I enjoyed (and was truly disturbed by) the true history presented in this historical fiction novel. I’d never heard of Willowbrook and it’s incredibly sad that such a horrible place existed in the US.

This story took a while for me to get into. I found it predictable at some parts which made me lose interest. I did continually google things about Willowbrook and Cropsey to see what parts reflected real history, though.

This book is historical fiction but it’s also a true crime mystery kind of story as well as a bit horror I would say.

I would recommend the audiobook. I got an eARC from NetGalley and finally switched to an audiobook on Libby and it felt much faster moving that way. The narration is excellent as well.

The story was not what I though tit was going to be AT ALL. Things just seemed a bit far fetched (and not about the historical references to Willowbrook because I researched that I was horrified that most of that was pretty spot on), but the main character and her "story" seemed ridiculous. I know she's a teen, but come on!

This was an interesting book full of the horrors of a “school” for the mentally ill. Sage is a strong female character who will not stop until she finds the truth about what happened to her twin sister. I enjoyed this sad story. The plot moved along at a good pace and there were a couple of twists and turns….some I saw coming, others that were a surprise.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing Corp. for the digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Let me start by saying, I’ve never been more stressed from reading a book before than while reading The Lost Girls of Willowbrook. There were many points that I just had to skim through the descriptions of Willowbrook and the patients inside of the ward. It was a great novel that kept me on my toes wondering if Sage was losing her mind and who was the person killing all of these characters. The most wild part was finding out that this was an actual institution in New York. Thank you Netgalley for the “ARC” in exchange for a review!

Sixteen year old Sage Winters lost her twin sister Rosemary years before, her mother later following suit. A burden to her stepfather, Alan, Sage tried to live her life the best way she knows how. When she found out that Rosemary was actually still alive, having been committed to Willowbrook State School but now missing, Sage was determined to find her twin. A trip to Willowbrook turns out to be a case of mistaken identity, resulting in Sage locked behind the doors. Will she be able to find out what happened to Rosemary and to escape the horrors?

The Lost Girls of Willowbrook was based on the real story of the "school" and the horrors committed within its walls. I wanted to like the novel, but too much of the story was based on a plot line that seemed too scripted. Though they were identical twins, the environments in which Sage and Rosemary lived were too different for them to still look exactly alike. Though Sage lost her identification, it would have been easy for the police to check out her story in a timely fashion. Usually a fan of historical fiction, The Lost Girls of Willowbrook did not hold my interest. I have liked the other works of historical fiction by this author, so I would recommend one of the others instead of this novel.

Disclaimer: I was given an Advanced Reader's Copy of The Lost Girls of Willowbrook by NetGalley and the publisher. The decision to read and review this book was entirely my own.

A great work of historical fiction based on an institution that actually existed in our past. I was interested in reading this book since I had knowledge of Willowbrook and it’s macabre history. Sage find out that her identical twin sister, Rosemary, who she thought was dead was institutionalized by her mom and stepfather. Sage’s mother passed away and Aage overhears her stepfather telling a friend that Rosemary is missing. Sage feels guilty for not knowing her sister was alive and never visiting her sister. She runs away to Willowbrook to help find Rosemary. When Sage arrives, she is mistaken for her sister and institutionalized. Major trigger warnings for physical, emotional, and sexual abuse and the mistreatment of individuals with cognitive and physical disabilities. No one believes Sage when she tried to explain that she doesn’t belong there and she endures a lot of abuse and trauma. I don’t want to give too much away, but I highly recommend this book!

I wanted to love this but I couldn't. It was just strange. Like the girl's names are Rosemary and Sage, really? I didn't expect the book to go the way it did and for a while it just got repetitive. I didn't see the ending coming so that was a surprise but overall, a decent horror/mystery/historical fiction but a little too cliché.

A wonderful mix of facts and urban legends! An edge of your seat, can’t put down kind of thriller! Willowbrook state school was real and lots happened there that you will not believe!

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

The story is told from the point of view of 16 year old Sage Winters who recently discovered that her twin sister Rosemary is still alive and was committed to Willowbrook State School 6 years earlier. Rosemary has disappeared and Sage decides to go to Willowbrook to see if she can help in the search for her sister. Unfortunately, the staff believes that Sage is the missing girl and they lock her up. The more she protests, the less they believe her!

The descriptions of the horrible conditions and treatment of the patients at Willowbrook is gut wrenching. The author has done a good job of basing the sequence of events on actual circumstances that prevailed at the Staten Island facility. It is hard to believe that the asylum was allowed to remain open for many years after the cruel conditions came to light, first by Sen. Kennedy and later by Geraldo Rivera.

