The Home for Wayward Girls was such a fascinating read! The dual timelines alternated between Loretta's past as an adolescent girl being raised by hateful, misogynistic father and an uncaring mother, while the second timeline focuses on an adult Loretta in NYC where she runs a nonprofit to help abused girls and women find hope and a future.

The Home for Wayward Girls, the secluded ranch where Loretta's parents run a program designed to "correct" teen girls' "bad behavior." Loretta witnesses firsthand how the adults use abusive discipline to crush these young women's spirits and break their wills. And if you think such "homes" are a thing of the past, think again. I recently read about an adolescent girl who died at a "home" like this because she was denied medical care. It's a tragic tradition that is very much alive in the U.S. Be sure to read the trigger warnings if you struggle with stories of physical or mental abuse or religious zealotry. Sexual abuse is referred to but never explicit.

Although I found the past timeline a bit more captivating, the story provides a message of hope and healing at the end. Loretta struggles as an adult to free herself from the horrors of her past, but she is able to do so thanks to the kindness and wisdom of a few caring people. The ending was perhaps a bit confusing, but overall this is an important story of survival and hope.

It seems impossible that a book could be both horrific and heartwarming at the same time, but here it is. The main character, Loretta, shows us how her upbringing in THE HOME FOR WAYWARD GIRLS set the example of what her adult life would never be. Her goals were to do her best to insure the abuse she suffered and that of the "girls" were an exception that should never happen. Marcia Bradley has done an excellent job of pulling us in as witnesses, giving us such detailed stories that you should not be surpised if you shed several tears along the way. The bare bones synopsis will pique your interest enough to open the cover, the story will keep you there until you close the back cover. What a story!!!!

Heartbreaking and yet triumphant--that's how I describe THE HOME FOR WAYWARD GIRLS. This is such an important book for today. It opened my eyes to an ongoing situation that's awful to contemplate, a situation I never truly contemplated before. Loretta, the main character of the story, is a hero, and she speaks for so many young women who are yet to have their stories told. Brava to Ms. Bradley, a beautiful writer who brings to light something that must be addressed and ended without delay.

This was truly a heartbreaking story. There are serious content warnings for all types of abuse. That being said this story has to be told. There is life beyond what our circumstances have been. The author shows hope in desolation, planning a better future, and determination to make it happen. Very emotional. A recommended read!

Loretta has grown up on a sprawling ranch, where families send their daughters when they have misbehaved. Loretta does her best to help the girls in any way she's able, she shows them how to navigate the new world they have found themselves in. Loretta knows that as she gets older William has some kind of plan for her. So she makes a plan of her own to escape when she turns 18, and after the new girl Elsie arrives and looks like the kind of girl Willam will take special interest in, Loretta knows she has to figure out how to take Elsie with her.

Loretta's journey from growing up as the child of the people who owned the Home for Wayward Girls not only being abused for the smallest infraction but trying her best to help the other girls survive their experience was really emotional and compelling. I loved seeing the way she took care of the girls, and once she escaped how far she had come. We get alternating timelines from past to present, and it really helps highlight how far she's come and all the wonderful things she's doing to help other women in similar situations.

I must admit I debated about reading this book for weeks. It has triggers that I was worried that would have a bad effect on me. But I'm glad I decided to read it.
There were parts that were hard to read but also very eye opening. When you feel lost and alone in both your head and your life you remember that every storm must come to an end. Help is out there, you just to ask for it.
Loretta's mama and William own the home for wayward girls. She has seen and heard many of the punishments taken place at her home. (Where you should feel safe, and loved but that is not the case.) Physical, mental as well as verbal abuse takes place.
How would you handle the abuse on yourself or your friends?

See how Loretta changes her story. Remember You can change yours too.

I highly recommend this book to everyone who is, was, or has a loved one being abused.

I received an advanced copy of this book from netgalley for my honest opinion.

Many thanks to NetGalley for a complimentary ebook in exchange for my honest review.

