When Alex moves to upstate Vermont to be a ghostwriter, her life is in shambles. Will working on this new book, about abuses at a catholic convent, help or hurt? As she gets deeper into the story, she uncovers more secrets and more danger. I liked this book--it's a good mystery. I was hesitant because I really didn't want to read about sexual abusers in the Catholic church but that was not the focus of the story at all. There were lots of red herrings and maybe one too many (Xander? Not sure what that storyline added) and on the whole a good read.

intriguing, thrilling, exciting and so much more. this is my first read by this author and i loved what i read. i can't wait to read more!

fleshed-out characters. good plot to keep you flipping the pages. a story that is unputdownable in so many ways. complex twist.

Coram House is a well executed novel that takes place in Vermont. The FMC, Alex, is a struggling author who is attempting to redeem herself after her second novel didn’t do too well. After struggling with personal issues, Alex is propositioned with a story about an orphanage, Coram House. Can she uncover the truth about the traumatic experiences these children dealt with decades ago?

** Coram House focuses on the history of orphanages, such as St. Joseph's in Vermont.

This was one of the best books I've read in quite sometime. Thank you Bailey & NetGalley for an ARC.

This book was good! Lots of twists and turns, i do think it was a bit predictable, but it was still very good!! I enjoyed the feeling of being on the edge of my seat, kept me intrigued!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

I think the concept of this book was good, but it got lost in the details. The case itself and the mystery itself was interesting. There were a lot of plausible suspects and I thought the end twist was decent, though again, I didn't feel much towards it. The parts I liked the most were the interview transcripts. The way they were sprinkled throughout, dropping hints here and there in very subtle ways was well done. The author also had a pretty good sense of place, and you could feel the cold seeping in through the descriptions of the snow and ice.

Unfortunately, there were a lot of mundane scenes that ultimately didn't feel like they were helping to progress the story forward. They didn't really even let me get to know the main character who, if I'm being completely honest, was a bit of a bore. If I had felt more for her I think I wouldn't have minded the mundane parts, but ultimately I don't think I got to know her well enough to feel any particular way about her.

I think that if the suspense was cranked up a little bit more and the main character was less . . . meh, then Coram House could have been a very good story.

That being said, it was good. I think that mystery readers who like true crime documentaries, especially ones about the church, will enjoy this novel. Same with mystery readers who like their novels to have a strong seasonal setting.

Skillfully crafted, atmospheric thriller. I was drawn in immediately, and stayed hooked til the end.

Five amazing stars. This book was so well written and is like a walk into some creepy woods in the dark. It starts off with a basic mystery and then it twists and turns and drags you into the darkest of dark places. There are moments so sad and heart wrenching and then moments of pure fear and terror. The characters were well done and appropriate for their roles. This was a fantastically done book and I highly recommend it

I wanted to like this book so bad, but it fell flat for me. I did not like the story line much but I did enjoy the writing. Would be willing to try another book by this author

Loved this book and know it will be a hit Spring 2025. It's perfect for those that love dark, unreliable characters and moody settings. Will be highly recommending it.

Coram House was a good read. However, it began to fall flat for me and that made it a bit difficult for me to keep reading. I loved the interviews that were interwoven within the book as I feel like it gave us a sense of realness. But I felt like 70% of the book we were stuck in one place and it took a while for us to move forward. I did not expect the ending but I actually enjoyed how the author decided to bring everything together and tie up some loose ends!

Judging by how fast I read this, you can tell it sucked me right in!

Loved the journalist POV in this mystery as we were digging up old secrets from an orphanage. I was hooked from the beginning & just as concerned as Alex (our main character) when it came to what the heck happened on that boat with Tommy.

Very twisty at the end & kept me on my toes. I couldn’t wait to finish it.

I will be recommending this to friends when it is released!

I’ve been enjoying crime novels lately. Coram House is a debut novel in which a crime writer aims to solve an old murder. It was a well written book that I read in one day.

Alex is a true crime author who is going through tough times in both her professional and personal life: her last book got caught in a very controversial matter and she needs a break., while still mourning her husband's sudden death. She is, then, asked to ghostwrite a book about a cold case involving the mysterious disappearance of a young boy named Tommy, 50 years ago, at a Catholic orphanage called Coram House, in Vermont.
Alex goes on a journalistic journey investigation all the way to that orphanage in order to find out what really happened to Tommy. Meanwhile, she discovers more bodies, and the mystery surrounding that place and its former residents keeps increasing and, eventually, becomes life-threatening.

