The Redemption of Morgan Bright is an unsettling, psychological horror novel. It follows Morgan Bright and her decision to infiltrate an asylum in order to seek out the truth regarding her sister's death.

I found Panatier's writing style to be very enjoyable to read. I found myself eager to return to the book despite how unsettling it was and even when I wasn't reading it, I was mulling over what I had read over and over again in my head and discussing it with others in my every day life. The one thing I would have to say is that some of the language within the book was jarring to read and I found myself Googling or querying exactly what a word meant. Therefore I would say it can be quite a disruptive read in some areas.

The story as a whole was intriguing. I was very intrigued by the scenario which the blurb had set up - a woman infiltrating an asylum to find out why her sister had died? Who wouldn't be interested in that? However, I did find that I had more questions than answers towards the end. I felt as though everything was more of a fever dream and you never really found out what happened to anyone within the story.

Following on from that it is a very disturbing read. There was moments which made me very uncomfortable and I had to give myself a couple of moments before returning to the book. I am not usually a horror genre fan (be that films or books) so I am sensitive to it, others might find this very basic. For me though, it did nail the horror aspect.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Angry Robot Books, for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this eARC.

This book had me hooked from page one. The writing style is so captivating and the inclusion of different perspectives, interviews, text messages and research all add to the story in a brilliant way that leaves you fighting to keep up with everything you're being told so that figuring out the next step seems impossible. The further I got into this story the more it felt like I was becoming unmoored and I was unravelling but I couldn't put it down.

Right from the start you know something really strange is happening and the switch from one perspective to another so quickly is incredibly jarring. It gets darker and more twisted as the book goes on and I have to admit that I did not see that ending coming at all!

The book does deal with some difficult topics including sexual assault, homophobia, mental illness, mistreatment of patients, forced birth, death, and self-harm. However it deals with these things well and there is no violence for the sake of it.

At the end of the day, this book and story was not what I was expecting and it was all the better for it.

I'd advise going in almost blind to this one - I think the summary given on Goodreads (and many of the reviews on here) give away far too much that isn't revealed that close to the start of the book. Here is my own spoiler-free summary (sorry, I'm not an author so it's not going to be great!):

In the near future, after a change in Nebraska law, a wife can be involuntarily committed to a mental health institution by her husband if she has been diagnosed with “domestic psychosis”. Charlotte is one such patient. Eager to heal her mind and desperate to have a baby, she embraces the lifestyle at Hollyhock, but her strange lapses in memory may be obscuring deeper issues.

Review:

This novel is a feminist horror with supernatural elements, reminiscent in some ways of Don't Worry Darling, Stepford Wives, Handmaid's Tale, and Delicate Condition.

I loved the epistolary sections between chapters, consisting of the notes made by one of the characters, texts, and interviews - they did a fantastic job of propelling the mystery onwards and introducing new threads and questions that surprised and intrigued me! I also really appreciated the inclusion of real facts about the methods and equipment used in old asylums that served to make the whole thing feel more realistic and horrific.

There were lots of serious themes touched on in this novel, and dealt with very sensitively, including addiction, guilt, mental health, and feminism. There are other content warnings relating to this novel that I won't list here because I think they may give away too much of the plot, but see my Goodreads review and click on the spoiler tag if you would like to know what they are.

This is a nightmare onion of a book, where every layer you peel away reveals something even more disturbing.

The DSM is now in its eleventh edition and the medical model’s pathologisation of mental health is alive and well. Flavour of the edition is domestic psychosis, proving once again that, no matter how far in the past the 1950’s are, there will be groups of people intent on replicating the worst parts of it.

Morgan Bright has recently been diagnosed with domestic psychosis so she’s the newest patient at Hollyhock. Charlotte Andrew Turner arrives that day too. Their relationship is … complicated.

“But I’m telling you, there’s something off with her.”

I read 35 books between my first and second reads of this book; the reread was even better. I agonised over this review for months, trying to figure out the best way of shoving this book in your face and hollering ‘Read this!’ without including all of the things I need to talk about but can’t because spoilers. I have turned myself inside out over this, so much so that I’m convinced I can never visit Nebraska, just in case someone from Hollyhock finds me.

I loved trying to figure out Charlotte. This is probably the only time in my life that my thought process will be ‘Dissociative Identity Disorder? Nah, too easy. Tulpa?’ The fact that DID could ever be the easy option should give you a hint of the horrors that await you at Hollyhock.

“This isn’t the type of thing you just dump on someone. I wouldn’t want your brain to collapse.”

It’s all the more horrifying because the majority of the evils perpetrated against women in this book are committed by other women. This somehow makes it worse. If you see Enid in your travels, please be sure to take a cleansing breath and punch her for me.

This book is guilt, grief and paper dolls. The body horror is sublime and oh so squishy.

“It’s beautiful in that way.”