While the premise of this book is interesting, it didn’t deliver for me. It’s a coming of age story and very introspective. It lacked context and details about the “trouble child correction” industry, which would have given the book more depth. There was not enough backstory on the residents or William. I found the dialogue stilted and awkward.

Not my favorite book but perhaps others will enjoy it

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for the ARC of this book.

This story is set over dual timelines of the past and present with the main character, Loretta. I did enjoy the story, although it is both heartbreaking and eyeopening. I would just warn the reader to be aware of trigger warnings. This a story of resilience
3.5 Stars

Intriguing story but something about it didn't work that well for me. I'm not sure if it was the dual timelines or the constant quoting of other authors but it was a bit clunky and didn't flow well for me. It felt like a bit more detail regarding the girls at the home was necessary.

Bradley crafted a great story about girls that go to live in a home away from their families. I like how she created her characters to show their strength during challenging times. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Four stars!

I really wanted to love this but the writing style just fell flat for me so your milage may vary. The story was compelling and heartwrenching I just felt like the writing was very passive.

This book bounces between the present day, where the main character is doing amazing work for teen/young adult runaways, and the 1990's, when she was growing up in an abusive home for troubled "wayward" teenagers. It's a quick read, but not always easy due to the subject matter. Loretta's dialogue is peppered with inspirational literary quotes, and she felt relatable and alive. Other characters weren't fleshed out quite as well and felt almost two dimensional at times, but it didn't take away from the story for me. I read this book in one sitting.

It's shocking to me that questionable residential homes for troubled teenagers still exist, but after reading this book and the author's note at the end, I'm glad to hear that people (including Paris Hilton!) are speaking out about their adverse experiences and working towards changes.

Thank you to Harper Publishing and NetGalley for early access to this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Home for Wayward Girls is heart-wrenching and impactful. It shines a light on physical, emotional and sexual abuse.

Loretta lived on a ranch with William and Mama who ran The Home for Wayward Girls. Young girls would be sent here to “get reformed” after they were caught drinking, hanging out with boys or any number of normal teenage behaviors. They were forced into hard work disguised as chores, abused by William physically, emotionally and sexually, and punished for anything perceived as wrong by William.

Although Loretta was their daughter, she suffered all the same traumas. She tried to befriend the other girls and take them under her wing, which was never easy under the watchful evil eye of William.

Loretta’s goal was always to leave when she was 18 and much of the story surrounds how she did this, who helped her along the way, and what she did with her life as an adult.

As expected with a story about abuse, there are many triggers, however, the author did a great job getting the point across without getting overly graphic. I give this book 4 stars and found it very compelling.

Thank you NetGalley for an early copy.

A heartbreaking but important story about Loretta, a girl who's parents were the owner of a group home. It's so important to remember that this like this happened regularly and still happen to this day. Loretta is so brave and inspiring!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc!

Heartbreaking and inspirational with poetic prose that wraps around the reader much like the prairie wind blowing around the isolated home for wayward girls.

This book shifts between Loretta’s past growing up at the home for wayward girls which was owned and run by her parents and her current live in New York City as she learns to cope with the after-effects of abuse while also helping others who have experienced trauma in their lives.

I appreciated how carefully the author handled the abuse at the girls home; most of it was implied without specific details. This makes the difficult subject much more approachable for a broader audience. I am not suggesting that we gloss over abuse in any way, only that graphic details can be triggering for those who have experienced abuse and can prevent the message from reaching as many people as possible.

Loretta is both in need of healing and simultaneously strong; I was inspired by reading about how she turned her trials into her strengths. I can recommend this to audiences who are sufficiently mature to handle the difficult subject matter, with the caution that, while handled with sensitivity, this book may be triggering for those who have experienced abuse,

Thank you to Harper Paperbacks Publishing and Netgallery for the digital ARC in exchange for a review!

