Book Review: The Redemption of Morgan Bright by Chris Panatier

This post contains affiliate links, which means that we’ll earn
a small commission if you make a purchase through these links.

“The sickening mind is a master of deception.”

📚

When Hadleigh Keene dies after she’s found wandering down an icy road 12 miles from Hollyhock Asylum and the police fail to find answers, her sister, Morgan Bright, vows to uncover the truth. To do so, she creates a false identity and voluntarily checks herself into the asylum as Charlotte Turner, a hysterical housewife suffering from domestic psychosis. Her motive and story: a clean bill of health that will convince her husband she’s ready to start a family. But something is amiss at Hollyhock, and, as she undergoes strange treatments, Morgan begins experiencing bizarre hallucinations and disturbing episodes, losing her memory and possibly her mind as Charlotte’s persona grows stronger and more real with each passing day. And as she digs into her new home’s shadowed past, she also unravels its appalling objective.

Unfolding via Morgan and Charlotte’s alternating points of view and employing effective epistolary sequences composed of interviews and text messages, The Redemption of Morgan Bright is such a phenomenal novel, it’s difficult to do it justice. So layered and creative is the plot, so stratified and affecting is the protagonist’s struggle, and so sinister and ghastly are the truths she uncovers, the narrative feels like a nefarious Russian doll where each layer is darker and more horrific than the last. It’s a gorgeous, binge-worthy, enthralling, disorienting, dread-inducing gothic gem brimming with mind-boggling ambiguity, disquieting twists, nightmarish experiences, brutal realities, insidious means, vile objectives, and revolting body horror. A creepy and relentless exploration of life devoid of power and autonomy: the ultimate psychological horror that devolves into a fever dream of splintered self, stolen choice, and hellish reality.

Hollyhock itself is a character. Steeped in tainted history, folklore, and legend, its labyrinthine corridors and closed wings harbor black secrets and shroud the utter evil humans inflict on others alongside incessant battles waged with inner demons. It’s an addictive chronicle of fraught pasts, damned futures, waking nightmares, and doomed charades that explores debt, responsibility, intention, and addiction; rage, retribution, guilt, and trauma; abuse, lies, manipulation, and betrayal; torture, dehumanization, control, and acquiescence; harmonization, calming, visitation, and insinuation; grooming, gestation, experimentation, and conception; and purpose, pain, revelation, and surrender. An odyssey of histories, memories, butterflies, and hauntings; shells, vessels, phantoms, and ghosts; spirits, surrogates, mediums, and monsters; and creatures, pets, tools, and parasites.

It’s a blood-drenched epic: a visceral, terrifying, and malign blend of horror, history, and mystery spattered with unmooring reveals, shocking curveballs, and searing scenes that change the reader along with its characters, imparting an unforgettable experience that buries deep and incubates, bolstered by illustrations of archaic historical treatment devices/techniques and a malevolent accompanying website (www.welcometohollyhock.com). Described as The Handmaid’s Tale meets Midsommar; Girl, Interrupted; The Stepford Wives; The Yellow Wallpaper; and Don’t Worry Darling; this book packs a hefty punch that’s as incredible as it is horrifying, relevant, and awe-inspiring.

🖤Amanda

Disclaimer

Many books featured on this blog were purchased by us; however, we do accept publisher-, author-, and other source-provided copies (both advanced reader copies (ARCs) and finished copies) from publishers, authors, and other sources we deem to be a good fit for our reading preferences and blog. Posts and reviews that feature such copies are disclosed. For more information, refer to the Disclaimer & Disclosures section.

Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links, which means that when you click one of those links and make a purchase, we earn a small commission paid by the retailers, at no additional cost to you. These links will take you to books and other products that we like, trust, and believe will be beneficial to our readers. Affiliate programs use cookies to track visits in order to assign sale-related commissions; funds earned keep the Site up and running and allow us to continue to share reviews and other content. Thank you for your support!