Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

This was an intense read! So well written, with a great plot line and moving characters. The narrator was perfect for this as well. I would definitely recommend giving this a read!

The audiobooks narrator is wonderful this puts cropsy and the Willowbrook murders to the paper. There were times that I was very interested and worried for our main character sage but most the time I was just disgusted by the thought of these conditions that individuals were subject to I do think that this would be a good story to read if you know the story but I also believe this may be more of a slap in the face of certain individuals.

The Lost Girls of Willowbrook is part historical fiction, part mystery about a young girl who is trapped in a horrific home for the disabled. It features Willowbrook State School in Long Island, New York in the 1970s that housed thousands of people with
intellectual and developmental disabilities. Its an eye-opening account of the atrocities so many experienced in the not so distant past.

Sage is a 16 year old girl whose identical twin sister Rosemary' "died" about five years prior. However, she learns her sister is alive and was committed to Willowbrook, but has recently gone missing. Sage goes looking for her at Willowbrook, but is mistaken for Rosemary and is committed to the ward.

Willowbrook State School was infamous in its horrific conditions and the negligent treatment of its residents in the second half of the 20th century. The novel is told in Sage's perspective, which did get a little tedious at times. It frustrated me how much she continued to see those committed as "others" for most of the novel and herself as unique and "normal." As time passes and she's continually gaslighted, her reality distorts and she realizes she's in true danger from a killer that targets those at Willowbrook. It was a riveting read and kept me interested and I wasn't sure were the novel would ultimately lead. I listened to the audiobook which was wonderfully narrated by Morgan Hallett.

Thank you to the publishers for providing this ARC. All thoughts are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for an ARC of this audiobook.

After reading reviews from Goodreads, I realize that I am definitely in the minority on this book. I really wanted to like it because the description sounded just like the kind of book I usually love. I have very mixed feelings about this book. Even thought the story line engaged me, I could never connect with the characters. I am not sure what was missing, but I am wondering if maybe having more of a backstory on the early life of the sisters might have made me more sympathetic to them. Unfortunately, I just never cared about them. I also felt that even though I believe that the descriptions of the mental institution and the things that happened to the patients seemed realistic, especially for the time that the story took place, I felt that the story events in the plot were just too unbelievable and often I found myself rolling my eyes and saying, "You have got to be kidding me!". I just don't think it was a good match for me, but know that many others liked it.

The synopsis barely touches on the horrors and cruelty written in the story. Several times I contemplated shelving the book. More than once I felt myself vomiting in .my throat. Between historical fiction, fiction and historical where are the lines drawn. The Lost Girls went too far for me; the line being closer to fiction with the use of historical abuses of the mentally ill as a backdrop.

The author sets up her entry into Willowbrook and plots her ending; neither of which did I accept as reasonable. The inbetween was the historical part of her story. I don't see Wiseman presenting a part of history that should not be forgotten as well as continually monitored, I see a fictional account taken from headlines and one I wish I had passed on. The twin aspect is really filler, and I'm not spending anymore time on it.

The narration was sketchy and cold. The narrator could be better served with different material.

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for accepting my request to read and review The Lost Girls of Willowbrook.

I obtained an audio version of this book and just couldn’t get past the foul language of the first several chapters. The cover and the historical content drew me in but I just couldn’t get into the story.

This was a good book but not as good as some of Wiseman's past books. Unfortunately, due to the topic and subject matter, some of the topics and phrases, such as the phrase "you have to believe me/why won't you believe me?" were used so repeatedly that I dreamed them at night after listening to the audio version of this before bed. That being said though, there were twists in the book that I didn't see coming, which may redeem it in some eyes - but unfortunately, not mine. I'll definitely still read Wiseman's books but I wasn't a huge fan of this one. 3 stars.

Thank you Netgalley for this audio edition of The Lost Girls of Willowbrook by Ellen Marie Wiseman.

