I really enjoyed this interesting and unique read, about a young single mother who registers her difficult son in a private school with a very different curriculum . It kept me guessing throughout, and it was heard to know who to trust! I will watch for more books by this author.

The Hawthorne School seems too good to be true for single mother Claudia...

A forest school with an emphasis on creativity, The Hawthorne School offers a sense of community to Claudia and her son Henry- but most importantly, it offers them a scholarship. But Claudia should know, that if it seems to be too good to be true... it usually is.

This book had such a creepy atmosphere, it was very gothic in nature.
The author did a wonderful job setting the tone. The book is a thriller, with lots of secrets and a sprinkling of danger. I very much enjoyed it and would recommend it to any thriller lover.

Creepy story but a little predictable. The book kept me interested. The ending was anticlimactic and it felt rushed.

This was a chilling story of manipulation that started off pretty strong but then took a bit of a turn near the second half that I didn’t quite love. While incredibly thought provoking, I think I was just expecting a little more shock value!

I did find it to be a fun and entertaining gothic style read though and I’m interested to see what Perry does next!

3 stars

This book seemed perfect for me, a creepy school setting with gothic atmosphere, and questionable happenings. Unfortunately, it fell a bit flat. The main character, mother Claudia to Henry, her 4-year-old son, was incredibly gullible and then suddenly a fighter. It didn’t feel as though the arc of the protagonist was consistent. I also found some of the story to be too monotonous and other parts too simply concluded. This has a great premise but the final product doesn’t quite match the ideas.
#TheHawthorneSchool #NetGalley. #CrookedLaneBooks

the nonlinear narrative structure of the novel challenging to follow at times however it also is thought provoking

I loved the setting in this novel, but the main character was just dumb, and she aggravated me. This ruined the book for me, honestly. I just found the whole novel predictable, unfortunately. The cover and atmosphere were spot on, but the story just fell flat for me.

A mother moving her child to a new school can be a challenge but then the school is odd. New schools can be hard but this book was interesting to me. I am not sure why Claudia Vera didn't check this school out more. Did Claudia Vera and her son get in too deep? I just wanted more from this book to pull me into the story. *This book was given to me for free at my request from NetGalley and I provided this voluntary review.*

I would rate this book 2.5 out of 5 stars.

This one fell short for me. The setting and premise are great but I did not enjoy the main character generally and her inability to clue in to anything happening in the story was very hard to reconcile.

A creepy gothic school is typically right in me wheelhouse. However it was challenging to get over how completely oblivious our main character is.

When Claudia gets her young son into the unique hawthorne school to help with his behavioral issues, and starts volunteering to pay for his tuition, he’s magically cured! And weird stuff starts happening but Claudia barely notices. It’s likely she didn’t want to know because her prayers had been answered but it was hard to read her overlooking the obvious (to me the reader) red flags.

It’s a good story I just wish the protagonist was a little more skeptical.

Full review to be posted soonish.

I would like to thank the publisher and netgalley for providing me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

It has a few good things going for it but wasn’t exactly what I was looking for in a read. It had that dark atmospheric feel to it, being a cult school setting. The cover had me checking this out first, and then the setting really pulled me in. The gothic castle like school sounded like a good creepy place to read about. Predictability was off putting though. Read this if you like gothic academia type books. Give it shot.

2.5 stars

I liked the premise of this story though it didn't come through for me.

Claudia wants the best for her son who is struggling with traditional school. When she finds the Hawthorne School, it seems like the perfect place for Henry, yet also too good to be true. Claudia can't afford the tuition but is told she can volunteer at the school to make up the difference. As Claudia and Henry become more embedded in "The Hawthorne Way" she realizes something is wrong. Claudia realizes she's caught in a web of manipulation and wonders if she can get herself and Henry out before it's too late.

The Hawthorne School itself is Gothic and creepy, the people who live and work there almost zombielike. This makes for a suspenseful and dark setting. But Claudia was just too naive and oblivious for me to appreciate the full story as written.

I really tried to get into this novel because it seemed like a horror story set in a school. However, there some disturbing scenes that made me uncomfortable. Therefore, this story was not my cup of tea.

As a former teacher, I've seen my fair share of bad schools. This is one of them. While atmospheric, just wasn't a hit with me.

The beginning and the setting were truly promising, I enjoyed the creepiness, but I soon became tired of the story and the main character. The setting was my favorite thing about this book

Thank you to Netgalley & Sylvie Perry for my copy of The Hawthorne School for an honest review. Claudia Morgan is at a loss. She is a single parent and just wants what is best for her son and her. Henry is a busy guy, who doesn’t sit still. He never rests so Morgan can’t rest. Claudia is barely holding on to her job and the local school just isn’t a fit. Until she hears about The Hawthorne School. Her neighbor tells her all about is and it can’t hurt to visit, right? The school hasn’t everything you could every want for a school. A beautiful building, beautiful campus, music and art. The head of the school is Zelma and even she seems perfect. But nothing is perfect.. Is this school to be true? Are Mandy and Henry in danger? Can Morgan get the answers she needs to make the right choices? This was a very interesting read. It just seems to read a little slow. It got repetitive at times. But overall it was a four star read for me. As always I am so grateful to read and review this book. It was definitely different, I hope you enjoy it.

Claudia is a young single mother who is battling Henry’s conduct. When her son’s preschool teacher confronts her about his conduct, she seeks the advice of her new friend Maggie. Maggie recommends that Claudia visit The Hawthorn School, where her daughter is a student. Claudia pays a visit and falls in love with the school, the principal, Zelda, and the school’s whole concept. She eagerly signs Henry up, and she notices a difference in his conduct after his first session. She’s finally found a school that understands him and where he seems to thrive. In her eagerness for Henry to be stable and controlled, Claudia, on the other hand, misses all the symptoms.

The novel had a sinister air to it, and I could readily visualize both the people and the setting. While the novel moved quickly, I was annoyed with Claudia for taking so long to figure things out and allowing others to push her about. She came out as naive and too trusting, which was surprising given the difficulties she had overcome to reach that position. I enjoyed listening to the audiobook! The narrator’s voice was crisp and suited the plot nicely. Thinking about how seemingly readily individuals may be lured into circumstances like these has been a highlight of the book. It’s one of those books that makes me question whether this happens in real life since it’s so frightening.

Even though the plot was terrifying, it was pretty predictable. I could see where the tale was going from the beginning and foresaw all of the twists. My only criticism of the entire book is that there are a few odd individuals that emerge, add excitement to the tale, and then seem to vanish. The novel is a suspenseful thriller with plenty of secrets and a dash of danger. It was fantastic, and I would suggest it to any thriller fan. While the conclusion was satisfactory, it could have been better. It was a tad anticlimactic, to be honest. I would suggest this book to anyone who enjoys a good scare in the middle of the night.

This was such a creepy and eerie gothic school. I loved the setting and premise so much, however, that excitement didn’t last long. I felt so confused with my thoughts. The plot just didn’t work out and our protagonist wasn’t that interesting. I wish this book took a different route than it did. I wasn’t a fan of the ending neither.

This book had me captivated from the start! I liked the characters and premise of the book. Beautiful cover art, as well. Thank you Netgalley and publishers for the opportunity to read this book!