Julie's Review: Woman 99

Author: Greer Macallister
Series: None
Publication Date: March 5, 2019
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
Pages: 368
Obtained: publisher via Netgalley
Genre:  Historical Fiction
Rating: 4/5
Bottom Line: Historical look at the treatment of women with mental illness
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Summary: When Charlotte Smith's wealthy parents commit her beloved sister Phoebe to the infamous Goldengrove Asylum, Charlotte knows there's more to the story than madness. She risks everything and follows her sister inside, surrendering her real identity as a privileged young lady of San Francisco society to become a nameless inmate, Woman 99. The longer she stays, the more she realizes that many of the women of Goldengrove aren't insane, merely inconvenient ― and that her search for the truth threatens to dig up secrets that some very powerful people would do anything to keep. A historical thriller rich in detail, deception, and revelation, Woman 99 honors the fierce women of the past, born into a world that denied them power but underestimated their strength. ~amazon.com  

Review:  Woman 99 is a story about how the bond and love between sisters is so strong one will go to extreme lengths to save the other one. Charlotte's sister Phoebe is the one person that she knows she can count on. She's the one that used to be full of fun and mischief but then all of the sudden she's gone, taken away to a hospital for women who have issues. Charlotte blames herself for her sister being taken away because she was defending her choices in life.

So Charlotte takes matters into her own hands to rescue her sister. Except that she's not really fully prepared for what awaits her. She's lived a privileged life and the things she sees within the walls of the asylum shock her.  She just figured she would walk in, find Phoebe and walk out but what happens is a bit of self discovery for her. She finds out that she is strong, brave and smart. It also leads her on a path that wasn't anything she expected. 

The book also highlights the mistreatment of Women in mental hospitals when they were privately owned and not well regulated. It does show how far we've come in the treatment of mental illnesses, particularly for women, but that we still do have a long way to go in the stigmas for mental illness.

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