Who knew that leprosy was not just in the Bible? Based on a real leprosy community in Louisiana with fictional characters, this book did for me what I love historical fiction to do - makes me want to dive deep into google and learn all the things about something/someone that I knew nothing about.

Mirielle West is the wife of a film star and after a few medical mishaps, she is diagnosed with leprosy and is shipped off to a community where many patients have been living for different lengths of time with the hope of a cure so they can return home. Mirielle West has quite the character journey and I enjoyed watching her grow and evolve along with the other patients that were in the community.

This is my second Amanda Skenandore book and I hope to catch up on the backlist and anticipate the future books. I loved how she built the characters and the surrounding and the ride she took us on!

I really enjoy historical fiction and The Second Life of Mirielle West was no exception. It focused on a time in history and a topic I had not read much about. Yet, from the start it was very entertaining. Miielle was living a very affluent life in Hollywood. It was the 1920’s and the Golden Age of Silent Movies. She is used to parties and glamour but one awful day, a doctor finds a pale patch of skin on her hand. This marking will drastically change Mirielle’s life. She will be taken away from her husband, daughters and her wonderful life. She will be sent to Carville, a Leper Home in Louisiana. She hopes, prays and begs God that her time here will be short and she can go home. As the days and months drag on though she realizes that no one really leaves Carville. So she decides to make the most of it. She helps out as a nurse, creates a great social life and does manage to make a friend or two. The constant sickness though and her surroundings start to wear thin on her and she starts to become hopeless. The author did an amazing job of telling this story. The characters and the settings were brought to life by her excellent writing. I really felt invested to see how things played out for Mirelle and the patients at Carville. I liked how she wasn’t alway depressed but showed love, compassion and a bit of mischief during her days there. This was a four star read for me. It checked off most of the boxes I find in a good book. I want to thank Netgalley, Amanda Skenandore and Kensington Books for my copy for my copy for an honest review. It was my pleasure to read and review this book. I always like the opportunity to read, a new to me, authors work.

The roaring 20s was a wild ride. This book really had me torn. I wanted to really like Mirielle but she was such a spoiled brat, to be fair the book is about her being a spoiled brat and turning into someone better than she used to be. Problem was I couldn’t tolerate her in the beginning it left a bad taste in my mouth through out the rest of the book. I would recommend it though because a few of my friends have read this with me and loved it.

I don’t give up easily on a book, because I know I’m a mood reader and if it’s something I want to read I put it down and try later. Unfortunately, after so many times of wanting to get into this story, it’s something that’s not for me and I need to come to terms with this and let it go.

This has no bearing on the author or the writing, it’s a personal unease of this time period that I need to tread carefully around in my reading.

This was such an interesting and devastating story. I can't imagine how hopeless it must have felt for people with leprosy to not only suffer from the disease but to also lose everything in their lives and become isolated from their loved ones. They couldn't even keep their own names because of the shame it would bring their families. The Second Life of Mirielle West does a great job of showing how characters from different backgrounds and situations coped with the realization that their lives would never be the same.

It was good with a bit of past learning!

Description
The glamorous world of a silent film star’s wife abruptly crumbles when she’s forcibly quarantined at the Carville Lepers Home in this page-turning story of courage, resilience, and reinvention set in 1920s Louisiana and Los Angeles. Based on little-known history, this timely book will strike a chord with readers of Fiona Davis, Tracey Lange, and Marie Benedict.

Based on the true story of America’s only leper colony, The Second Life of Mirielle West brings vividly to life the Louisiana institution known as Carville, where thousands of people were stripped of their civil rights, branded as lepers, and forcibly quarantined throughout the entire 20th century.

For Mirielle West, a 1920’s socialite married to a silent film star, the isolation and powerlessness of the Louisiana Leper Home is an unimaginable fall from her intoxicatingly chic life of bootlegged champagne and the star-studded parties of Hollywood’s Golden Age. When a doctor notices a pale patch of skin on her hand, she’s immediately branded a leper and carted hundreds of miles from home to Carville, taking a new name to spare her family and famous husband the shame that accompanies the disease.

