Coram House: A Novel
Sharp Objects meets The Appeal in this “atmospheric and chilling” (Flynn Berry, New York Times bestselling author) novel—based on a shocking true story—about a crime writer who risks everything as she investigates a decades-old mystery at a crumbling orphanage.
On a blistering summer day in 1968, nine-year-old Tommy vanishes without a trace from Coram House, an orphanage on the shores of Lake Champlain. Fifty years later, the opportunity to investigate his disappearance and the orphanage’s sinister history is just the break that struggling true crime writer Alex Kelley needs.
Arriving in Vermont for research, Alex grows obsessed with Tommy’s disappearance, then her investigation takes a harrowing turn with the discovery of a woman’s body in the lake. Alex is convinced this new death is somehow connected to Coram House’s dark past, even if Officer Russell Parker thinks she’s just desperate for a story. As the body count rises, Alex must prove that the key to finding the killer lies in a decades-old murder—or else she risks becoming the next victim herself.
On a blistering summer day in 1968, nine-year-old Tommy vanishes without a trace from Coram House, an orphanage on the shores of Lake Champlain. Fifty years later, the opportunity to investigate his disappearance and the orphanage’s sinister history is just the break that struggling true crime writer Alex Kelley needs.
Arriving in Vermont for research, Alex grows obsessed with Tommy’s disappearance, then her investigation takes a harrowing turn with the discovery of a woman’s body in the lake. Alex is convinced this new death is somehow connected to Coram House’s dark past, even if Officer Russell Parker thinks she’s just desperate for a story. As the body count rises, Alex must prove that the key to finding the killer lies in a decades-old murder—or else she risks becoming the next victim herself.
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
My jaw dropped at the big twist in this one, book peeps!! Did not see that coming!! 🙌
This was a dark crime thriller that was based on the true history of St. Joseph’s Orphanage in Burlington, Vermont and sheds light on the abuse that occurred in these institutions. This was excellent for a debut and I definitely recommend checking it out! 👏
Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Bailey Seybolt for the opportunity to read the eARC in exchange for my honest review! ❤️
TW: child abuse
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.