A fascinating tale of time before during and after the Civil War and a thinly veiled reminder why that war and others should not be romanticized -the impact on families, families lost, hidden….the same with memories. The only difficulty I had was with the dialect and the narrator. It took me a while to embrace this and once I did I found the story fascinating bikinis to a crescendo at the end.

Phillips (Quiet Dell, 2013) excels in crafting original takes on human circumstances, like mother-daughter relationships and women’s vulnerabilities and resilience. Her setting here is equally striking: the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in rural West Virginia. In 1874, 12-year-old ConaLee and her mother, Eliza, whom trauma has rendered mute, are dropped off there by a man ConaLee calls Papa, although he isn’t her father. They are brought inside by the night watchman, one of many characters with a hidden past. Contrary to reader expectations, the facility (an actual place) provides humane treatment for mental illness. Posing as her mother’s maid, ConaLee sees her make improvements under the compassionate doctor’s care. The story unflinchingly reveals the tragedy that befell them after Eliza’s husband never returned from the Civil War, and how a wandering con man invaded their isolated mountain sanctuary. We also learn about Eliza’s and her husband’s origins. From vivid battle scenes to the asylum’s social refinements, the historical milieu comes alive in all its facets as Phillips evokes the enduring bonds of both blood and chosen families. (Reviewed for Booklist, July 2023)

Written with passion and gravitas, this is an engrossing novel, cinematic and persuasive. Its first half is the stronger of the two, powerfully and unpredictably narrated, pulling in war, slavery, deep ties of emotional attachment and horrible abuse. While the episodes in the asylum are engaging, they don’t quite live up to the originality of what precedes them. Coincidences dominate, and some melodramatic plot turns, mainly those involving Papa who dwindles from a character to a plot device. Nevertheless, Philips is a fine, forceful and memorable writer. And the book is strong.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Really great novel. I now want to check out other books by this author after reading this one.
Very good read. Well written and thought out.

Another wonderful novel by Jayne Ann Phillips So well written so involving I enjoyed from first to last page.#netgalley #nightwatch

Another great book by this author. She writes southern novels so well. The characters and storyline stick with you. I have visited this asylum myself. Today you can tours of it. Such a great novel.

I do not think that this was the right book for me. I really really wanted to love this book, but I could not connect to the characters or the writing style.