If you’ve read even a couple of my reviews, it’s likely you’ve heard about how I sent an email to the address listed in the book and it bounced back. Or that I visited the website only to discover it doesn’t exist. You may have witnessed me mumbling to myself about missed marketing opportunities. And if I ever write a book… And maybe one day…

Well, I’m here to tell you that one of my longest standing bookish dreams has come true! There’s a website mentioned in this book and it actually exists, and it’s glorious! Every time I think about it my smile becomes as wide as the women photographed on its pages. And I’m fine. Really. This is not an indication that you need to refer me to Hollyhock. Please don’t send me to Hollyhock!

So, is there a happily ever after? Why, yes, the book does have an ending. Thank you for asking.

Welcome to Hollyhock. Come for the food.* Stay for the twirling. We hope you enjoy your stay.

Content warnings include addiction, death by suicide, mental health, self harm, sexual assault and suicidal ideation.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Angry Robot for the opportunity to read this book.

* BYO coffee.

This book is horribly creepy!!! Stars and Stripes but I had chills. The cover is beautiful, belying the unsettling content within. You want to keep reading to find out what happened, but at the same time are also scared of what’s to come. So happy I was privileged enough to receive an arc of this novel.

What would guilt make you do?

A blend of a mystery with horror. A story of trauma and guilt a well thought out plan that goes wrong set in a psychiatric hospital Hollyhock Asylum the story of Morgan Bright and her alter ego Charlotte Turner told through mixed media (police interviews) and pov from Morgan and Charlotte.
This book sucked me in straight away. It left me feeling slightly confused at time's but also wanting more.

I finished this one today and even though I rated it three stars, I wouldn’t call the book bad, it just wasn’t for me.
Things I did like:
- the writing style was honestly formidable and draws you right in, very captivating way of storytelling
- The change of normal chapters with excerpts of the interview with the main character

I liked the story in the beginning and where the author was going with it, I couldn’t stop reading it but then things kind of took a sci-fi turn about 75-80% in which I wasn’t the biggest fan of hence the three stars rating. It’s a great book, it just isn’t for everybody.


Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Angry Robot, for providing me with this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Holy shit this was a wild ride. The "cold open" style beginning hooked me immediately and established the sense of unease and amnesiac confusion that really helped put me in the protagonist's shoes. The author held NOTHING back in the buildup to the weird-ass final reveal and I absolutely LOVED it! I wish more books would double down on the weirdness and terror like this one. Morgan was a wonderfully complex and morally grey (at best) protagonist, and the story was an (unfortunately) very timely scenario to explore in a post Roe v. Wade country that is rapidly moving backwards on women's rights.

Through skillful storytelling, Chris Panatier blends elements of psychological horror and mystery in “The Redemption of Morgan Bright,” creating an immersive and unsettling world of psychiatric care gone awry.

The story follows Morgan Bright, who sets on a dangerous journey to uncover the truth behind her sister Hadleigh’s mysterious injuries and subsequent escape from Hollyhock Asylum. With the help of her friend Darius, Morgan infiltrates the asylum under false identities, delving into its dark secrets and confronting the horrors lurking within its walls.

Panatier’s narrative is intricately woven, alternating between standard prose and epistolary content such as police interviews, articles, and texts, which add depth to the story’s unfolding mysteries. Through these diverse perspectives, readers are drawn deeper into the intricate web of relationships and secrets that drive the narrative forward.

At the heart of the story lies the complex dynamic between Morgan and Hadleigh, fraught with bitterness and heartbreak, as well as the enigmatic relationship between Morgan and her alter ego, Charlotte. Panatier masterfully blurs the lines between reality and illusion, leaving readers questioning the true nature of the protagonist’s identity.

Set against the backdrop of Hollyhock Asylum, a relic of the past with its antiquated and sinister practices, the novel explores themes of manipulation, control, and the blurred boundaries between sanity and madness. Panatier’s descriptions are so vivid, they give you the creeps and stick with you even after you finish the book.

“The Redemption of Morgan Bright” is a thought-provoking exploration of grief, guilt, and love, navigating through the darkest recesses of the human psyche. While the narrative may feel choppy at times, Panatier’s evocative prose and compelling storytelling make for a captivating read that will leave you questioning the boundaries of reality.

With its atmospheric horror, “The Redemption of Morgan Bright” is a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers and Gothic fiction. Despite its unsettling and unresolved questions, the novel provides a fulfilling and contemplative experience that will stay with you well beyond the last page.

I am in utter awe of what I just read. mind twisting and horrific in all the right ways, I was engrossed and on the edge of my seat for most of the book, regardless that its not my typical read. I feel this book will appeal to a broad variety of horror readers (and a lot of thriller readers too) in a way they may not expect while browsing the shelves

Beautifully written and haunting, this novel was the perfect blend of psychological horror and mystery. Reminded me of a much more nuanced take on American Horror Story: Asylum. The atmosphere absolutely dripped off the page, and the central mystery kept me guessing until the last few pages.