This book is really an expose at its center, with a mystery wrapped loosely around it. I knew nothing about Willowbrook before reading this, though I was certainly aware of the mistreatment of institutionalized people. The first half of the book is very hard to read, with its unrelenting descriptions of the conditions inside Willowbrook, which was an actual institution for the mentally ill on Staten Island until it was closed in the 1980s. Geraldo Rivera managed to get his crew inside one of the wards at Willowbrook and, in doing so, helped bring it to its end. The history of the institution is fascinating in a macabre way, and Wiseman does a tremendous job of placing the reader right into the midst of the deplorable conditions.

The mystery is somewhat less successful than the muckraking. The main character, Jade, discovers as a teenager that the twin sister, Rosemary, whom she believed had died, had in fact been institutionalized at Willowbrook. With that set up, it's not surprising what happens when Jade arrives at Willowbrook to help search for Rosemary, who has gone missing. As the plot progresses, the danger caused by ongoing abuse and neglect at the institution is compounded by murders. Sage attempts to find out what happened to her sister, but she is stopped at every turn and has very little success on her own. Characters occasionally act in out-of-character ways, providing some red herrings to keep the reader guessing. In the end, Wiseman manages to turn it around and provide the reader with a satisfying ending.

I listened to much of the book, but for a while switched to reading it so that I could skim through some of the worst scenes of abuse. It was hard enough to read, but nearly impossible to listen to. This is a testament to Wiseman's skill in bringing the subject matter alive, but also a drawback to the book, at least for more sensitive readers.

Twin sisters. One dies, or does she ? Years later, the "surviving twin" goes looking. She finds more than she bargained for at Willowbrook. Interesting read. Recommended !

The historical aspect of Willowbrook drew my attention and the mystery added to it. Such an interesting premise, and the fact that Willowbrook State School really existed made everything so much gorier, creepier and more disturbing. This is absolutely worth a read.

I'm not going to lie. This was a difficult book to read in the beginning, difficult because it's based on true events, and although we read of the horrors of prisoners of war, concentration camps, and other atrocities, I think what made this story even more horrific is it happened to people who were supposed to be cared for. And the fact it happened while I was growing up (I'm roughly the same age as Sage, the main character in the book in 1971.)
I've read and loved every book by this author, and although I received an eBook copy of this story from NetGalley, I also purchased the paperback because I own all her other books and knew this would be another must-have for me.
The difficult part of the story (for me) was finding out how people KNEW the treatment was horrific at Willowbrook, yet nothing was done about it for years. As with many historical fiction books I read, I often broke away from the story to Google the reality part of the book. Watch the YouTube video of Geraldo Rivera's 1972 as he exposed what was going on in Willowbrook, even though Robert Kennedy toured Willowbrook in 1965 and called it a snake pit.
I love Sage's tenacity as she pushes to find answers to what really happened with her twin sister, and how she manages to self-preserve in a life full of adults letting her down.
I appreciate the story bringing this tragic piece of history to light, and also the plot twists to the story. Ellen Marie Wiseman writes relatable characters and wonderful (if disturbing!) historical fiction. Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book, and I am glad I purchased a paperback of the story so I can read it again.

Based on the way state schools for the mentally retarded were actually run, this is the story of Sage, a 16 year old girl who has just discovered that her twin sister, who she had been told was dead, was actually at Willowbrook State School, a facility for mentally ill children. Sage goes to find her sister, and she is mistaken for her twin sister, who was missing at the time. Sage experiences the horrors of being incarcerated in a State School as she fights to keep her sanity and find her sister. Because this story is based on actual conditions of State Schools in the past, the story is horrifying and heartbreaking.

When Sage Winters discovers her twin sister didn’t die of pneumonia six years ago, but was instead committed to Willowbrook “school,” she’s shocked and devastated. Rosemary was always different, but she always needed a little more protection from the world. Now, Rosemary’s gone missing, and Sage’s step-father doesn’t seem to care. Sage takes a trip to Willowbrook to assist with the efforts, but the staff mistake her for Rosemary and confine her to the institution. Living conditions are horrible, and it takes everything Sage has just to survive the day to day. If she can’t find an ally to help her get out and find Rosemary, she might spend forever in Willowbrook. And what happened to Rosemary? Sage is determined to find out.

Let me just get this out of the way. This book was a bummer, haha! I got Nellie Bly vibes a little bit, but what did I expect from a story about an insane asylum. It’s fiction but is based on a real place that mistreated thousands of patients and eventually was shut down and into a college. The main character, Sage, is also somewhat reminiscent of a real person who worked to rehouse Willowbrook residents, trying to give them better opportunities at tolerable living conditions. The mystery part of the story was interesting, but I did figure it out before it was revealed. I was a bit disappointed in the reveal, not for any plot-related reasons, but just because it did little to uplift an already sad story. I did appreciate the ending and might have even gotten a little misty.

