Helpful Score: 1
At the Rowe Academy for Girls in Tiburon, California, nothing is as it appears to be. The outside might look like a Victorian castle you would find in England, but on the inside, under the control of headmistress Millicent Rowe, the Academy is nothing more than hell for four young girls forced to do things that are truly abhorrent. For Ms. Rowe, the Academy is her life, and she'll do anything to make sure the school stays intact. That includes providing young girls for the wealthy men who have sexual tastes that differ from the norm.
Matilda "Mattie" Smith, Jane Mantle, Breeze Wheeler, and Ivy White were four troubled girls who were at the Academy for different reasons. Thrown together by the sick desires of Millicent Rowe, however, forced to "pay" their way through school by doing the bidding of Ms. Rowe and the men who paid her handsomely, the four girls formed the Lonely Girls Club. Brought together by their sad fates, not allowed to be normal teenagers, these girls had a bond stronger than that of sisters. Although totally different in their personalities, Mattie, Jane, Breeze, and Ivy were joined by their hatred and fear of Millicent Rowe, by their own guilty consciences, and by the terrible men who forced them to become women before they were ready.
The Lonely Girls Club ended, however, when Millicent Rowe was murdered by William "Billy" Broud-or so the girls thought. Twenty years have gone by, and Broud has been exonerated through DNA evidence, proving he wasn't the one who killed the Academy's headmistress. At the time of his arrest so long ago, he'd been trying to tell authorities about Ms. Rowe, about her sex-ring involving students, about conspiracies and cover-ups involving men of power. No one was inclined to listen then, when Billy had a prior record, drugs in his possession, and had the same blood type as that found at the scene of the crime. Now that he's released, the only one who is inclined to look back on that past, to follow a string of clues reaching back to the Rowe Academy for Girls and its headmistress, is Jameson Cross, a true crime writer, who just so happens to also have a heavy interest in proving Billy's innocence. The wrongly-convicted man wants no part of Cross and his book, however, and after a short stint outside prison walls, ends his life to avoid a past that just won't leave him alone.
Jameson Cross is obsessed with finding out who really murdered the headmistress of the Academy, and discovering who the Lonely Girls are. He knows that Ivy White is no longer alive, having committed suicide years ago, but what about the other mysterious members of the Club? As clues come to light, as he finds the three remaining women in positions of authority and prestige-one a judge, one a businesswoman, one the First Lady of the United States-Jameson realizes that finding out what happened so long ago is about more than just solving a crime. Because one of these girls-or even all of them-may very well have murdered someone. And even now, the Lonely Girls Club is gathering steam, trying to keep their secrets hidden and lock away the part of themselves that was abused so long ago.
Suzanne Forster has once again managed to write a suspenseful story of danger, intrigue, sex, lies, and murder that takes you into the world of the rich and powerful. The men and women associated with the Rowe Academy for Girls will do anything and everything to keep themselves from being exposed, up to and including murder. With an intense plot, strong characters, and the twists and turns of a true mystery, THE LONELY GIRLS CLUB is a book not to be missed.
Matilda "Mattie" Smith, Jane Mantle, Breeze Wheeler, and Ivy White were four troubled girls who were at the Academy for different reasons. Thrown together by the sick desires of Millicent Rowe, however, forced to "pay" their way through school by doing the bidding of Ms. Rowe and the men who paid her handsomely, the four girls formed the Lonely Girls Club. Brought together by their sad fates, not allowed to be normal teenagers, these girls had a bond stronger than that of sisters. Although totally different in their personalities, Mattie, Jane, Breeze, and Ivy were joined by their hatred and fear of Millicent Rowe, by their own guilty consciences, and by the terrible men who forced them to become women before they were ready.
The Lonely Girls Club ended, however, when Millicent Rowe was murdered by William "Billy" Broud-or so the girls thought. Twenty years have gone by, and Broud has been exonerated through DNA evidence, proving he wasn't the one who killed the Academy's headmistress. At the time of his arrest so long ago, he'd been trying to tell authorities about Ms. Rowe, about her sex-ring involving students, about conspiracies and cover-ups involving men of power. No one was inclined to listen then, when Billy had a prior record, drugs in his possession, and had the same blood type as that found at the scene of the crime. Now that he's released, the only one who is inclined to look back on that past, to follow a string of clues reaching back to the Rowe Academy for Girls and its headmistress, is Jameson Cross, a true crime writer, who just so happens to also have a heavy interest in proving Billy's innocence. The wrongly-convicted man wants no part of Cross and his book, however, and after a short stint outside prison walls, ends his life to avoid a past that just won't leave him alone.