The nitty-gritty: Unsettling and eerie, Chris Panatier's latest is a skillfully written story that delves into the horrors of psychiatric care gone wrong.

If anyone can come up with a completely original story combining asylum and pregnancy horror, it’s Chris Panatier, one of the most unique genre writers around. The Redemption of Morgan Bright is weird, upsetting, and gross (at times), with an eerie Gothic sensibility and a couple of slow burn mysteries at its core. Most of the story is told in standard prose format, but the author includes some epistolary content in the form of police interviews, articles, texts and more, which are critical as the story unfolds. This is an ambitious, intricately plotted piece of fiction that should be on every horror fan’s TBR.

Morgan Bright’s sister Hadleigh was found gravely injured, wandering a snowy road after apparently escaping from Hollyhock Asylum. Morgan is distraught and will do anything to figure out what happened to Hadleigh, and so she and her friend Darius hatch a plan to sneak Morgan into Hollyhock so she can investigate and hopefully get some answers. In order to execute their plan, Morgan and Darius take on fake personas and become Charlotte and Andrew Turner. "Andrew" insists on having his wife committed, and “Charlotte” is diagnosed with “domestic psychosis” and admitted to Hollyhock, where she’ll spend thirty days in the care of the asylum’s staff, hoping to recover from her condition. In reality, Morgan will get to experience first hand what goes on behind closed doors and perhaps even expose the truth. 

But stepping through the doors of Hollyhock is like stepping into the past. Morgan is shocked at the antiquated and dangerous methods the staff uses on their patients. The other women seem eager to participate, in the hopes of getting better, but once in a while a woman goes off for a procedure and never returns. And when Morgan begins to experience periods of forgetfulness, she’s drawn into the mind of her creation—Charlotte. If Charlotte isn’t real, then why is Morgan struggling to control her own actions?

In between chapters are interviews between the Scottsbluff Police Department and a “witness” (Morgan/Charlotte) that take place after Morgan leaves Hollyhock. These interviews serve as a way to explain what Morgan went through, and they also give readers a peak into the weird relationship between the two characters. I loved these sections, and Panatier did a great job of creating lots of mystery and tension, since we don’t yet know the full story.

There are a lot of layers to unpack in this story. You have the fraught relationship between Morgan and Hadleigh which is revealed mostly through text messages. We know that something happened between the sisters that fractured their relationship and caused Hadleigh to be committed to Hollyhock. These details are slowly revealed over the course of the book until the final shocking revelation, and there’s a lot of bitterness and heartbreak between them. Then there’s the equally unsettling relationship between Morgan and Charlotte, which is really the crux of the story. Morgan is real, Charlotte is a fabrication—or is she? Panatier brilliantly weaves their stories together, where reality and dreams are hard to tell apart. Is Morgan trapped in her own body? Or is Charlotte the victim? It’s not always easy to tell.

The strange relationship between Morgan and Charlotte is made even more surreal as the many horrors of Hollyhock Asylum come to light. When Charlotte first arrives, she’s sent to a “welcome room” and fed exotic foods. Later she's introduced to different types of therapies, like Housework, where she spends hours cleaning and making beds (to what end, well that’s the question, isn’t it?). It all feels sort of innocent, until Morgan “awakens” and begins to experience what Charlotte is doing. It’s at this point that the dirty secrets of the asylum are revealed, led by the director Althea Edevane, who has her own terrible agenda.

Panatier sets his story in the present, but Hollyhock is clearly stuck in the past, utilizing illegal methods of “curing” women and inventing maladies that don’t exist. “Domestic psychosis” in this story is a horrifying term that allows husbands to have their wives committed to a psychiatric hospital for any reason they want, an outdated idea that Edevane uses for her own diabolical plans. We also glimpse such “cures” as electroshock (which Panatier describes in horrifying detail), the Elizabeth collar that keeps patients contained in the dark, and the Utica crib, another device to restrain a patient from moving. This last one has a particularly gruesome use at the end of the story. And I won’t ever look at butterflies in quite the same way again. Edevane and her hairstreak cage play a roll in Charlotte’s treatment that gave me nightmares, to be honest (hairstreaks are a type of butterfly in case you didn’t know. I didn’t.)

And if these horrors weren’t enough, the author touches on the hot button topic of women’s reproductive rights, adding an emotionally charged layer to his story. Under the guise of “health care,” Morgan, Charlotte and all the other women in the story are brainwashed into thinking Edevane’s methods will actually cure them. I mentioned in the beginning of this review that the book contains pregnancy horror, and while I won’t spoil the details for you, do be aware of triggers like rape and forced pregnancy, which should upset every single person who reads this book.