It moves quickly and pulls you in right away, so if you can handle the traumatic elements of the story, it’s compelling. It’s out now wherever you get your books.

I had so much hope for this book. I really wanted to like it, I even put the book away for a few days hoping I was just in the wrong head space. Unfortunately this was not the case. This book was a “did not finish “ for me.

In the beginning, the story gripped me. I was so intrigued by the premise and the fact that the author threw us right into the story. Sage’s realisation that her parents lied to her about what happened to her sister was gripping and I needed to know what happened next.

I felt like I was there, experiencing the story along with Sage. It was emotional and dug deep into Sage’s mind and how she felt and reacted to the events happening.

The concept of Willowbrook was fascinating, and the book dived into the prejudice of mentally ill and disabled people, something that still happens in real life.

However, my enjoyment fizzled out. The beginning was brilliant, but by the time we reached the middle, I’d sadly lost interest. I wouldn’t say no to reading future books by the author, but by the end I realised this one wasn’t for me. Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher, for a chance to read and review this book.

What a haunting and scary look at what went on inside an institute for the mentally disabled. I was so incredibly floored by the story and all that went on behind closed doors. I can’t even imagine living in such deplorable conditions and not having a voice to save myself. Very emotional read but gives you an ending you can be content with.

This story is a perfect historical fiction thriller. Rosemary goes missing and her twin, Sage, ends up getting held captive while attempting to look for her… Talk about a literal nightmare! The descriptiveness of the scenes in this were immaculate- I say this because I was so intrigued by the setting that I took to Google. The images are horrifying but spot on to how Ellen describes Willowbrook and it’s contents. The story leaves you wondering until the very end and will have you asking yourself over and over “WHO and what is Cropsey?!”

The Lost Girls of Willowbrook

A heartbreaking novel of survival based on a true story

By: Ellen Marie Wiseman

Publish Date: 30 August 2022

Publisher: Kensington Books, Kensington

New Adult

#TheLostGirlsofWillowbrook#NetGalley

100 Book ReviewsProfessional Reader

I would like to thank both NetGalley and Kensington Books for allowing me to read and review this book.

Good Reads Synopsis:

Fact, fiction, and urban legend blend in this haunting story about a young woman mistakenly imprisoned at Willowbrook State School, the real-life institution later shuttered for its horrendous abuses.

Sage Winters always knew her sister was a little different even though they were identical twins. They loved the same things and shared a deep understanding, but Rosemary—awake to every emotion, easily moved to joy or tears—seemed to need more protection from the world.

Six years after Rosemary’s death from pneumonia, Sage, now sixteen, still misses her deeply. Their mother perished in a car crash, and Sage’s stepfather, Alan, resents being burdened by a responsibility he never wanted. Yet despite living as near strangers in their Staten Island apartment, Sage is stunned to discover that Alan has kept a shocking secret: Rosemary didn’t die. She was committed to Willowbrook State School and has lingered there until just a few days ago, when she went missing.

Sage knows little about Willowbrook. It’s always been a place shrouded by rumor and mystery. A place local parents threaten to send misbehaving kids. With no idea what to expect, Sage secretly sets out for Willowbrook, determined to find Rosemary. What she learns, once she steps through its doors and is mistakenly believed to be her sister, will change her life in ways she never could imagined . . .

Book Review:

I gave this book 5 stars. It is a hard read in some places. This book will give you all the feels. This is a historical fiction story that is set in 1971 in New York.

This is about two twins Rosemary and Sage. Rosemary is a little different from her sister Sage. They get along great even though Rosemary has some issues. Then one day Rosemary is gone. Her mom and stepdad have taken her to see the doctor and she never returns home.

Sage is told that her sister is dead. Fast forward a few years and the mom has passed and Sage is living with her stepfather because she doesn’t know where her real father is and thinks he doesn’t care. Then one day Sage overhears a conversation between her stepdad and one of his friends and discovers that Rosemary is alive and missing. He finally tells her that they put in Willowbrook Stat School. All the kids know about this school, and no one wants to be there. Sage is so upset that she decides to go to this school and help them look for her sister.

When she gets there, she is mistaken for her sister and the horror begins there.

The story that unfolds at this point is terrible and what she goes through and how she even survived is outstanding.

So many wrongs and the length of time it took to right those wrongs. That is all I will say because you really need to read this book to get the full effects of the story.