Asylum by Madeleine Roux

[inksomniareads]

Asylum is set in New Hampshire at a college prep program and one of the buildings used for dormitories used to be

an old sanitorium. When our Intrepid Heroes Dan, Abby and Jordan decide to investigate the closed off, abandoned

section of their dorm, they discover their link to the old asylum is more than just school related.


The writing was a bit weak at the beginning, in my opinion. Though I think the author quickly found her footing and once

the story started to pick up the writing got more solid. It was about 50 pages in that I realized this story/the writing

style was like all of those R.L. Stine and Christopher Pike books I read when I was younger. Which was a nice little trip

on the Nostalgia Train for me. Those two guys, and their books, were really what got me into reading and even writing.

At 10 years old I wanted to be R.L. Stine and even today I love everything by both he and Pike. Christopher Pike’s

vampire series is high on my list of favorite books ever. So this was kind of an awesome little read for me in that

respect, and perhaps it’s that connection to my childhood/life aspirations (lol) why I enjoyed it so much. There are a lot

of mixed reviews for this book, but I don’t think it deserves any hate.


I do wish the weird factor had been a little higher, that the asylum itself had been explored a little more. There wasn’t a

lot of building -world wise, character wise- and with what has to be one of the creepiest places you can set a story, I

was left wanting more. Though I think the author had a very specific story in mind that she wanted to tell, and she did

and she did it well enough. I just wish we had been able to see inside the abandoned part of the asylum more, or even

more of the flashbacks/past life flashes that we got from Dan.


There were moments though, where I was generally creeped out, and I do think the majority of those times we were in

the abandoned part of the hospital. With Dan (and his friends) down in the basement, you’re waiting for something to

jump out at them or for a shadow to pass, maybe they hear whispering and there’s no one there. Again, especially in an

old sanitorium, this is definitely something that could have been played up more. It wasn’t without those moments

completely, I just wish there had been a few more.


Also at the end I felt like it needed to be part of a sequel/or was going to be (and I now know that it is supposed to be).

We find out that Dan is somehow related to the old warden of the asylum, and that Abby is somehow related to a former

patient. But there are issues with these kids, Dan especially who suffers from black outs of unknown origin, and we

don’t know how they’re brought on. We’re left to guess and put pieces together, but there aren’t enough pieces to

make a complete picture. I want to know who Dan really was, how he was actually connected, WHY he kept having time

and memory lapses, and if that had anything to do with his relation.


The ending, as well, while it ties up some loose ends and the kids mostly get a happy ending, there are still things left

unanswered and open enough to invite a sequel. It’s good that there’s supposed to be one coming, and I did definitely

like Asylum enough to pick up any books that come after. I think if this were to have been a standalone I may have been

a bit more cranky about how it ended and where the characters were left off.



There weren’t nearly as many photographs as there were in Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children but that’s not

necessarily a bad thing. There were far too many in MPHfPC, and as I said in my review, I feel the author used them as

a crutch. I don’t think that is the case for Asylum , the pictures go along with the story but the story goes along

with itself. If the pictures weren’t there, it wouldn’t have made much of a difference.


I have to admit that I was not Dan’s biggest fan. Especially in regards to Abby. I don’t know, he just rubbed me the

wrong way sometimes, in a clingy bratty sort of way. And I didn’t really have an issue with Abby either, or even their

relationship believe it or not. But Dan’s reaction to her was strange for me, I can’t explain it. I liked Jordan the most

(and props to the author for giving us a gay male character), and I wish we had gotten more of his story or at least

heard from him more often. There were times when we didn’t see him at all, and the author mostly chose to focus on

Dan and even Abby more than Jordan. We find out at some point that there was conflict and struggle going on in

Jordan’s head, but we’re not privy to it on an intimate level, and it was a bit disappointing. Moar Jordan in the sequel

plz.


I gave it a 4 out of 5 stars. I think if you go into it expecting anything other than an upper middle grade/YA novel then

you might be disappointed. But if you’re looking for a quick Halloween-y read, especially as a fan of Christopher Pike

and R.L. Stine, then you’ll enjoy it.

[reginabally]

☆☆☆☆☆/5 stars

A very interesting read with unexpected twists in the plot.