Oh man, this is both captivating and so very depressing. It's one thing to be able to separate yourself from a story, knowing that it's fiction and that these events didn't actually take place. But when it's historical fiction, and you know that real facts were woven into the story, it's a whole other experience. Sadly, that is definitely the case when describing what it was like for those considered to be "insane" or have any other mental illness. What's worse is that this wasn't even that long ago! It happened in the 1700's? Ok, well they also thought putting all of your blood in a bucket would make you healthier. But the 1970's? We could actually know someone who survived these conditions.

Sage has never gotten a clear answer as to what happened to her twin sister Rosemary. All she knows is that she has died and is dearly missed. But upon hearing from her angry and negligent step dad that Rosemary isn't dead, but living in the notorious Willowbrook, Sage becomes desperate to find her sister and get some answers. No one really knows what goes on in Willowbrook, but also, no one wants to go there. It seems to have a one way entrance in, and rarely does anyone come out. Will Willowbrook actually have the answers that Sage is looking for, or will searching only put her in danger.

This is a really good story. It pulls no punches and definitely takes off it's kid gloves while doing it, but it also shines a harsh and deeply disturbing light on a part of our history I'm sure we'd all like to forget. On top of that, the author does a great job weaving mystery with history (ha, loving the poetry there). Everything about this book is dark, disturbing, and mysterious, and I know that I'm not the only weirdo out there who loves that kind of stuff.

💭Thoughts:
Wow! This book is deeply disturbing. To know that this historical fiction is based on the Willowbrook State School that actually existed on Staten Island from 1947-1987 is gut wrenching. The things these people were subjected to is unimaginable.

The author did a great job intertwining the fictional story of sixteen year old Sage and her experiences at Willowbrook with the realities patients really faced living there. I enjoyed Sage’s character and really felt connected to her. The story was full of suspense at at times left me wondering if the narrator was reliable or not.

I don’t want to give to much away, as I think this is a great book to go into blind. It’ll keep it most suspenseful. Just keep in mind that it is a hard book to stomach and will probably be very triggering to some people.

Tragedy comes in many forms. For the people who were confined to an institution called Willowbrook, it was a place of horror, of imprisonment, and of a story that shock the world. In 1972, an investigative reporter, Geraldo Rivera and his crew discovered the many ills of Willowbrook, including overcrowding, inadequate sanitary facilities, and physical and sexual abuse of residents by members of the staff. It was a living nightmare. It was titled as a school for the mentally challenged, but it was far removed from that! Finally shut down in 1987, it sparked an era where the mental institutions were put to a more stringent process.

In this story Ms Wiseman, depicts what life was like by the protagonist, Sage Winter in Willowbrook. Learning that her twin sister, Rosemary was not dead, but was confined to Willowbrook, sent Sage on a perilous journey into the ills of this supposed school. Mistaken for her twin, Sage becomes an inmate going through the torture of her environment and the fact that no one believed her story.

With many moments of tense action and the horror of this setting, Ms Wiseman has created a mystery with Willowbrook as its background and it was a terrifying one indeed. The author includes facts that were eventually discovered in this house of horrors.

Many thank to Ellen Wiseman, Recorded Books, and NetGalley for a copy of this riveting story.

Ellen Marie Wiseman (who also has an amazing backlist!) creates an engrossing narrative in The Lost Girls of Willowbrook. Sage finds out that her missing identical twin sister has been a resident at Willowbrook, and goes there searching for her. Sage is mistaken for her sister, and is forced into this horrific world.

This is a stomach-churning historical thriller, especially since it’s setting is a real place on Staten Island, NY. Willowbrook State School was a residential facility for people with intellectual disabilities. It was investigated for abuse several times before finally closing in 1987. The abuse stories sound like something that
belong in Nazi Germany, not New York City. These poor residents deserved so much better.

Thank you for my advance review copy.

The Lost Girls of Willowbrook serves as a stark reminder that humans are far scarier than anything otherworldly.
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Accurately touted as Girl,Interrupted meets One Flew over the Cuckoo's nest, this story is both visceral and bleak. A fictional tale woven into the horrifying history of Staten Island's infamous state supported institution.

