to have, the one that they always say will be the one to help you bury the bodies and sit with you in jail.
For me, this was engrossing, thought-provoking, and over-all a great read!
#KeepingLucy #TGreenwood #StMartinsPress

What a crazy emotional roller coaster ride I just went on reading this book!!! The story and writing starts off extremely strong, there's a little lull around the 50-60% mark and then picks back up and finishes strong. This story will tug at your heart strings. It was really interesting reading this as a woman today with all my rights and my voice and my backbone. Women in that time period didn't have any of those or the luxury of having a backbone. It's sad. I can never imagine a doctor taking my child out of my hands and putting him in an institution. Over my dead body. But the real tragedy in this story is all the children at Willowridge - how they were treated, neglected and abused. While I understand this book is historical fiction, I feel confident this scenario did happen to many parents and their precious, beautiful children. While the scenario of this plot line is absolutely terrifying, the story itself is captivating, riveting and thought provoking. I had a hard time putting it down.

I was Ginny's biggest advocate reading this book. By the end I was so proud of her, her strength, the decisions she made and the risks she took to protect her children. The book would make an excellent book club choice due to the conversations you could have around this subject. I often wondered if I would have made the same choices as Ginny if it were me in the story.

The story is crazy, fast moving, disturbing, emotional, passionate, heartwarming and heartbreaking, charming, redemptive, adorable, sad and happy. You will go through every emotion. And while some parts are a little unrealistic, overall this book is a great example of how far we have come as a society and as humans. It also showcase the power of a mother's love.

This is a book to check out.

My thanks to T. Greenwood, St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The year is 1969 and Ginny Richardson has given birth to Lucy, a baby with Down Syndrome. While still in daze from a difficult delivery, her doctor and then her husband tell her they cannot care for this child and that she will be placed in a facility equipped to care for her. Her husband tells her it was inadvisable to visit. Two years later her friend brings her newspaper articles exposing the horrors at this facility. Without her husband's support, Ginny decides to see this place for herself. What she finds is unconscionable and appalling. From this point on, her future permanently changes.

Narrated in careful prose, masterfully paced and with a carefully constructed plot, Keeping Lucy is a story well worth reading. There is nothing commonplace here and there are no stereotypes amongst the array of characters. The character readers learn most about is Ginny. Even so, there are questions. Why did she accept her husband's and father-in-law's decision to institutionalize Lucy? Why wait until there was an expose before she took it upon herself to see her child? As the story progresses startling secrets are revealed and Ginny wonders if she ever truly knew the man she married. A mother's love for her child can be a powerful and unshakeable force. Finding herself in a situation she never could have imagined, she struggles to find the strength to do what she has to do even though she is scared, guilt ridden and desperate.

The author is a gifted story teller. The novel is gripping, emotion packed and filled with intriguing relationships. To describe it in a word, this book is memorable. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through St. Martin's Press and NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

2.5 stars

Last year, I had read and loved T. Greenwood’s beautifully written novel Rust & Stardust, her fictional retelling of the Sally Horner case. The way that story was written — hauntingly powerful, heartfelt, sincere...a deeply emotional story that shook me to the core and continued to stay with me long after I had finished reading it. Given this background, when I was offered a galley of Greenwood’s next novel Keeping Lucy, I eagerly accepted. After reading the summary and discovering that it would be about a mother forced to send her baby daughter, born with Down Syndrome, away to a special needs school, I expected another deeply emotional, heartfelt story. Going into this book with such high expectations, I’m sorry to say that I ended up sorely disappointed with how this one turned out.

From the writing to the characters to the execution of the story, Keeping Lucy felt completely opposite to what Rust & Stardust had been — to the point that, as I was reading, I couldn’t help shaking my head and wondering whether this could’ve been written by the same author whose previous book I had adored. The story actually started off fine, as the opening chapters did a great job of setting up the story as well as the emotional undertones for the events that I thought were about to unfold — a heart-wrenching story about Lucy, the horrors she endured at that school, and her mother’s fight to get her back. Unfortunately, about a quarter of the way into the story, the plot went completely off the rails and instead of getting to hear Lucy’s emotional story as I expected, it became a “road trip” story of sorts when Ginny (Lucy’s mother) and her best friend Martha decide to drive across the country with the kids in tow. From there, the remainder of the story was pretty much about the various situations that Ginny and Martha get themselves into and how they wind up getting themselves out of them. It felt as though Lucy’s story was placed on the back burner, glossed over and forgotten, only brought back out to the forefront when it was convenient to do so, but still sparingly for the most part, as that “terrible place” and the horrors Lucy must have endured are repeatedly alluded to but rarely addressed directly.