At first she hopes her exile will be brief, but those sent to Carville are more prisoners than patients and their disease has no cure. Instead she must find community and purpose within its walls, struggling to redefine her self-worth while fighting an unchosen fate.

As a registered nurse, Amanda Skenandore’s medical background adds layers of detail and authenticity to the experiences of patients and medical professionals at Carville – the isolation, stigma, experimental treatments, and disparate community. A tale of repulsion, resilience, and the Roaring ‘20s, The Second Life of Mirielle West is also the story of a health crisis in America’s past, made all the more poignant by the author’s experiences during another, all-too-recent crisis.

This is a wonderful book about a group of people and time in history that I don't think ever really gets any attention. While lepers seem like something from biblical times and far off lands, there was an actual leper colony in Louisiana. To the outside world, Mirielle West probably had it all, but a few small marks on her body stole it all from her as she was diagnosed with leprosy in the 1920s. Upon diagnosis she's shipped off to a leper colony. Now she has to overcome her own prejudices and embrace this disease that's become her new-normal, but the pull of her family and the life she left behind are hard to ignore despite the friendships and life she's made.

I found this book really enjoyable, probably because I know very little about leprosy and leper colonies. On top of being an eye-opening book, this novel had a wonderful story of Mirielle adapting to her new life. She was a complex character, troubled by her past and with a level of snobbishness thanks to her society lifestyle. All of that was challenged in the colony and the author did a wonderful job showing Mirielle's growth. There is a great cast of supporting characters, each with their own level of depth to make a well-rounded and layered novel. This story tugs at the heartstrings, not only because there are characters dealing with a fatal disease, but because the stigma of the disease creates a no-win situation for those afflicted and their families. The struggles they face are immeasurable, but the story is ultimately uplifting as they find was to adapt and move on and even make way for a little romance.

This was a really enjoyable read and is definitely worth picking up.

The Second Life of Mirielle West is a historical fiction set in the time of the 1920s. Mirielle West is a socialite who only knows the world of comfort, glamour and parties. When a chance diagnosis by her doctor forces her to go away, everything as she knows it changes. The author delicately weaves a story around the Louisiana Leper Home known as Carville which housed so many people who were forcibly quarantined there. 

Mirielle doesn't know what to expect and is under the impression that she can go home as soon as the misunderstanding is cleared. With each test and a confirmed diagnosis, she has to reconcile herself to her new surrounding and find a place among the people there. This is truly a book of second chances and new beginnings as we follow Mirielle who grows from a spoiled high and mighty socialite to a caring woman who takes up new responsibilities and tries to bring joy to those around her.

Being separated from ones family is not easy and being isolated and branded is even worse. This was the fate of so many of the people who lived here. The author has painted a vivid picture bringing to us a well woven story based on so many true accounts. It is heart-breaking to read about the people but the best part is the bonds that are formed. The love, compassion and kinship that arises from shared circumstances leads to found family and a new kind of acceptance in life.

Mirielle and all the other characters in the book are brilliant and worth knowing. This is a story with characters that will stay with you even after finishing the book. The experiences and life of the people, the difficulties they faced and how they were treated is a eye opening. This is indeed a difficult read at times and is quite emotional, but it is worth the read!

This was a well written story about the leper colony in Carville, LA. I was enraptured with the character of Mirelle and all that she went through and struggled with dealing with leprosy and the changes it forced her to make in her life. Great read.

Thank you BiblioLifestyle and Kensington Books for a free physical copy and Netgalley and High Bridge Audio for the audiobook.

When the fabulous wife of silent film star is whisked away from her life and home after a leprosy diagnosis, she finds herself in Louisiana at Carville Lepers Home. This place is so vastly different from the life she knew. She was used to getting her way and running the show. Now she's just another patient and keeps being told to just go with the flow and accept her fate.

Because of multiple books I have read lately, I have realized I love a book with fleshed out, interesting secondary characters and this book is full of them. From Jean, a little girl who is a thorn in Mirelle's side, to Irene who teaches Mirelle how to navigate this diagnosis and new life, to Frank who is equal parts repulsive and intriguing to Mirelle, and Sister Verena who Mirelle can't seem to please.

