This book was horrifying and riveting, disturbing and fascinating. I could not put it down. I loved the characters. I hated the characters. It was a train wreck waiting to happen as soon as I read the first page. The moral dilemmas aside, this book challenged me. It took all of my thinking and prejudices on what is allowed in the medical field and tossed it upside down. Helping society vs the individual right is no easy task and the author rode that line like a master. My head is whirling and my emotions are shattered. I don’t know which character to hate anymore. I’m all mixed up. Well done!

Based on the real North Brother Island that housed a quarantine hospital in the early 20th century, this story adds an additional story about a mysterious woman named Cora who has many secrets. Finn finds her when exploring the island and slowly learns of his family's involvement with her. The story was interesting especially in light of Covid 19. My heart broke for Cora from the the loss and trauma she suffered from Finn's family in the name of medicine. I disliked the cliffhanger ending and wanted to know how it would finally end.

The Ultimate story of isolation and survival….

Thank you to NetGalley, Freiling Publishing and the author, Shelley Nolden for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. What a unique and creative book. The author wove together elements of a medical thriller with historical fiction and a little dash of science fiction to create a rich and interesting story that is shockingly relevant to today’s current events. Finn is the youngest member of the Gettler family, and the only family member for generations who is not a medical doctor and researcher. For years the Gettler family has immersed itself in researching communicable diseases and their cures. Finn’s great grandfather, Otto, and grandfather, Ulrich, were each the head physician of the now defunct medial facility on North Brothers Island, just across the river from New York City. The medial facility was used in the early 1900s as a quarantine for those with the most dangerous facility – it was once home to Typhoid Mary. Finn is aware that his family’s history relates to the ruins now standing on North Brothers Island, but the family is still mysteriously tied to the island. Finn kayaks to try to learn more about the family obsessions and secrets. There he encounters a beautiful and enigmatic young woman named Cora whose body is covered in a heartbreaking network of scars. She is enraged by Finn’s presence on the island and notes her hatred for the Gettler family. They have been doing her harm all the way back to Otto’s generation nearly 100 years ago. Finn is puzzled – how can that be? From here, the narrative splits to fill in Cora’s back story, starting when she first arrived at the island, while Finn works in the present day to try to unravel the secrets hiding in his family’s history.

It’s clear that the author, Shelley Nolden, completed a considerable amount of research for this novel. The history of North Brothers Island as a medical quarantine and research facility is true and fascinating. It gave me a lot to think about in light of the current pandemic and the question of medical ethics. The conditions, the daily life of patients there – where is the line between patient and inmate? The Gettler family has been researching for years in an attempt to develop vaccines to stop some of the world’s deadliest diseases. But how do you balance a person’s own rights versus the greater good of the community that will result from an effective vaccine or treatment? Nolden tackles these questions in a setting of beautiful, descriptive imagery. I was fascinated by the idea of vegetation slowly reclaiming the island, turning the buildings into wild ruins, all within a stone’s throw of the hustle and bustle of New York City. And could a person really live alone in the resulting wilderness, undetected by authorities, for decades? This book was full of interesting characters with complex relationships. There was plenty of action and the plot moved along at a good pace. I think it would make a great movie, and I would recommend this book to fans of thrillers or historical fiction. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. Add it to your TBR list and look for it in March!The Ultimate story of isolation and survival….

Thank you to NetGalley, Freiling Publishing and the author, Shelley Nolden for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. What a unique and creative book. The author wove together elements of a medical thriller with historical fiction and a little dash of science fiction to create a rich and interesting story that is shockingly relevant to today’s current events. Finn is the youngest member of the Gettler family, and the only family member for generations who is not a medical doctor and researcher. For years the Gettler family has immersed itself in researching communicable diseases and their cures. Finn’s great grandfather, Otto, and grandfather, Ulrich, were each the head physician of the now defunct medial facility on North Brothers Island, just across the river from New York City. The medial facility was used in the early 1900s as a quarantine for those with the most dangerous facility – it was once home to Typhoid Mary. Finn is aware that his family’s history relates to the ruins now standing on North Brothers Island, but the family is still mysteriously tied to the island. Finn kayaks to try to learn more about the family obsessions and secrets. There he encounters a beautiful and enigmatic young woman named Cora whose body is covered in a heartbreaking network of scars. She is enraged by Finn’s presence on the island and notes her hatred for the Gettler family. They have been doing her harm all the way back to Otto’s generation nearly 100 years ago. Finn is puzzled – how can that be? From here, the narrative splits to fill in Cora’s back story, starting when she first arrived at the island, while Finn works in the present day to try to unravel the secrets hiding in his family’s history.