The writing this time around was also off. Whereas with Rust & Stardust, the writing felt lyrical and poetic and there was a strong sense of time and place, I unfortunately didn’t feel any of that with Keeping Lucy. The writing in this one felt a bit all over the place – overly descriptive in some parts, not descriptive enough in others. There was also a lot of what I would classify as “unnecessary descriptions of the mundane” – for example, descriptions along the lines of the following: ‘she got in the car, turned the key in the ignition, pressed one foot on the clutch, the other on the brake, put her hands on the steering wheel, and looked out the windshield in front of her’ (paraphrased and not direct quote from the book!) – which dragged the story down tremendously for me. Instead of the many superfluous descriptions that seemed to be of little significance and did nothing to advance the plot, it would have been better to use that space to actually tell Lucy’s story.

With all that said, what frustrated me the most about this book was actually the characters — specifically the adult characters in the story — most of whom were unlikable. The way Ginny’s character was written especially frustrated me – throughout the time that Ginny and Marsha were on the run, a significant portion of the story consisted of a constant barrage of Ginny’s thoughts as she debated back and forth (often in her own mind) about everything from her decision to run away, to the status of her marriage, to her relationship with her husband’s domineering parents, etc. Oftentimes, Ginny came across as fickle and never quite able to make up her mind about anything, though the most annoying part for me was how her thoughts always seemed to get caught up in an endless loop where she’s wracked with guilt one minute, anger the next minute, then doesn’t know how she feels the minute after that – the pattern seemed to be that she would reflect about all the regrets in her life, how she deliberately chose to stick her head in the sand, to ignore the signs and keep quiet when she should’ve said something, but then she turns around and tries to justify why things happened that way, that perhaps it’s no one’s fault, then realizes she is making excuses, wakes herself up to reality, then tries to push all the thoughts out of her mind completely. I usually don’t mind flawed characters in a story as long as they are written realistically, but when the portrayal goes overboard to the point that it becomes melodrama that detracts from the story itself, that’s when it becomes too much for me -- instead of being able to connect with the character or feel any type of empathy for what they’re going through, I feel annoyed and frustrated instead.

This was a book that I really really wanted to like, but found it extremely hard to do so. With that said, I won’t discount this author yet, as I’ve only read 2 books of hers so far that have fallen on the opposite ends of the spectrum for me. Hopefully Greenwood’s next book will be able to deliver a heartfelt and emotionally resonant story along the lines of Rust & Stardust rather than Keeping Lucy.

Received ARC from St. Martin’s Press via NetGalley.

3.5 / 5 ⭐

Let me start off by saying I am a fan of T. Greenwood. I have always enjoyed her writing and the depth of her characters. That being said, given the severity of the topics in Keeping Lucy, I had hoped for more complexity and richness in these characters, and the reasoning behind their actions.

When Ginny Richardson awakes from her drug-induced labor, she finds that the baby girl she has delivered has been whisked away to a “special school.” Her husband, Ab, caved, again, under the heavy thumb of his big-shot lawyer father. All Ginny is told is that her daughter, Lucy, has Down Syndrome and the school, Willowridge, is the best place for her. Ab and his parents tell others that Lucy is dead. Ginny’s husband tries to convince Lucy to move on, to focus on caring for their young son, Peyton. Ginny concedes and doesn’t even visit Lucy.

Two years later, Ginny’s best friend, Marsha, one of the few people aware that Lucy is alive, calls Ginny with devastating news. A reporter has written an expośe on Willowridge, exposing cases of neglect and abuse. Ginny decides to go find out for herself. What she finds is an institution, an asylum where her daughter and other children have been abused beyond comprehension.

What ensues is a version of 𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕝𝕞𝕒 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕃𝕠𝕦𝕚𝕤𝕖, but with children. Ginny knows she can’t let Lucy stay in that horrid place one moment longer. So Ginny, with the aid of her wild friend Marsha, takes Lucy and her son, Peyton, across state lines.

Set in the 60s and 70s, this story opens up the conversation on many hot topics. Ginny seems to have no choice, no say in the matters of her marriage. And her husband is living under the pressures of his father and their family’s affluence. Although the backgrounds of Ab and Ginny are touched upon, I feel like the surface was just scratched. Central to the book is Ginny, and what she as a mother would do for her child. But I am left with questions, like what really happened to Lucy during her two years at Willowridge, and foremost, why on earth did it take Ginny two years to go to her child?

Thank you to @Netgalley and @stmartinspress for this ARC for review.