I generally like very likeable characters and Mirelle doesn't start that way for sure in this book, but her character arc and her changing her outlook on life was lovely to read. She doesn't betray her true colors even in her transformation though, and I like that although her rough edges are filed down, she doesn't lose who she is.

Overall I fully recommend this one. I think it's so interesting to read a new facet of history and Amanda Skendendore can write some great layered characters.

Content Warning: Confinement, Chronic Illness (Leprosy)

How quickly a life can change -- in only a moment, Mirielle West's pampered world becomes a distant and painful memory. It happens when she learns she has leprosy and is quickly shuttled off, under a fake name, to Louisiana's Carville leper colony. Far from her silent film star husband, Charlie, and her two young daughters, Mirielle is quarantined and locked away from her family never knowing when or if she will see them again. As Pauline Martin, Mirielle is completely out of her element, burning with the shame and embarrassment this diagnosis brings. She has no desire to become part of this community of fellow lepers nor does she have any hope that a cure will release her back to California and all those she holds dear. It's the 1920s and the ignorance about the disease itself, its mode of transmission, and the stigma of being diagnosed all threaten to overwhelm her as she struggles to not only survive, but somehow thrive.

Reminiscent of the novel, "Moloka'i" by Alan Brennert, this poignant, fictional account of a real part of American History won't leave my mind. I had no idea about Carville and what happened there. The story is very sad, but I often find that books like this somehow reach my soul and make me want to be a better person. I can't imagine what it would be like to be remanded to a place such as that and, even more so, it scares me to think of how I would react. It's easy to say from this point in 2021 that the treatment of those with leprosy was horrible, but we have the advantage of years of medical knowledge and technology so we can't judge the ones charged with the care of these patients. Modern medicine brought an effective medicine and a cure to those with Hansen's Disease and for that I am incredibly thankful. It does still occur even these days, but the isolation and horror no longer has to happen to those who contract it.

The author, a nurse, writes with authority and the medical details about the historical efforts to combat the disease are authentic. I enjoyed this glimpse into a past American health care crisis and definitely appreciate that it was not the last time that humans were confronted with a very troubling medical issue.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for this e-book ARC to read, review, and recommend.

It's just a tiny burn on her thumb and it doesn't even hurt, but Mirielle's husband insists she make a trip in to the doctor's office to have it checked. Mirielle begrudgingly goes in to see her doctor, never anticipating what comes next. A leper, Mirielle couldn't possibly be a leper. She is immediately sent away to the leper colony in Louisiana. The indignity of the situation is almost more than she can bear and if she can just get someone to understand this is all one big misunderstanding. That one little burn on Mirielle's thumb is the catalyst to rewrite her life story.

I enjoyed this book for providing me with a look into a part of history that I wasn't familiar with and had not heard about previously. At times, I felt the plot dragged a little and felt that some of Mirielle's selfish behavior was hard to take, but that also made her come to life more from the pages.

Overall, this book was well worth the read and I appreciated the author's attention to detail in researching this story. I received this book courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Mirielle West is living a glamorous and posh life in Hollywood as the wife of a movie star. Or, that's what she would have you think. Really, she is fresh off of a suicide attempt and is trying to drink the depression, guilt, and pain of losing her son away. When Mirielle goes to the doctor for a burn that just won't heal, she is told to go to the hospital, but not why. When she arrives at the hospital she is quarantined in a room alone for over a day before anyone will tell her what is going on. When they do, the news is terrible: Mirielle has leprosy and she is being sent away to a leper's colony. Mirielle is distraught but is certain there has been a mistake that will be quickly rectified upon her arrival. But, when she gets there she learns there has been no mistake and she will be there for the foreseeable future. So begins The Second Life of Mirielle West.