It’s clear that the author, Shelley Nolden, completed a considerable amount of research for this novel. The history of North Brothers Island as a medical quarantine and research facility is true and fascinating. It gave me a lot to think about in light of the current pandemic and the question of medical ethics. The conditions, the daily life of patients there – where is the line between patient and inmate? The Gettler family has been researching for years in an attempt to develop vaccines to stop some of the world’s deadliest diseases. But how do you balance a person’s own rights versus the greater good of the community that will result from an effective vaccine or treatment? Nolden tackles these questions in a setting of beautiful, descriptive imagery. I was fascinated by the idea of vegetation slowly reclaiming the island, turning the buildings into wild ruins, all within a stone’s throw of the hustle and bustle of New York City. And could a person really live alone in the resulting wilderness, undetected by authorities, for decades? This book was full of interesting characters with complex relationships. There was plenty of action and the plot moved along at a good pace. I think it would make a great movie, and I would recommend this book to fans of thrillers or historical fiction. I gave it 4 out of 5 stars. Add it to your TBR list and look for it in March!

DNF-ED.
An interesting concept has the haunted hospital and unethical medical treatment elements, which at first I'd found very intriguing since I'd always loved looking up histories of abandoned hospitals. However, the writing style and the way the story progressed felt very clipped and it read like a monologue from different points of view. It's probably just not a book or topic that's up my alley,

I don't frequently read fiction with fantasy elements to it, but I found this to be a gripping read. The premises of contagious diseases and quarantining are so timely & heavy, yet I found this to still be an escapist read. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy reads like "The Museum of Extraordinary Things" by Alice Hoffman.

This jumps back and forth starting in the early 1900s and between 2007/8.

The chronologically earliest part tells about a young woman named Cora who was sent to North Brother's Island off of New York City in to quarantine from disease. It turns out that Cora is immune to the diseases that plague visitors to the island, which catches the attention of Dr. Otto Gettler. Determined to use Cora's body as a harvester to figure out why she contains such immunity, Otto becomes obsessed with his work.

In 2007/8, Finn Gettler, a descendant of Dr. Otto Gettler visits the now abandoned North Brother's Island due to his increasing curiosity with his family's involvement with the island only to discover a young woman seemingly living off the land on the island. Finn's curiosity drives him to learn more about the mysterious woman and their connection is startling to say the least.

I cannot being to imagine the amount of research that went into writing this book. I ended up researching more about the diseases mentioned in the book as well as North Brother's Island while reading, and I learned some amazing facts.

I found some spots lagging and did find myself wanting to skim some elements of the 2007/8 timeline, but overall, I highly enjoyed this read and will definitely recommend it! This appears to be the first in a series, so I look forward to the next in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for an honest review.

3.5 stars

Finn, a young urban explorer who comes from a family of doctors, arrives on North Brother Island, which holds remains of a shuttered hospital, once a place of human experiments. There he “glimpses an enigmatic beauty through the foliage.” It leads him to efforts to uncover her past and at the same time his family’s secrets. The way his story progresses, it is challenging to follow at times. In one paragraph he is physically somewhere, in the next paragraph he is somewhere else with his thoughts, and in the following paragraph his thoughts shift again to something else. Also, at some points his story contains too much dialogue which doesn’t move the story forward.

The strength of this story is in the past story with Cora. Her story has a good flow as being more straight forward. Cora arrives on North Brother Island due to a contagion spreading in the city. She hopes to be out of the island as soon as possible. But one test turns into another and there is no end to it.