I'd say this is the typical wintery cold-case mystery investigation. The best part of it, in my opinion, is that we have a journalistic crime author (as opposed to the traditional detective/police officer investigator) and the book has some chapters written as interviews of people who used to live at or attend to the orphanage back in the day. Personally, those were my favourite chapters.
The cold and snowy setting/ambience also help the reader to get deeper into the heavy and eerie environment on which the orphanage is set at.
What's more, this author's descriptions of places, people and even the weather make the whole story even more atmospheric and sensorial, which I truly appreciated it.
I also need to say this story deals a lot with grief and sexual abuse of minors. In my opinion, it is done in a decent way. But be warned about this distressing content.

What I personally did not appreciate was the conclusion - it felt rushed and anticlimatic as opposed to what happens in the final 30% of the book.
Also, there are some chapters where the author's writing really bothered me: some analogies and metaphors used by the author made me roll my eyes a lot, and there were moments (mainly in some dialogues) where I really had trouble remembering that our main character is not younger than 20 years old.

All in all, even though I didn't particularly love Bailey Seybolt's writing, I was engaged enough with the plot as a whole and to the mystery all around Coram House, mostly due to the great cold atmosphere this book provides
I'd recommend this book to any readers who enjoy cold-case mysteries.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Atria Books for providing me with a free eARC of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

Grab your cozy reading socks, you're heading to Vermont to solve a cold case in the dead of winter.
Amazing to feel chilled to the bone as I read during a September heatwave! A page turner with a complicated, smart main character that I'm not ready to leave behind. Preorder this one for sure!
Thank you to Atria books and NetGalley for the ARC.

For fans of historical fiction & mysteries, this is literally the perfect book. With some paranormal vibes and a handful of untrustworthy characters, this book was deeply unsettling and kept me on my toes from the very first page. I loved Alex and her tenacity despite the obstacles that continued to plague her. I also loved the mixed media aspect and how we got a glimpse into the haunted past of Coram House. The interviews, the stories of the children who resided there and how the living functioned in adulthood was done expertly. Loved this book and I can absolutely see it becoming a bestseller upon its release.

Thank You for having sent me a ARC Copy for a honest review. I thought this story sounded super good so I had to get my hands on it. I love a good suspenseful thriller that involves trying to figure out the history behind a crime that was committed and never solved. Trying to figure it out yourself as you read and still not knowing who did it until the very end.
The main character Alex who is an Author, set off to write a new book and be a ghost writer for this story about an orphanage that had a boy go missing 50 years ago. They never found out what happened to him and the case remained unsolved. She set off to find out anything she could on this to help write her story as well as try to kinda solve the case on her own if she could. Then another tragic thing happens while there. She discovers a dead body while out by the lake. Who was this woman and who killed her?
This story definitely had me guessing until the very end and I was still shocked to find out who the true killer was!!
Def a great suspenseful thriller you will wanna check out!

Oh this is one of those great reads where you immediately jot down the author’s name and check Instagram for them. Kind of creepy, totally interesting and very believable. The descriptions of the house and what went on there kept me flying through it so fast. Alex is much braver than I would be given similar circumstances and her search for the truth for some of the poor young souls is heartbreaking. Can’t wait to promote this one!

I really enjoyed the concept of the book and thought it would make a good series. Alex could easily investigate another historical mystery in a different locale and I’d read it. I liked the research aspect and her backstory.

A few things stood out that I felt needed a bit of tweaking if I was the editor.

I get the idea of having people with the same name jogging her memory but Xander and Alex? Two Bills? Seemed a bit much.

I also found it distracting how many times she showered and we were told what her skin looked like. It was odd.

The info about the money Fred got felt slightly out of order to me.

A perfect fall read! Alex is a famous writer recovering from a personal tragedy, and she is asked to travel on-site to ghostwrite a true story about the horrors that occurred in a church-run orphanage years ago. Alex moves to be near the location of the abandoned orphanage and sets up to interview witnesses and read through transcripts from long ago. The scenes are haunting and as Alex works, she becomes immersed in the histories and intent on solving the mystery of how a little boy disappeared while living at the orphanage. Is the town protecting the secrets of the Coram House? If so, why? This book has an eerie setting with lots of twists and turns that make reading about Coram House creepy and keeps you on the edge of your seat. The characters are well-developed and this one keeps you guessing until the very end!

I could not put Coram House down. It was a suspenseful, great read. The story is interesting. The protagonist is flawed, relatable, and likeable. The ending is unpredictable and satisfying. Fans of mysteries and suspense will love Coram House.