After everything that happened, I wasn’t quite prepared for the final chapters, which were emotional and shocking. Morgan learns the unfortunate truth about Hadleigh, but the nightmares of Hollyhock will be with her for a long time. The Redemption of Morgan Bright does what the best horror stories do—it leaves the reading feeling both satisfied at finally learning the answers, but uncomfortable with the horrors those answers reveal.

Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.

This was definitely a mindf*ck book. As other reviewers mention, I’m not too sure what I just read, which maybe is the point? To confuse reality with fantasy? That Morgan fakes psychosis and actually falls into psychosis? I’m unsure, and I also don’t think it worked out too well for me. Thank you for the arc

I received a free copy from Netgalley here is the blurb
"Hadleigh Keene died on the road leading away from Hollyhock Asylum. The reasons are unknown. Her sister Morgan blames herself. A year later with the case still unsolved, Morgan creates a false identity, that of a troubled housewife named Charlotte Turner, and goes inside.

Morgan quickly discovers that Hollyhock is… not right. She is shaken by the hospital’s peculiar routines and is soon beset by strange episodes. All the while, the persona of Charlotte takes on a life of its own, becoming stronger with each passing day. As her identity begins unraveling, Morgan finds herself tracing Hadleigh’s footsteps and peering into the places they lead.

The terrifying reality of The Redemption of Morgan Bright unfolds over the course of chapters told from the points of view of both Charlotte and Morgan, police interviews, and text messages. "

Overall I enjoyed this book while reading it, even though at times I wasn't really sure what was happening. The ending was also confusing and I am not really clear on what happened

I finished this last night. Even though I've been thinking about it since, I still have no idea what I read.

Morgan fakes her entrance to the psychiatric hospital where her sister lived before she went missing and was found dead. After that, the author lost me. I found it difficult to keep track of the characters and, while written with beautiful, image-invoking language, couldn't figure out what in the world was going on. I think this one will be a hit or miss for most people. It was a definite miss for me.

The worst part, however, was the pro-abortion rant the author felt necessary to add after the end of the book. Mr. Panatier, I do not care about your political views or leanings. I read for entertainment. Your opinion on abortion is not entertaining.

The Redemption of Morgan Bright, by Chris Panatier is a mind bending fever dream that I did not want to wake up from. I absolutely loved this book!

A few days on from finishing this book, I’m still not entirely sure what I think about it. It’s a difficult book to classify. Very possibly it’s going to go on my “really good books that I inexplicably didn’t enjoy all that much” shelf. That’s ok, it happens. I think many people will love this book.

This is an asylum story. Morgan Keene blames herself for the death of her sister, inexplicably found dead on the road leading from Hollyhock Asylum. A year on from the death, with the reasons still unknown, Morgan creates a false identity – Charlotte – in order to infiltrate the asylum.

The story is told from the perspective of both Morgan and Charlotte, interspersed with police interview transcripts. The author’s writing is unsettling, disturbing and feverish. There is a powerfully feminist kick at the end which I fully salute him for.

Not entirely my personal cup of tea, but if you enjoy books featuring an unreliable narrator, this could very well be for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers, Angry Robot, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I must admit that it took a few attempts to get into this book. The premise was clear, but the way the author wrote this book it felt sort of choppy. The main character was meant to be unreliable and well the author nailed that piece as it left me
confused for the first 20%. .

It definitely started to pick up around 50% mark and the ending was pretty wild.

Also I did enjoy breaking the story up with the interviews, texts and also going back in time to the asylum.

Overall I would give this 2.5 stars because of the confusing start and the fact took over a month to finish reading.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC.

The writing is absolutely PHENOMENAL.
I had to binge read it, I couldn't put it down!
The atmosphere created by the author was incredible.
ABOSLUTELY FANTASTIC

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Angry Robot for this ARC!

Okay wow what a great creepy/weird horror! Reminiscent of Jeff Vandermeer’s Lighthouse Keeper, with the strange aphorisms of the patients at Hollyhock House. Very unsettling!

This book was very much like a fever dream which added to Morgan’s confusion and disorientation - I could not put it down because I needed to find out what was going to happen.

I liked the shifts in narrative style/perspective, between Morgan and Charlotte, and we also get parts of the story told via police interview transcripts and text messages. I don’t think I’ve read many things that make use of that and I liked it!

However, I do feel like part of the story was missing in some way. I guess I’m the sort of person who needs all the ends tied up. But, what happened to so completely alter Hollyhock House? I guess the ghosts but it’s hinted at in the transcripts that the authorities can’t even get close? My biggest questions is how did Morgan/Charlotte escape? We’re never told. Also never explained is the creature (?) in the sub-basement. It was completely separate from the ghosts but also never really explained - how on earth did it come to be there and how did the Doctor work out how to work with it and use its power?

Despite my questions I REALLY enjoyed this one!