As Cora “pleaded with Dr. Gettler to allow her to fill her days with purpose” three years earlier, her story has the same feel – not much purpose in it, besides serving a doctor’s purpose for his experiments. I wanted her story to be developed beyond this island. I was so excited when Mary Mallon, so called Typhoid Mary, appears in this story and tries to push Cora to change her circumstances. But Cora refuses. Mary Mallon, who takes destiny in her hands, is the kind of character that holds my interest. Not so much Cora, who goes with what she is being told.

The historical background is interesting and it’s parallel with current situation of trying to understand a virus.

When it comes to style of writing, it gets a bit too descriptive. But there are plenty of readers who appreciate more detailed account of events.

Finn Gettler inadvertently discovers a multi-generational family secret one day in his parent's shed. This secret leads him to North Brother Island on a secret kayak trip that will forever change his life and his family's lives. He thinks his family has the key to end all disease and viruses, but learns that the way they are finding the cure comes at a steep cost. I was so engrossed with this book I read through the night to finish it.

It was a fascinating read, with a lot of history within its pages. From North Brother Island, Typhoid Mary, the Spanish Influenza, and more.

It was very promising but the ending had me craving more from North Brother Island and Shelley Nolden's literary mind.



Thank you Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press and allowing me to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Vines
Netgalley eARC review

The Gettler family is composed of generations of doctors and researchers whose main goal is to find a cure for all the world's most deadly diseases. On North Brother Island is a facility that has served many purposes over the years, but currently it sits uninhabited, becoming overtaken by the vines native to the island. Finn, the youngest of the Gettler men, is visiting the island for the first time. His family has been very secretive about the history of NBI, so he isn't too sure what he is going to find. What he experiences there separates his life into "before" and "after".

In theory, I like this book; the story is there but the execution is a miss. I like to read medical thrillers, (The Hot Zone instantly became one of my favorite books the first time I read it), but unfortunately, The Vines missed the mark. I found the writing style confusing and clunky; there wasn't enough information given up front, many times I had to stop and reread a section. Other times, a new character's name is introduced without any relevant details so I'm over here scratching my head saying "Who is Susie?". These instances are clarified further on in the paragraph or the chapter, but writing in this way made my reading experience frustrating at times.

This story implements the alternating time line device which I usually love. But again, I don't think it was successfully used in this particular book. The jumps from 2007 to 1904, to 2008, to 1956...etc etc... took me out of the flow of the story. It worked better once I was at least half way through and began piecing together who all these people are and how they fit, but initially, jumping between story lines was very jarring. The time spent in the earlier years (1900-1960ish) were my favorite parts of the story. I wasn't as interested in the 2000 story line, and I think it's because I didn't care for, or about, the main characters in this point of the story.

What I found really cool about this story is the historical elements: the location (North Brother Island), the people (Typhoid Mary), and previous pandemics (Small pox, Spanish flu). It also read as a very timely story due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. There were many allusions to a "new viral pandemic", the initial SARS-CoV infection, Wuhan China, wet markets, and vaccine development. Reading those sentences was eerie but also relevant.

For all the above reasons, I almost didn't finish this book. I'm glad I did though. There was something that happened about half way through that definitely made the story more interesting and bumped up my rating.
I give this book my Donation Box rating: I did not enjoy this book and would donate it if I owned a copy, but I think there are redeeming qualities. If a historical-fiction-medical-thriller sounds interesting to you, then I hope you give The Vines a chance.

This was a fascinating read. Being a New York City girl, I was surprised to read about North Brother Island. Great multi generational story, Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

I really want to know when the author got the idea for this book, because reading it in 2020 was a trip. As a nursing student, I really appreciated some of the discussions regarding individual autonomy versus medical advancement. The book also touched on other interesting medical debates such as vaccine distribution in the global south and preparing for inevitable disease outbreaks in the future. However, I had a really hard time investing in the story/characters, and I found the climax and conclusion to be very underwhelming. I also did not like how the crimes committed by the neonate villain were so easily forgiven once they found out he had a pregnant wife. If there is a sequel, I do not think I will read it.

