Thanks to Sylvia True, John Hunt Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC of Where Madness Lies.
One can only imagine how people must have felt in 1930s Germany with the Nazis' move towards euthanasia for mentally ill patients, or those they called feeble-minded.. Heart-breaking, frightening and a true account of the brutality of this dreadful regime. Inga does all she can to save her sister, Rigmor, who is chronically depressed. She is thwarted at every turn, even by their own mother. who blamed Inga for Rigmor's plight. The ending has a satisfying conclusion, but I think it will stay in the mind for some time..

Wow what a book! It really makes you think about mental health practices and how much they have developed over the years. Thank goodness we live in an age now where people who have a mental health illness are not dismissed or tortured or starved to death.

The story is set in two time points - the 1930's as the tension with the second world war begins and also in the 1980's. It's clear to see that between these two time points practices have moved on, but they are still very different to what we have today.

In 1930, Rigmor suffers from 'episodes'. Her sister Inga is desperate to help her. Rigmor is quiet and gentle with a lovely appreciation for art and nature, but some days she struggles to sleep, she fears shadows and she is convinced there are creatures in her skin. Inga researches the best psychological practices and sets the ball in motion to find help for her sister. She thinks she is doing the right think, she railroads professionals to help her, but is she actually protecting Rigmor in her actions or actually causing more harm?

When it's 1980 and Inga learns that her granddaughter Sabine has been admitted to a mental hospital, Inga is determined to not let another member of her family suffer in such a facility. She immediately makes it her mission to ensure that Sabine is safe. Her forceful nature gets Sabine's back up and she's convinced her Grandmother hates her and is meddling. But as Inga tries to get help for her granddaughter, she has to address some painful memories...

I thought this was a really insightful book. It shows how sometimes we misjudge people - I thought Inga was horrible at first, really forceful and didn't care what other people wanted so long as she got her own way. But as the story unfolded, I learnt that this is just her attitude, she's very blunt and persuasive but with the best of intentions; she wanted to help her loved ones. It does make you think about peoples' intentions before dismissing them as rude, but you should actually look a little deeper.

I loved the way the story revealed itself and how in doing so it meant that Inga had to look at her own past despite it all being about helping her granddaughter.

It is shocking to think about some of the practices that were seen as normal and acceptable, that those who were mentally unstable were just deemed unfit for life and it would be OK to torture them, to starve them, to relieve their families of the stigma.

I do have slight criticism in the book - I'd like to have been more description into the mental health issues the two women suffered - it was more about how Inga felt rather than giving more insight into the feelings of Sabine and Rigmor. I also think that Inga could have been developed slightly more as a character to show her caring side more.

A very thought-provoking book with a lot to discuss. It would be ideal for book groups.

I really enjoyed reading it and stayed up until the early hours devouring the pages as I began to really care for the characters and find out what happened to them.

A moving story of where mental issues can lead you in thoses dangerous days of WWII in Germany. Inga is trying to save her sister from the clutches of the disease and then from euthanasia. The consequences result in silence, secrets and their psychological repercussions on later generations' own mental issues. Very compelling, the book has two timelines making the reader getting very closed to the characters and feel qith them. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
Thank you Sylvia for letting me read this book for free on NetGalley.

This book is based on the inter links between two generations of the same family. I shows how the hidden family history can appear in later generations that have also been affected by the social history of the time. I found the book difficult to get into and at times slow moving. However, I was pleased by the ending, which I found satisfying.

This is a true story based on the author's family and their experience of mental health during the war and also in 1984.. It is beautifully written and I would definitely recommend this as a great read.

I found myself drawn to the main characters in this book that follow Inga, Rigmor and Sabine in their quest to understand and treat mental illness. Although the subject matter is difficult, the way in which this story is told is also about strength, love and hope. The story revolves around Rigmor, who suffers with depression in 1934 during Nazi Germany and also of Sabine in 1984. The story jumps from one generation to the other throughout, offering the reader the chance to link together the two different experiences and allows you to really feel the emotion of both stories throughout.