Jameson Cross is obsessed with finding out who really murdered the headmistress of the Academy, and discovering who the Lonely Girls are. He knows that Ivy White is no longer alive, having committed suicide years ago, but what about the other mysterious members of the Club? As clues come to light, as he finds the three remaining women in positions of authority and prestige-one a judge, one a businesswoman, one the First Lady of the United States-Jameson realizes that finding out what happened so long ago is about more than just solving a crime. Because one of these girls-or even all of them-may very well have murdered someone. And even now, the Lonely Girls Club is gathering steam, trying to keep their secrets hidden and lock away the part of themselves that was abused so long ago.
Suzanne Forster has once again managed to write a suspenseful story of danger, intrigue, sex, lies, and murder that takes you into the world of the rich and powerful. The men and women associated with the Rowe Academy for Girls will do anything and everything to keep themselves from being exposed, up to and including murder. With an intense plot, strong characters, and the twists and turns of a true mystery, THE LONELY GIRLS CLUB is a book not to be missed.
at an exclusive california prep school fourschool four young girls form a bond that will endure over two decades- a bond built on secrets, scandel, and murder- a bond about to be broken.
A good read if you like "best friends stick together" type of novels, and a good mystery yarn.
At an exclusive California prep school, four young girls form a bond that will endure over two decades-a bond built on secrets, scandal and murder...a bond about to be broken.
excellent book....couldn't put it down...kept me reading to the last page...nice mix of suspense and romance
A page turner!
I couldn't put it down! The ending totally surprised me, too.
oh I loved this book!! I think I finished it in one day!
a gr8 read...enjoyed it
I couldn't put this book down. There is so much scandal and secrets.I loved it.
This book is a page turner from page one to the very end, and will keep you quessing
Loved this book. One of her best. Lots of twists and turns. Five Stars!
I will admit to not enjoying the beginning of this book. It took quite a while before I was sucked into the mystery of who killed Millicent Rowe and why the lonely girls were hiding if they didn't do it. At first I didn't feel a connection to the three main characters (Mattie Smith, judge; Breeze Wheeler, sex spa owner; and Jane Mantle, first lady). It wasn't until the flashbacks started that I could feel any empathy with them and their plight.
Headmistress Millicent Rowe has four girls arrive at her finishing school on scholarship. These four girls (Mattie, Breeze, Jane and Ivy) are ostracized at the expensive boarding school and Ms. Rowe takes them under her wing. Of course, this is not an altruistic endeavor as she is training them to be sex slaves for powerful men who come cloaked in darkness. The girls are tortured for their disobedience and punished for the slightest misdemeanor. I was horrified at what the headmistress was doing to them and couldn't believe it when the went to the police and sent right back into the hornets nest. No matter who killed Millicent Rowe, she surely deserved it.
When the convicted killer, William Broud, was released because it was finally proven that he was not the killer, Jameson Cross, a writer of true crime came out of the woodwork to find the real killer. Jameson harasses and stalks Mattie almost to the point of imprisonment (she is a judge after all). He stirs up Mattie, Breeze and Jane to the point where Mattie takes a leave of absence to uncover the truth and suppress evidence, if needed. The mystery of who actually killed Millicent is fascinating but I think it was drawn out a little too long. I found myself getting bored with the repetitions and at some points felt it needed to just get on with it.
Headmistress Millicent Rowe has four girls arrive at her finishing school on scholarship. These four girls (Mattie, Breeze, Jane and Ivy) are ostracized at the expensive boarding school and Ms. Rowe takes them under her wing. Of course, this is not an altruistic endeavor as she is training them to be sex slaves for powerful men who come cloaked in darkness. The girls are tortured for their disobedience and punished for the slightest misdemeanor. I was horrified at what the headmistress was doing to them and couldn't believe it when the went to the police and sent right back into the hornets nest. No matter who killed Millicent Rowe, she surely deserved it.
When the convicted killer, William Broud, was released because it was finally proven that he was not the killer, Jameson Cross, a writer of true crime came out of the woodwork to find the real killer. Jameson harasses and stalks Mattie almost to the point of imprisonment (she is a judge after all). He stirs up Mattie, Breeze and Jane to the point where Mattie takes a leave of absence to uncover the truth and suppress evidence, if needed. The mystery of who actually killed Millicent is fascinating but I think it was drawn out a little too long. I found myself getting bored with the repetitions and at some points felt it needed to just get on with it.
This is one of those tributes to long-time friendships that were forged in an academic setting where all is not as it appears. Think Dead Poets Society and A Secret History.
Other reviewers have spelled out the plot so I won't bore you here. I will say that this is a page turner -- the final few pages of a chapter make you want to read just one more. It was easy to get into the story, so if you don't like it in the first 5 chapters, you probably won't.
Other reviewers have spelled out the plot so I won't bore you here. I will say that this is a page turner -- the final few pages of a chapter make you want to read just one more. It was easy to get into the story, so if you don't like it in the first 5 chapters, you probably won't.
Very good for its genre.
Scandal involving the First Lady - caught my eye.