One of my favorite things in a novel is when an author is successfully able to bounce back and forth in narratives, between the past and the present. Marcia Bradley is able to do just that — she balances the audiences' attention between Loretta's past West of the Rockies (as the chapter titles helpfully are titles) vs. her present in New York.

The topic of these rehabilitation homes is one that needs to be handled carefully, with respect, as it's something that so many have gone through/are going through. You can tell that Bradley took care when writing this story. Though it's difficult to read, the strength and character and description she gives Loretta and the other 'Wayward Girls' is clear on every page. You never doubt that this is something that she just woke up and decided to write about. As the story progresses, it becomes even more clear how important the topic is to her and how much care she wrapped into her story.

It was a bit difficult for me to get into. While Bradley had command of her narrative, I just wasn't drawn in until about 30% or so. One thing that is a personal pet peeve is when an author adds too much details (name dropping specific brands, apps, ect) and I did find myself clocking that. She sometimes, in my opinion, spends a bit much time detailing Loretta's clothes or what someone else is wearing — while I understand that she was trying to pull a contrast to the present Loretta vs. the one who lived at William's and Mama's, it felt a bit like telling, not telling.

Overall, this was a strong book and one that I was really glad to have had the opportunity to read. I hope that the novel gets the attention and discussion it deserves once it's published.

While it's real rating is 3.75 stars, I would round up to 4 stars.

Loretta’s life is far from normal living at the home for wayward girls as the only child of Mama and William, who take in girls in need of a “lifestyle” adjustment. Loretta, along with the girls who come in and out of their home, are subject to regular verbal and even physical abuse. They are forced to do laborious tasks around the ranch in order to “appreciate” the life they were taking for granted. William promises parents he can reform their bad girl teenagers—those caught drinking, smoking, with boys, running away, etc

Loretta the long time resident does her best to help the girls survive the dreadful conditions and she warns those William targets for sexual abuse. The girls are the closest things she has to friends in her screwed up world. Her only release from her hell are the hours of the day she is allowed to go to school where she definitely does not fit in, and her goal of fleeing as soon as she becomes a legal adult.

Told in alternating timelines of “east of the Rockies” when Loretta lived on the ranch as a seventeen year old girl, and “west of the Rockies” in her life as an adult in New York City we learn all about Loretta’s last few months suffering under William’s roof and how she has adjusted as an adult.

Filled with plenty of triggers, the story is thankfully not as graphic as it could have been. Reading about young Loretta is inspiring, but reading about adult Loretta it’s hard to believe she turned out as “normal” as she did living with systematic abuse her entire life. Overall, I enjoyed the book, but adult Loretta feels a little far fetched.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Perennial, and of course Marcia Bradley for the advanced copy of the book. The Home for Wayward Girls is out on April 4th. All opinions are my own.

This was a good book, my heart went out to the young girls that were sent to live on that farm, I hated that Loretta had to have parents like that, her father was an ugly hateful man who used Religion in a terrible way, he was not a man of God although he used God as a way to condemn this girls, and her mother stood by and let it happen, finally things change. I would of like a little more of detail, but all in all it was a good book. I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Publication: April 4, 2023

Content Warnings: Abuse, PTSD, Confinement

I love historical fiction and this was no exception! When I started this book, I thought "This feels like it will be a five star read". As I progressed through the story, it did get a little dry here and there.

This premise of the book reminded me of the reality TV show way back in the day about rich parents sending their kids to stricter parents to reel in their teens. I appreciate that this is the darker side of some of those "ranches" and I loved learning about Loretta's story. I wished this read a little easier but for a debut it's an amazing book. I was never fully sucked in but I wasn't bored either. I can't wait for her next book!

Pairs perfectly with the Netflix show "Keep Sweet and Obey"

Eye opening and interesting The Home for Wayward Girls is a captivating story of survival.
The main character is likeable and I found myself cheering for her the whole story. The book both underscores both the cruelty and kindness of people. The only thing disconcerting for me was the way the book jumps from past to present. Other than that it was a very enjoyable and fast read.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my review.