The story line reminds me of Dark Secrets by Elizabeth Chandler which talks about things that happening in the story is somehow connected with past life.

If you've read Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, this book is far more creepier and scary.

[hpsecrets99]

I seen this book several times at the store, but I've never picked it up. Is it worth it? I love creepy books, but I hate picking up a 'creepy' book and having it not be very scary. I read Miss Perigrine's, and really liked it.

[reginabally]

I seen this book several times at the store, but I've never picked it up. Is it worth it? I love creepy books, but I hate picking up a 'creepy' book and having it not be very scary. I read Miss Perigrine's, and really liked it.

I've read Miss Peregrine's so I think you might like this as well. I actually bought the hardcover edition of it (yes, my first hardcover book!) and I think it's really worth it.

[hpsecrets99]

Yay! I'll defintely check it out. Thanks!

[Abbydan14]

So one day I finished a series. So I decided to read a book I just bought. It happened to be this one. I got to the end and realized it was a series. I was so mad. I just wanted a stand alone book. But I am also very happy because I loved this book! I can't wait to read the second one.

[hpsecrets99]

So one day I finished a series. So I decided to read a book I just bought. It happened to be this one. I got to the end and realized it was a series. I was so mad. I just wanted a stand alone book. But I am also very happy because I loved this book! I can't wait to read the second one.

Ugh, I hate when that happens!

-- 17 Dec 2014, 15:52 --

I just finished reading this book, and I thought that Miss Peregrine's did a much better job of incorporating the olc pictures in the book. I felt like the pictures in Asylum looked really processed and fake, and it made the whole book feel cheap. I really wanted to like this book, but I just could not get into it!

[Noeld]

I thought that this was a great book. I really liked the plot and the characters. I didn't like the sequel, however.

[jojo48713]

I greatly enjoyed this book and cannot wait to get my hands on the second one. I didn't know it was a series, but after reading it I was glad it was because I enjoyed her writing and I was excited to see the story continue.

[ncreads]

I absolutely loved this book! It really keeps you on your toes throughout the entire novel. Plus, the pictures are amazing!

[AimeeTanner24]

This book could have been executed better. I liked the pictures that were included within the story. The linking back to the pass often confused me and the beginning was kind of confusing to me. Towards the end, it got a lot more interesting and it kept my attention. I didn't know there was a second one until the end of the book and now I want more! This book wasn't exactly creepy to me but it had it's moments. The twist at the end was very well thought out and I didn't expect it at all.

[fictionalthrone]

Such a great book, with some immature wording at times, but great book. Although I think it should've just been a single book not a trilogy or series, however books there are.

[KitKat_Reader]

Dan Crawford is a 17 year old high school student who wishes to better his college applications. So he attends a summer program at a college campus. The only thing is, the building in which the summer program kids are staying in used to be an asylum where horrible treatments took place and once Dan discovers the now unused rooms where all that took place, he is haunted by dreams where he is the one performing these experiments.

Lately I have been very interested in the horror type genre, so when I saw this book with it's black and white cover of a girl in a white dress in a rundown hallway, I instantly wanted to give it a read. The whole time Dan is left confused not knowing if a ghost has come back to haunt him for unknown reasons or if he himself has been possessed. While the three main characters, Abby, Jordan and Dan are on the more stereotypical character side, they still make an entertaining group to follow that will leave you laughing and feeling scared for their lives when it seems like something bad is going to happen. It is obvious that the author did her research on old asylums even going so far as to add real old asylum pictures into her book. The college campus they are staying on is described so well that it leaves an unsettling feeling and you would never want to visit it if it was real. You may think you understand what exactly it going on, but chances are you are wrong. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who likes reading about creepy asylums and the mysteries that lie around them.

[keyana_taylor]

oh man this book sounds good ! I'm def going to look for it .

[Abbeywarwick]

I would never recommend this book to anyone who wants to read something interesting. This book made no sense and has the most irrelevant topics and the plot was garbage. I don't know how anyone can genuinely find this book good or suspenseful. It was so predictable and nothing was even scary. dont read this if you want to be scared or read something of worth. If I didn't have to read it for a class I wouldn't have even read more than the first chapter. Don't waste your time or money on this book.