A good solid read though i kind of had the vibe that i was reading the same book from before? Maybe because i had similar thoughts and opinion (I can't remember the boom), but ut's still a good read, it was fun but I know I wouldn't remember this and would be erased from memory soon

This is a very interesting novel, looking forward to reading more by this author. Thank you, NetGalley for the opportunity of being an early reviewer.

Wow, just wow! This was a fantastic read. The setting of the island gave the book an extra creepiness factor. I was not familiar with this island so the story led to some really interesting research of my own. The story is timely because it covers a bit of what is going on in the world today. I can hardly wait until the second book comes out!

I loved this. A really dark murder mystery. I really didn't know who to trust. brilliant and well written and plotted.

What an amazing read this is. Generations of the same family have worked on an isolated island just off New York. It had held a hospital for many years but the island is now a nature reserve that cannot be visited most of the year. Finn is the fourth generation to show interest in the island where his great grandfather from Germany had worked. A patient had made a miraculous recovery on the island in the 1900’s.When Finn sneaks on to the island he is attacked by an Amazon like woman who almost kills him. How could she possibly be Cora that young girl from the past? How is she still living and looking so young and attractive despite the signs of experimentation on her Just what his family has done to her is the mystery behind this story. It is at once exciting but also very sad and is a wonderful but disturbing read.

This book had me hooked from the get go! I couldn't wait to read it after I read the summary. I didn't expect the story line to unfold like it did. I was initially drawn to the book because of the subject. Didn't expect it to start in 1904 and evolve the way it did. Good book for a book club

I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style in this book. It took me a while to grasp what was happening but that could be my fault because I went into this blind and not really knowing what it was about. I can see how many will really enjoy the book especially given what is happening in todays world.

I enjoyed this thriller and mystery from start to finish. The story was intriguing and keeps you locked in from beginning to end. The character development was good and tied up all loose ends.

Thanks to Freiling Publishing and NetGalley for a copy to honestly review.

Wow, this book was very timely in 2020! Lots of relevance in terms of infectious disease. I loved the dichotomy of present day and going back in time. Some pieces felt a bit disjointed to me but I really enjoyed the story overall.

The Vines is a multiple POV blend of historical fiction and mystery that takes place on the very real North Brother Island, one of the spookiest remnants of New York's Hospital for quarantinable diseases. It follows Finn Gettler and his family as we learn the history of the medical research the Gettler's have been doing for decades.

Finn doesn't know much about the research his family has been hiding, but he knows it has something to do with North Brother Island. This prompts Finn to explore the island and stumble across Cora, who has been held on the island and experimented on for decades. We jump back and fourth between two timelines, one in the present with Finn uncovering his family's secrets and one telling the story of Cora and her experience on the island.

I really liked the family dynamics between Finn, his brother Kristian, and his father Rollie. I also liked seeing how the Gettler's progressed over time from nazi scientist Ulrich who treated Cora as no more than a lab rat to Finn who is shocked at learning his about family's research. Plus I thought Nolden's writing was fantastic! Everything is very vivid and she clearly did a lot of research to create a fictional version of a very real place. I would definitely check out more of her work.

What I wasn't a fan of was the pacing of the first half. From the first page I was HOOKED. But when we started going away from Finn and focusing more on Cora, it got a little slow for me. I know showing us Cora's past was important for the story, but I thought too much time was spent describing events that didn't really impact her character in the present. As I said before, this book was very well researched. But some chapters felt like facts being thrown at me and it made the characters have less of an impact. And this book is pretty character driven, which made it hard for me to stay interested during every chapter. The second half did pick up action wise which I liked, but the ending was unsatisfying for me because many questions were left unanswered. Which I guess was the point because Nolden plans to write a sequel. In my opinion, this book would have been a lot more impactful as a stand alone.

All in all though I thought The Vines was an interesting read and I enjoyed the discussions of medical ethics and learning about the historical past of North Brother Island. Many thanks to Freiling Publishing and NetGalley for a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.