What starts out as a story of fear and confusion quickly blossoms into something more beautiful and tragic. Mirielle has lived a lot of her life in denial and sadness, but the most redeeming part about her is her choice not to despite this crazy and awful situation. The author very deftly and subtly touched on so many themes of struggles with depression, alcoholism, the loss of a child, and struggling with a chronic illness. Despite not diving deep on any of these subjects, I think she did them all justice. I think to have gone more in depth would have made the book a heavy and somber tome that would not have been as enjoyable as it was. I found myself wondering about the race of the characters frequently. I know the races of some characters were mentioned in the book, but I really thought my ability to forget the character's race highlighted how this disease did not discriminate. Once you were at Carville, it really didn't matter what color you were or where you were from. Given the time period the book is set in, that is even more impressive and moving. All in all, an exceptionally well-written and thought out book about something that most of us know little to nothing about, but is so heavily stigmatized.

This well-written and researched novel is about strength and resilience no matter what circumstances you find yourself in. It was a learning experience for me - I had no idea that there was a leper's colony in Louisiana that existed from 1894-1999. Carville housed people who had leprosy and thousands of people were stripped of their civil rights, branded as lepers, and forcibly quarantined throughout the entire 20th century

Mirielle was the wife of a silent movie actor and lived an extravagant life style in California in the 1920s. When she found a lesion on her hand, she thought it was from a burn that she gotten the day before. She saw her doctor and he immediately put her in isolation at the local hospital and then transferred her hundreds of miles to the leper colony in Louisiana. Life at the colony was totally different from her life in California -- no parties, no fancy clothes and no champagne. Instead she was living in a stark place full of sick people. She knew that her stay would be temporary and that she did NOT have leprosy but felt the need to change her name so that she wouldn't cause bad publicity for her husband. She had to reinvent herself to fit in with the rest of the patients. When she first arrived, she kept her distance from others because she knew that she'd be going home soon. When she finally accepts her diagnosis, she realizes that she's no different from the other people and begins to make friends. and become part of the community.

It was interesting to watch Mirielle's transformation. When she first arrived at Carville, she was a bit of a snob and knew that she wasn't like the other people there. As she finally begin to realize that she WAS like the other people, she becomes passionate to help others. She worked in the clinicc and pharmacy to do what she could to help cure the disease. Even though she still wants to go home to her movie star husband and her two daughters, she begins to make the best of her new life at Carville,


This novel is an in-depth look at the people who were quarantined to the leper colony. It's emotional and you may shed a few tears but by the end of the book, you will feel like you've met characters who cope with a serious disease but lead happy and useful lives by helping other people, Mirielle and her strength and resilience made this a fantastic book to read.

Thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book to read and review.

The story of America’s only leper colony is told through the eyes Mirielle West. Sanctioned to a leper home in Louisiana after a doctor notices a lighter colored patch of skin on her hand, Married to a film star, her socialite world brimming with parties, glamour and a very chic lifestyle comes to an abrupt end. Changing her name to protect her famous spouse and family from the shame of a leprosy diagnosis, she is miles away from familiarity and must forge ahead with a new life and a new purpose. In Carville, she becomes part of a world of made up of an experimental treatments, loneliness, an unknown future and the horrible stigma that envelopes this disease.
Amanda Skenandore does a brilliant job of sharing the raw emotion, resilience, helplessness and hopefulness of not only the characters in this novel but of America at this point in our history.
A highly recommended read and my thanks to NetGalley, the author and Kensington Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest book review.

The beauty of historical fiction with its endless ability to continually teach, expose, and raise awareness of little to unknown historical figures and events often forgotten to time or erased by its storytellers never ceases to amaze me. I recently finished the novel THE SECOND LIFE OF MIRIELLE WEST by Amanda Skenandore where she uncovered not only the past of leprosy and it’s stigma in the 1920s, but also revealed what daily life was like in the US’s only residential hospital in the country in Louisiana. The author reveals the various early treatments and research of the disease as well as the far reaching tendril effects of the disease to not only the patients but to their families as well. Through the protagonist’s sudden diagnosis, symptom onset, and her abrupt exile, the reader is able to learn of the fine tuned intricacies of this well-organized and complex colony that was established at a marine hospital that was almost its own miniature self-functioning village. A cast of characters included not only men and women but children as well, who hailed from all social strata levels that were joined together by the greatest equalizer — leprosy. And in true “It’s a Wonderful Life” fashion, the protagonist Mirelle realizes what is truly important in life and the disease she thought ended her way of life as she knew it really actually saved her life. She may have lived in a life of riches and fame, but was also drowning her sorrows from a past family tragedy in alcohol. Stripped of her previous trappings, she finds new love, friends like family, inner strengths and talents, and newfound familial appreciation.