Six years after Sage Winter's twin sister died of pneumonia, Sage learns that Rosemary is in fact alive and missing from her residence at the Willowbrook institution. Shocked and angry Sage rushes to Willowbrook to help in the search for her beloved sister. Sage isn't prepared for the harsh truths that the visit holds for her and what unravels is an unique and inner look into the horrors of humanity.
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This isn't an easy one to read but the author had done impeccable research to insure that history, no matter how hard to come to terms with, isn't easily forgotten.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the review copy.

Oh wow...let me start off by saying that this book is DISTURBING, and at times it may be hard to read, there are many many triggering points in it, but if you can handle it, I recommend reading it. Ellen Marie Wiseman has based to story around the notorious Staten Island state school for disabled children called Willowbrook ( look it up, it was a real school ). The school ran from 1947 to 1987 and was plagued with rumors of unsanitary living conditions and medical practices that were not on the up and up. Geraldo Rivera did one of his popular investigation reports into the school in 1972 and brought it to light.

Wiseman does not hold back in the story, and at times you might feel a bit overwhelmed in the story of Sage, whose twin Rosemary ( I want to sing Simon and Garfunkel every time I read their names together) a student at the school goes missing. Sage takes it upon herself to go to the school to try and find her, and instead, she is mistaken for the missing Rosemary and gets sucked into the school. From this point on n the book you read about the horrors that Sage has witnessed in the school, the sexual and physical abuse, the horrid living conditions, and the questionable experiments that are at times performed on the students.

The story revolves around Sage's survival, of her trying to find her missing sister while trying to convince the powers to be that she is not Rosemary. She also gets in the middle of a mystery, that includes her sister, and also the Urban Legend of Cropsey. Reading all of this will shock you, sadden you, and keep you reading late into the night.

I urge you to not let the label of " Historical Fiction " turn you away if you are not a fan. Yes, The Lost Girls Of Willowbrook is Historical Fiction, but if you took away that label you will have a stunning piece of suspenseful writing that will keep any Suspense/Thriller fan entertained.

Loved the narrator, she was clear, and her reading added some suspense to the listen. Very well done.

Fans of Girl, Interrupted should check out this historical fiction mystery about Willowbrook State School. A real school in Staten Island, NY, Willowbrook was where unwanted children with mental disorders and intellectual disabilities were sent from the 1947-1987. This served as the perfect inspiration for Wiseman’s disturbing mystery/historical fiction book. Sage is a twin who thought that she lost her sister Rosemary to pneumonia when they were younger; however, she finds out that her sister is actually missing from Willowbrook. When Sage goes to Willowbrook to investigate, she is mistaken for her sister, who would claim to be Sage during manic moments, and is forcibly held there. Overall, I really enjoyed this one. I did find it a little bit long; however, fans of historical fictions and thrillers should check this out.

Thank you Netgalley for my ALC.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was brilliant and traumatizing, and its message is incredibly important.

I have to say that I had not been aware of the history of Willowbrook before picking this up so, for me, this novel was as informative as it was interesting and well-written. I think the author did an exceptional job of describing this institution, its residents, and the horrific conditions they were living in. As I listened to the audiobook, I could see, hear, smell, and feel everything that Sage was witnessing. It was often too much to handle, especially because we were seeing it through the eyes of a very young girl. In this sense, the audiobook narrator also helped a lot, knowing exactly when to change her tone, make pauses, and how to relay this traumatizing atmosphere perfectly.

At its core, this novel is a story about sisterhood and sisterly love. It did not stray from this main topic once, and this aspect of it was brilliantly captured. The love and devotion Sage felt toward Rosemary were palpable, and they brought tears to my eyes more than once. Sage herself was an incredible character, and I'm very glad the author managed to write from her perspective so convincingly. In my mind, there was no doubt that I was actually listening to a teenager's account of the events, as the narration was a mixture of naivety, fear, terror, and musings that were extremely appropriate for the character's age, background, and history. Sage was so real, and Wiseman deserves props for the way she wrote her.