It never fails to shock me, however many books I read about Nazi Germany the horrendous, heinous way that people were treated and I did wonder what this book would offer that is different to others. The author has written this true story about her family and she has done this so well. I genuinely felt the emotions that Inga must have felt, the desperation of wanting to help her sister and doing everything in her power to do so and also the feeling of helplessness and guilt and how this affected generations to follow.

Definitely worth a read.

3 1/2 stars... I really liked the premise of those story and the parallel storylines, generations apart; however I found the characters to be not very like able especially Inga. I felt throughout the whole book she never actually cared about anyone else in the world except herself and maybe at some time, her sister. Every way the book tried to show inga caring about someone else was really about how it would benefit Inga and what she would gain from it. I wish there had been more about Rigmor’s mental health and even the description of symptoms only touched the surface as was also the case with Sabine. This book just left me wanting more of the story and I felt the author focused on details that were not relevant instead of things that could have had more relevance.

"Where Madness Lies" is a compelling story of family and history that weaves together experiences from two different points in time. Inga's struggle to heal and protect her mentally ill sister as the Nazis rise to power in Germany is mirrored years later—though under much different circumstances—as she tries to support her granddaughter who has just admitted herself to a mental hospital in Massachusetts. The story jumps back and forth in time (between 1934/1984) as we slowly learn the events of the past and how they have influenced the future.

There's so much heart depicted in the relationships and a compelling depth to all the characters, even those that could be considered secondary or tertiary to the main plot. I would highly recommend this book—it speaks not only to the horrors of the Holocaust and eugenics; it forces the reader to grapple with questions of ethics and complicity. At what point do your actions (or inaction) make you complicit? What secrets do you/should you keep to protect those around you?

It's not a light read, but an important one. And it's especially compelling knowing that this fictionalized account is based on events from the author's life.

A gripping book, all the more so because it is based on the experiences of the author's own family.
This book serves as a reminder of just how persuasive Nazi propaganda was to many, and the evils that were enacted in the quest to create the master race. The extermination (or in the words of the propaganda 'disinfection') of anyone who did not fit the ideals is hard to comprehend, but it happened.
The other facet of the story is around the inheritance of mental illness - early genetic theories are touched on, as is the difference between the treatment of mental health problems now and then. Although much has changed and treatments are now humane and often effective, the stigma surrounding mental illness remains for many - a topic dealt with well in the book.
A really thought-provoking read.

I found Where Madness Lies to be a fascinating read dealing with clinical depression and other mental health issues and the view over the decades. The atrocities of the Nazis against the mentality ill, while known as fact, were personalized. The book shows even in 45 years how some of the fallacies were (and are) part of our societies make up, giving a great deal of points to ponder. The characters are well rounded and relatable.
This book may be difficult for some readers, but is well worth the time.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC to review!
Rating (on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being excellent)
Quality of writing: 3
Pace: 3
Plot development: 3
Characters: 4
Enjoyability: 3
Ease of Reading: 4

Overall rating: 3 out of 5

Sylvia True's <I>Where Madness Lies</I> is an intergenerational look at mental illness focusing on Germany in the 1930's and America in the 1980's. Two women are struggling with long-term mental health issues that go undiagnosed, but ultimately find themselves in mental health institutions. Rigmor is a young Jewish woman who comes from a family of great wealth, but their money cannot heal her problems. She has a domineering mother, an absent father, and a sister who is determined to heal her. She ultimately finds herself hospitalized at Sonnenstein, an asylum at a time in Germany that it was not good to be considered "mentally defective" or Jewish. Sabine is a young, new mother in the Boston area who voluntarily admits herself to McLean Hospital, a well-known mental health facility when she finds herself in a deep depression. She does not realize that admitting herself with separate her young daughter from her. Linking these two women is Inga, who is Rigmor's sister and Sabine's grandmother. Inga tries to make amends and right wrongs with Sabine that she was unable to do for her sister.

True's book allows the reader to learn about an area of German history that one may not know a lot about. Treatment of mentally ill individuals in Germany was not as well publicized as other Nazi atrocities, and it is interesting to read how ideas around eugenics and sterilization lead to a final solution over time. She also highlights how trauma can be passed through generations, both genetically, and through the environment. The reader is able to witness it through four generations.

Thank you to John Hunt Publishing Ltd and NetGalley for providing me with this advance copy for review.