Skenandore releases a historical novel that is also very timely for the current pandemic era raging internationally, where comparisons can be drawn for how people react to an unknown disease and its victims. As often occurs with historical fiction, themes and lessons continue to ring true and circle back time and time again. The author also incorporates Old Hollywood for an extra element of interest and glam with the addition of Mirelle’s husband’s film career and lifestyle. All of these additional layers add to the richness, depth, and complexity of the storyline and it’s characters.

Skenandore is a new historical fiction author to me, but has proved one to watch for future releases — she created and packed in all of the wondrous moving parts that go into the making of one of this genre’s gems.

I loved this book. I didn't know anything about the history of leper colonies in the US in the 20th century so not only was this a sensitive, beautiful novel about a women creating a new life for herself against all odds, it was a satisfying history lesson.

r/suggestmeabook: I want to watch how a privileged, self-centered young woman deals with leprosy and all it entails in 1920s America.

Mirielle West feels so sorry for herself, it’s hard for the reader to, but it’s a good thing. When the horrifying ordeal is happening to someone self-centered and in so much denial that you aren’t swamped in the bleakness of life for a leper, even if it’s a little improved at United States Marine Hospital Number 66 (better known as “Carville”) when compared to most of history. Like Mirielle, I grew up reading stories of lepers in the Bible, where they rang the bell and cried, “Unclean, unclean” to warn others of their presence, and was shocked to learn in my teen years that leprosy, now referred to as Hansen’s disease, persisted to the current day.

There’s a reason that the word “leper” has come to mean an outcast or untouchable. That was exactly what happened to someone with the disease throughout the world and history (and is still the case in the few places around the world where it clusters). In the early 20th century, a patient was likely to be treated no better than a wanted criminal; lepers were unable to vote in Louisiana until 1940.

The Second Life of Mirielle West honors the leprosarium, its inhabitants, and its staff by Amanda Skenandore’s masterful character development and sense of place. Mirielle is a fabulous character: I spent a good deal of the time wanting to slap her, but, in the end, I loved her and her complexity. It’s part of the author’s genius that you end up feeling compassion for everyone from the harsh nun who runs things at the hospital to the impossibly out-of-touch Hollywood husband.

Skenandore also does a marvelous job in how she delivers the information about the disease. Anyone wanting a study in how to deliver exposition would do themselves a favor by reading this novel. I came to that conclusion when I realized how much I learned about leprosy and how patients were treated and couldn’t come up with a single time when I felt that the story was bogged down in explanations. You learn as Mirielle does, and she cannot absorb it all in one sitting (mostly because it takes her so long to accept the diagnosis and pay attention). No long paragraphs about the disease or its history—it all comes out organically and never breaks the pace.

The novel also examines how we deal with loss: loss of privilege, autonomy, health, loved ones, and our sense of self. It also manages to raise the question of whether we are our best selves when we are overly pampered, and although leprosy is rather an extreme remedy for privilege, the point is subtly made that a life that requires nothing of us is unhealthy as well. Which is worse, the physical leprosy, or a emotional/intellectual/spiritual one? (“Must we have one or the other?” Mirielle would have probably asked.)

Mirielle also is a case study in assumptions. She assumes so much about her fellow patients, not to mention the staff, but it all mostly adds up to a blanket assumption that no one can understand her pain, whether because they are too insensitive or boorish or because they have not suffered like her. Little by little, she begins to learn, grudgingly, that no one is immune to pain, even with a disease that numbs.

