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.

An expertly written thriller inspired by the St. Joseph’s Orphanage in Burlington, Vermont and the horrors of child abuse that occurred. Bailey Seybolt pulls you in from the first pages. Her mastery of language engages the readers senses, I could smell the musty air in the Coram House, feel the weakness of the creaking wood in the floor boards, taste the crisp cold air while Alex is running through the woods, the panic when Alex is shut into a dark attic, and feel the anxiety and anger as the story is revealed layer by layer.

The chapters are a perfect balance between narration, dialogue, and other perspectives and shared through trial testimony to give readers the feeling the story is being told by others as well. Cheekily, the author has the heroine explain the writing technique the author employs. I will be rooting this book to make the best books lists; and it will certainly be a book that I suggest to book clubs and gift to friends. I can't wait to read future books by Bailey Seybolt. Truly magnificent!

Thank you to Atria Books for the ARC!

Wow- talk about a messed up and scary place to live: Coram House! AND inspired by a true story? AND a debut author? WOW!

If you're obsessed with unsolved mysteries, old buildings with stories to tell, and the truth coming to light after years of it hiding in the shadows, then you NEED this book!

Coram House was an orphanage with an extremely dark past full of abuse both proven and alleged. No one can seem to keep their stories straight regarding what really happened in the orphanage, especially in the summer of 1968 when a 9 year old boy goes missing.

When true crime writer Alex Kelley starts investigating the house for a book she's writing many years later, she gets more than she bargained for as she's thrown surprise after surprise as she stops at nothing to uncover the truth.

The ending of this book truly shocked me. I thought I had everything figured out and that this was a cut and dry situation and was TOTALLY thrown off my feet by this twist!

The ending definitely bumped a 4 star read up to a 5 star book for me!

Make sure to add this to your TBR! It will be out on April 15, 2025.

if “this meeting could have been a email” was a book…

felt drawn to commit to a mystery thriller bc I was hopping on a flight when I was offered an e-arc. all this did was get me to fall asleep very often!

it felt like it leaned hard to achieve the atmospheric vibe and lost the driving force behind the plot. it was very slow paced and often repetitive. overall, the story doesn’t feel any different to what’s been done before nor does it feel enticing on its own to recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!

This was such a good book. I really enjoyed it. More than I thought I would. I loved the writing style. This book had me hooked from page one. This is a first for me by this author but will not be my last!!

Coram House by Bailey Seybolt is a fictional story based on the history of St. Joseph’s Orphanage.

Alex, a crime writer from New York who is dealing with struggles in her personal life, takes on a job as a ghostwriter in Burlington, Vermont. Coram House, known for its abuse of orphans, has been closed for many years. It sits beside Lake Champlain and along with it are the secrets and tragedies experienced by some of the orphans. While gathering information and attempting to interview former orphans about life at Coram House, Alex starts to uncover more than she expected. Being a bit anxious and impatient she tends to get overly excited about sharing newly discovered information. This sometimes leaves her in unexpected situations.

The book was tastefully written without going into too much detail about some of the abuse at the orphanage but does include profanity and murder and references to child abuse. The big surprise for me was when the real murderer was revealed. It almost made me believe the story would go in a different direction that would lead to a cliff hanger hinting at another book.

The book has a cozy, grab your favorite beverage, and get ready for an eerie mystery/thriller vibe.

Thank you to ATRIA Books and NetGalley for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

When true crime novelist Alex Kelley takes on a ghost writing job in Burlington VT, she finds herself in a full blown set of unsolved mysteries from the 1960's and from current day. Coram House was an orphanage that has a complicated past and she's trying to get to the bottom of the disappearance of a child under the care of the nuns that ran the orphanage. I couldn't put this book down and could go on and on but don't want to give any spoilers.

Coram House is a suspenseful thriller with enough twists and tension that keep me hooked from the first page to the last. Alex is an imperfect MC who continues to fight to expose the truth no matter how many people tell her she should leave it alone and focus on the story she is there to right. She’s determined, brave, and relentless in her pursuit of finding answers and trying to bring justice for the children who were abused at the orphanage. I immediately liked her from the beginning and felt it was easy to get invested in her back story, as well.

I will be highly recommending this book and will gladly purchase the final version once it’s published.

Oh my word, I loved this book so much! This is definitely going to be a 2025 book of the year contender for me. I loved the mixed media of telling this story by using police interviews. I love the flashbacks - I just loved this storytelling. It was so atmospheric and I did not see that twist coming! This book come out in April but go ahead and put this on your radar. I’m OBSESSED.

Alex lost everything and has a chance to redeem herself. With her future on the line, she has to choose between telling the story she was hired to write or solving the mystery of a young boy who suffered abuse at the orphanage she’s writing about. When a modern day murder occurs, she has to choose between telling the true story or selling out. either way, she has more on the line than just her career.

I love when authors take a true story and wrap their own around it and make it their own. This was well written and kept my attention throughout the entire book. A good read for the true mystery lover.

This book had everything that I need to have in a book. Wow...what a story and I totally did not guess the ending. My money was one someone else! Such a great mystery book that keeps you guessing until the bitter end. The detail put into every character was great. I felt like I knew each character and that is why I was so surprised by the ending. This is a great book to cozy up to for a weekend because you will not want to put it down!

Coram House by Bailey Seybolt
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Alex Kelley is asked to ghost write a book about the Coram House Orphange and finds herself tangled in the mysterious death of one of the children, Tommy. As bodies start piling up, Alex wonders how deep the abuses at Coram House really go and who would do anything to keep the history quiet.
Based on the true story of the St. Joseph Orphanage of Burlington, Vermont, this story will drag you in and keep you on the edge of your seat until the last page. Truly one of the best mysteries I have read in a long time.