Asylum (Asylum, 1)

Name: Asylum (Asylum, 1)
Rating: 5.58 (19 reviews)
ISBN: 9780062220967

Madeleine Roux's New York Times bestselling Asylum is a thrilling and creepy photo-illustrated novel that Publishers Weekly called "a strong YA debut that reveals the enduring impact of buried trauma on a place."

For sixteen-year-old Dan Crawford, the New Hampshire College Prep program is the chance of a lifetime. Except that when Dan arrives, he finds that the usual summer housing has been closed, forcing students to stay in the crumbling Brookline Dorm. The dorm was formerly a sanatorium, more commonly known as an asylum. And not just any asylum—a last resort for the criminally insane.

As Dan and his new friends Abby and Jordan start exploring Brookline's twisty halls and hidden basement, they uncover disturbing secrets about what really went on at Brookline . . . secrets that link Dan and his friends to the asylum's dark past. Because Brookline was no ordinary asylum, and there are some secrets that refuse to stay buried.

Featuring found photographs from real asylums and filled with chilling mystery and page-turning suspense, Asylum is a horror story that treads the line between genius and insanity, perfect for fans of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.

Don't miss any of the books in the Asylum series, or Madeleine Roux's shivery fantasy series, House of Furies!

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Published Aug 20, 2013

320 pages

Average rating: 5.58

19 RATINGS

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✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI

Readers say *Asylum* offers a spooky premise with some enjoyable twists and an interesting setting. Many appreciate the creepy atmosphere and characte...

The.readrose

Jan 28, 2026

2/10 stars

DNF
It's never a good feeling to dread picking up a book and that's how Asylum made me feel. It's equivalent to the lima beans of literacy, minus the health benefits. It was just a "meh" kind of book and the storyline didn't intrigue me.

Cyn's Workshop

Aug 20, 2025

6/10 stars

The Horror Here is the Flat Ending | Review of ‘Asylum’ (Asylum #1)

A creepy undertaking that builds to a rather anti-climactic ending[...]

Read more of this post @ Cyn's Workshop

Sophia wood

Jun 16, 2026

2/10 stars

The best I can say about this book is 'meh'. The plot is quite boring and doesn't make a lot of sense at the end. The characters are flat and their relationships feel skimmed over even though their friendship is supposed to be a huge part of the book. A disappointing read.
The worst part is that it had the makings of a fantastic story. A group of kids in a haunted asylum? Who could make that dull and boring?
Apparently this author.
If you want something to do on a boring day and you can't possibly find any other book other than Asylum or Twilight, then read this book. Otherwise don't bother.

LadyAmandaW

May 07, 2026

2/10 stars

Well at least I can say I gave it the good ole' college try but, I had to stop on page 50. I really wanted to like it but, I don't know it just wasn't working for me. There was really nothing that made me go "yes, I must turn the page to see what happens." It was just dull, maybe it got better but, the beginning has to be just as good as the middle and the end for me to get to where it starts getting better.

novelishdelish

Dec 11, 2024

6/10 stars

While I kind of figured out what was going on less than halfway through the book and at points it seemed a bit drawn out, I enjoyed the read for the most part. The twists and turns kept me interested and the characters were well thought out, however they didn't go to deep. Like there were several hints that there was "something each of them were hiding," but nothing ever really came out. I was hoping for a book titled "Asylum" to give me a bit more of a scare than this one did!