And then there are the wonderful touches that root the story in Louisiana. Mirielle isn’t the fan of gumbo that I am, but she takes to Southern sweet tea. I share her difficulty with understanding a thick Cajun accent, although I’d be willing to bet she’s not as mesmerized by it. Mardi Gras is celebrated at the facility with the grudging consent of the Sisters of Charity, and the descriptions of their floats made it come to life. Levees surround the grounds on three sides, holding back the mighty Mississippi, but it’s not to be missed that they are three of the four barricades keeping patients restricted to the grounds.

The Second Life of Mirielle West is not to be missed—it’s a novel that will resonate long after you finish.

As the wife of a silent film star, 32-year-old Mirielle West lives a luxurious life full of glitz and glamour. Her two children are watched over by a vigilant nanny so she's free to indulge in illicit drinks, glittery parties, and whatever fawning needs to be done in order to advance her husband's career. Despite her enviable lifestyle, Mirielle is plagued by grief and guilt after the recent drowning death of her young son. She's managing the dark moods that so often sweep over her as best she can, while trying to ignore the fact that her husband seems to be purposely spending more time at the studio than at home. A visit to the doctor over a minor burn is the last thing she needs, especially when her physician notices a concerning lesion on her hand. Mirielle scoffs at his diagnosis of leprosy. A woman like her couldn't possibly have such a dirty, foreign disease!

Even though she's certain there's been a horrible mistake, Mirielle allows herself to be shipped off to the Carville Lepers Home in Louisiana. She and her husband have been in the tabloids enough already—she can't allow more spurious gossip to make the papers. Sure the stay will only be temporary, Mirielle turns up her nose at everything and everyone around her. It's clear she doesn't belong in such depressing circumstances, dwelling among the deformed and damned. The longer she remains, however, the more she must come to terms with her new life. Can she create a meaningful existence in such a demoralizing place? As Mirielle tentatively begins to reach out, she discovers friendship, hope, and love in the most unlikely of places.

Besides Hawaii's Moloka'i, I'd never heard of other leper colonies in the U.S., so this novel offered me a fascinating look into how the disease was treated here in the 1920's and 30's. Not only was it interesting to read about the medical procedures used, but it was intriguing (and heartbreaking) to learn how patients were seen and treated by those in the outside world. The fact that the disease was so misunderstood by both medical professionals and the general public is especially thought-provoking considering all that has gone on in our COVID world (particularly anti-Asian sentiment). For these reasons and more, The Second Life of Mirielle West by Amanda Skenandore would make a good, discussion-worthy book club pick.

As far as characters go, the book is filled with complex and likable folk, of whom Mirielle is actually my least favorite. She's sympathetic, yes, but she's also hard to like because of her snobbery, self-centeredness, and constant self-pity. Her evolution as a character is evident throughout the novel, but I still found it difficult to really relate to her. Story-wise, this novel moves slowly without a focused plot to really keep it moving. Still, it's compelling and I definitely wanted to finish the book so I could see how it ended. While I didn't absolutely love this novel, I did like it for its intriguing subject matter, its sensitive portrayal of a devastating disease, its thought-provoking story, and its atmospheric historical setting.

(Readalikes: Reminds me of Moloka'i by Alan Brennert and The Island at the End of the World by Kiran Millwood Hargrave)

Grade: B-

If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG-13 for language (no F-bombs), blood/gore, mild sexual content, and disturbing subject matter

To the FTC, with love: I received an e-ARC of The Second Life of Mirielle West from the generous folks at Kensington Books via those at NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Amanda Skenandore’s The Second Life of Mirielle West is a powerful, heart-wrenching, and at times uplifting book about socialite Mirielle West, married to a silent film star, who is ripped from her home and sent to Carville, a colony for lepers, after a doctor finds she is in the early stages of the disease. Once there, Mirielle has a decision to make – feel sorry for herself or make herself useful. Through her well-crafted, stunning novel, Amanda Skenandore has given her readers a realistic glimpse into the horrifying conditions that people with leprosy endured. Outstanding book! I only wish I could give this book more than 5 stars!