Dan’s hoped-for summer of making friends turns into an investigation with Abby and Jordan. The former asylum’s hidden spaces and history connect the three teenagers to secrets from its past.
More about this book
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.
MysteryThe available evidence does not establish the book's treatment of this theme. See Confidence & Basis for the evidence gap.Institutional historyThe available evidence does not establish the book's treatment of this theme. See Confidence & Basis for the evidence gap.SecretsThe available evidence does not establish the book's treatment of this theme. See Confidence & Basis for the evidence gap.
Consider
Fear and suspenseFrightening scenes
Personalised Fit
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Dan and his friends explore a former asylum and uncover secrets that connect them to its past.Provisional readingProvisional: the reviewed evidence does not establish how the book treats this theme. The evidence gap is listed under Confidence & Basis.Provisional: the reviewed evidence does not establish how the book treats this theme. The evidence gap is listed under Confidence & Basis.
Talk about: How does the story distinguish the building’s unsettling history from the people associated with it?
Suspense and photographs
The mystery uses a creepy former-asylum setting, hidden spaces and unsettling photographs of abandoned asylums.Exploratory / explanatoryExploratory / explanatory: the book explains or explores the subject without an established evaluative position.Exploratory / explanatory: the book explains or explores the subject without an established evaluative position.
How the book presents it: The photographs and hidden setting support the book’s horror atmosphere and suspense rather than establishing a separate claim about real asylum histories.
Talk about: Do the photographs make the atmosphere more vivid, or do they make the story feel more unsettling?
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Why It May Be Worth Reading
The central appeal is a creepy, clue-led mystery: the building’s past is tied to the teenagers’ present, while suspense builds around what they uncover. Photographs of abandoned asylums add a visual element.
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What Deserves Attention
The premise draws on an asylum described as a last resort for people labelled criminally insane. Its unsettling history and horror atmosphere may be worth considering for a reader sensitive to frightening settings or mental-health-related themes.
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A Conversation Worth Having
If the asylum’s past is unsettling, what helps you tell the difference between the story’s frightening atmosphere and its ideas about the people who lived there?
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Reading Approach
Try reading a chapter or two together, then check how the suspense feels. The photographs offer a natural pause point to talk about whether they make the mystery more vivid or more unsettling.
Confidence & Basis
Theme indicators describe how the book presents a topic; they are not a verdict on the whole book or your family's values. Confidence reflects how much book-specific material was checked. Only part of the book information was available, so some details remain unconfirmed.
What remains unconfirmed
The asylum’s past and present: The nature of the secrets and the novel’s treatment of former patients are unclear.
Suspense and photographs: The photographs’ individual content and how often they appear are not specified.
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