My Five Word TL:DR Review : Wow, where to even begin

The Reformatory is without doubt one of the most powerful stories that I’ve read so far this year.  An absolute tempest of shock, horror, unbridled emotions and abject terror.  And then, there’s also the ghostly elements of the story to take into account.  Yes, for me, the most horrifying aspect to this particular story was not the haints of tortured boys but the historical facts that this tale is grounded upon.  What a story.  I mean, literally this story made me want to cry, it made me feel outraged and the final chapters had my pulse racing imagining all the many disasters that felt inevitable.

The story is told from two POVs.  Set in Gracetown (a fictional place) in Florida 1950 we meet Robert Stephens Jr and his older sister Gloria.  The two are living on the outskirts of town, parentless and struggling.  Their father has gone into hiding, classed as an agitator he has been accused of the rape of a white woman and has had to disappear to basically escape a lynching.  Their mother died tragically and the two are now living day to day.  Following an incident in which Robert tries to defend his sister from the son of a local influential landowner he is arrested and sentenced to six months in prison  the Gracetown School for Boys – a reformatory with a terrible reputation.  This is a segregated institution with both white and black boys and whilst it calls itself a ‘school’ the only real teachings here seem to come from bullying and beating and the place itself is little more than a front for modern day slavery with the boys being used as free labour on the surrounding farms.

So, the two characters.  Well, I did find myself gravitating to Robert.  His sister’s chapters at first felt a bit less gripping as she races around trying to get someone to help her (Gloria soon realises that Robert’s incarceration is little more than a ruse to lure their father out of hiding and is desperate to get him out) but, that being said her chapters become a horrible race against time and the conclusion had me reading and holding my breath at the sametime – which I don’t recommend to be perfectly honest. Robert is just so innocent really.  I’m not saying he hasn’t suffered or been the victim of racial abuse but his incarceration into Gracetown is terrifying for him, and for the reader also as a result.  At first, he finds himself a couple of friends,and that,together with the promise of regular(ish) meals lulls Robert into thinking he may be able to cope but within a very short time he has come to the attention of Warden Haddock.  Dear god, this character should go down in the literary hall of fame for being the nastiest excuse for a human ever.  No moustache twirling villain stereotype here. Haddock is absolutely an afront, he’s written so believably that he radiates evil and frankly I felt chills every time he appeared on the page.

Of course, on top of the bullying. the fear and the torture the school is haunted.  And given the number of boys who have died over the years it’s little surprise that their souls have become trapped.  This feeds so well into the story creating a perfect blend of horror with the actual horrible reality of the situation itself.  Robert can see these ‘haints’ as they’re called.  Without realising he soon becomes embroiled in a terrible battle between the ghosts, who want something from Robert and the Warden – who also wants something from him.  The two are both pulling in opposite directions and Robert’s situation grows worse by the day .

This is so well written.  It really did hold me gripped. It’s a disturbing read and very difficult to read but at the same time you have to keep going.  You have to find out what was going on, what terrible secrets the Reformatory holds.  And the tension and atmosphere is palpable.  I was like some of the secondary characters depicted here, I wanted to know what was going on but I was scared to find out.

I don’t know what I can say. For a 600 or so pages book this one held my attention and kept the pages turning with indecent haste.  Like I said, it’s not an easy story to read and this is compounded by the fact that the author based this on a real reform school although obviously Gracetown and its reform school are fictional- I would give a shout out to the Author’s note – make sure to give it a read when you finish.

Difficult to read but at the same time, I feel, a must read.  A horror story contained within a story of horror based on historic happenings. Plus a fantastic twist.  Did I forget to mention the twist?  It’s very good but my lips are sealed.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the author, for which my thanks.  The above is my own opinion.

My rating 5 of 5 stars