I loved this book for so many reasons. It’s a Victorian-gothic novel set at an all-girls school, rife with female relationships, death, and multiple perspectives. What’s not to love? This book grew to some epic proportions, both literally and figuratively, and at 617 pages, it’s not difficult to see that. It took so many different directions and had so much lush story-building that I fell deeply into the journey of the unfolding of the story. 

However, as I fell into the story, I felt the 617 pages were simply not enough to capture the entirety of the story, the conclusion of the story, especially the way Danforth was writing it (which don’t get me wrong, I loved the way Danforth wrote this novel). I finished the book feeling unsatisfied, with so many questions and so many wants about the plot and characters. It didn’t feel completely concluded. It felt like Danforth realized she had already used up over 600 pages and quickly wrapped it up, which just didn’t sit right with me.