However, what captured me the most was definitely the setting and Willowbrook itself. There is something incredibly sinister about reading a book like this and knowing it is, at least to some extent, based on real-life events. Getting to witness the lack of humanity and care that most characters in the book showed to the residents was numbing and horrifying, especially for someone who is also disabled and has experienced some types of institutional mistreatment in the past. I think this narrative is immensely important, and that giving a voice to the voiceless should be the point and goal of more books, especially in fiction focused on disability. Some might say that it is too late for the Willowbrook victims, but I think it is never too late to raise awareness, bring closure, and shed light on events that many would rather sweep under the rug. While it is somewhat easier to read this knowing that things have changed for the better, it is still defeating to realize that many disabled kids - especially those in impoverished parts of the world or those who are not white - still live in horrible conditions and aren't treated humanely a lot of the time.

I also have to comment on the fact that this book was primarily about women (or girls) with mental, developmental, or cognitive disabilities and their experiences in a world that wants to deny their existence and that treats them as if their life is an unfortunate mistake. I loved that the author dedicated a lot of time to exploring all the ways in which girls were mistreated at Willowbrook, and how their every move, word, or plea was seen as hysterical, unimportant, unhinged, and ultimately disregarded. Even when they declared Sage 'sane' and let her go, they still wouldn't take her seriously and believe her story, because, of course, a woman's fragile mind surely has to succumb to trauma at some point. While it is important to discuss the treatment of all residents and victims, I'm glad the author chose the woman's perspective, as it gives the story even more depth and makes its message that much more important.

Finally, I have to say that I really enjoyed the way this novel combined history, fiction, and urban legend. I found the end satisfying, and I think the author tied everything together nicely. In my opinion, this should have been advertised as a thriller as well because it had me on the edge of my seat for at least 40% of its duration. This was a masterclass in suspenseful and poignant writing, and I'm so honored I got to read it before its publication.

If you do decide to pick this up, please check the trigger warnings and be kind to yourself as you read it. It is by no means an easy read, so bear that in mind. Do not, under any circumstances, read it at 3AM in a completely dark room, as I will be traumatized for life.

Oh man this was my first Wiseman and I am now obsessed… this intriguing setting of a very real Willowbrook State School which actually resided for decades in real life on Staten Island during a more recent time is what made me intrigued by this historical fiction… weird to say… novel….

I went into this one somewhat blindly and I’m so glad I did… there is a very big twist in the beginning that I thought was coming and for sure it did arrive and it still shocked me!

If you are looking for a HF with real setting… twin sisters… fighting for what is right & your life. Also it’s weird to think that the 60s/70s is considered historical but that era is one of my favorites to read about. So if it’s the same for you then this one is for sure up your alley!

I went into The Lost Girls of Willowbrook without knowing much about the synopsis. But boy am I glad I gave this one a chance!

-Emotional
-Shocking
-A gripping tale of sisters, lies, deceit and not knowing what in the world is going on or who you can trust!!!!
-Unputdownable (I mean I had to because of sleep and kids) but otherwise this would have been a one sitting situation!
-I am not down a rabbit hole searching about The Willowbrook State School in Staten Island.

Five stars for this amazing read. If you couldn’t tell already I loved it. This is one of my top books of 2022!

I was very excited that this author released another book! She has quickly become one of my favorites. Her previous books have set the bar pretty high for me! While this was a good book, it wasn't my favorite of hers. It seemed to drag on slightly.

DNF @ 15%, no fault of the book or narrator. The trope of mistaken identity gives me SO much anxiety for some reason, I had to stop listening to this one. Going to be great for mystery lovers and I already want to start recommending this to a couple of my patrons who LOVE psychological thrillers.

This book was sent to me by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher for the audio copy. The characters are likable...the story realistic. A quick "listen" about people who come alive on the pages. Enjoy this book. I look forward to more from this author.