Izzy has been moving around in the foster care system for 10 years, ever since her Mother was imprisoned for shooting her Father. At 17 she finds herself living with Harry and Peg, who both work for a local museum. When the museum starts a project based on a nearby asylum Peg asks Izzy to help out as they have little time before the building is condemned along with everything inside. When sorting through and recording patients luggage Izzy finds herself caught up in a story of one particular patient that she feels she must find out what happened to the inmate.
Clara is 18 in 1929 New York and falling in love with an Italian immigrant. When she acts out against her fathers plans for an arranged marriage he has her sent to a home for nervous invalids. When the economy crashes and her fathers money dries up Clara is sent to public asylum, Willard.
Will Izzy be able to get to the bottom of Clara's story in time?
This book received my first 5 star review of the year! The writing was astounding making you feel, smell and sense every tiny part of the protagonists life, especially Clara's.
It was clear that Wiseman had really done her research into the living conditions within an asylum at that time. Although she freely admitted at the end of the book some of the treatments detailed were not on the correct timeline it was easily overlooked for the impact they created.
I will most definitely be picking up more novels by this author as this book managed to move me to tears.