I had high expectations for this story, but ultimately, it fell flat for me. A few of my qualms: the suspension of disbelief was too much for me, unlikeable characters, an occasional plot hole, and some confusion with the dual timeline back-and-forth. The story ended with a huge cliffhanger and apparently a sequel is planned (which I didn’t discover until I was irked by the ending and did some Googling about it), but I think I’ll pass, unfortunately.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in return for my honest opinion.

I went into this book thinking that it would be a lot like other suspense books, but my oh my was I surprised!

I really had high hopes for The Vines, but unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations for me. It didn't capture me from the start and the writing was a bit choppy.

I couldn't foresee myself enjoying this book the whole way through, therefore I decided to stop reading and see if I regained interest another time. I'd love to update my review if I do end up finishing the book, but for now, it wasn't the book for me.

Thank you so much to Freiling Publishing, Shelley Nolden, and NetGalley for the ARC of The Vines.

"A large-scale pandemic is not just science fiction fodder, it's an inevitable outcome for our global society."

This one is almost too on-topic right now, as I near my full year of having not gone out to eat, sat in my friends or family houses, gone to a movie or any other social type inside event. I'd never heard of North Brother Island or it's use as a research or lab type use. It was interesting to read the chapters that took place in the 1900's as you learn about it all.

It took a little while for the story to really start going, it's a bit of a slow mover in the beginning, but it all did start to come together around 30% or so. Interesting character and interesting premise. I did enjoy it but I did feel like the characters were a little...extreme - either one way or another. I felt like a little gray ambiguity in them would have helped.

An e-ARC was provided to me by the author and publishing via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Supposedly abandoned island in New York City with a dark and horrific past, the setting of this book is a terrifying blend of fiction and reality. The Vines is a science fiction, horror, historical fiction that ties in aspects of fantasy through the characters and plot with real life facts (the setting and some aspects of the plot). I really enjoyed the historical aspects and it was clear the amount of research that the author had performed prior to writing this novel. I found myself interested in the story but struggling to get through it, and mainly pushed through for the historical medical twist of the plot. I don't think I will be reading the sequel but I was very interested by the idea and think that future novels by Shelley Nolden would be worth reading. Thank you to NetGalley and Freiling Publishing for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

DNF - Did not finish. I did not connect with the writing style or plot and will not be finishing this title. Thank you, NetGalley and Publisher for the early copy!

This chilling book is set on the real-life North Brother Island in New York Harbor, Nolden blends the island's history and current state with fictional and real people who have lived on the island for over 150 years.

I really wanted to love this book, as stories about interesting/unknown parts of New York City are definitely favorites of mine. In fact, I’ve long been a fan of the Bowery Boys podcast, which highlights a different place or a historical event in NYC’s history each episode. And their stories about North Brother Island, the General Slocum Disaster and Typhoid Mary were all fascinating. So I had high hopes for this novel. However, I had a hard time with this one. I enjoyed the historical aspects much more than the current day sections, but I still had a really hard time with the whole idea of someone being treated the way Cora was. I despised most of the men in the Gettler family! I very nearly DNF’d it but plowed on and did finish it, although I did a fair amount of skimming to get through it and see how everything would turn out. What a disappointment to find that the ending was basically a cliffhanger and that a sequel is in the works (which I doubt I will read). I really hate it when something is “sold” as a standalone, but it turns out not to be one.

Other reviewers have complained about the time jumping, but that didn’t bother me, as the sections were clearly labeled with their dates/years.

I am giving this 3 stars instead of 2 because it is obvious that the author did a ton of research to make this as true to the island’s history as she could, while still weaving a fictional tale. If you read it, do not skip the Author’s Note at the end.

While I received the eARC from NetGalley, I wound up mainly listening to the published audiobook, courtesy of my public library. The narrator, Jessica Nahikian, did an excellent job with the many voices and accents. Thank you to NetGalley and Freiling Publishing for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I received an advanced digital copy of a fantastic novel entitled The Vines by first time author Shelly Nolden. It officially was published March 23, 2021 by Freiling Publishing. I wish to thank NetGalley, Freiling Publishing, and Ms. Nolan for providing me a copy of this wonderful book and the opportunity to to express my opinions regarding it. I apologize I wasn’t able to do so prior to its publication.

The book takes place on a tiny island in New York’s East River called North Brother Island. From the late 1800’s through the first half of the twentieth century, the island was home to a hospital for persons with highly communicable and dangerous diseases, such as leprosy and typhoid. The infamous Typhoid Mary was, in fact, housed here. The novel traces the life of a woman taken to the island as a young girl for isolation and treatment of a highly contagious disease who is found still to be living on the island many years after the hospital was shuttered and the island closed to the public. Why she is still there and what she has been doing on the island is a mystery determined to be solved by the man who discovers her, but there are some, including the woman herself, who don’t want him to find out. I found the book fascinating and intriguing, from all of the many true and historical facts to the novel’s intricate plot twists and turns and to the author’s wonderfully descriptive and accurate writing style. I would love to read more from this author.

I enjoyed this book at the start but it soon got very convoluted and unnecessarily twisted. And while it could be considered a timely book, I found it really difficult to finish, though I did finish it.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in return for my honest opinion.

This had an interesting premise and at times was page-turning. It then seemed to get convoluted and began to drag.The story was made overlong by far too many over-dramatic dialogues and repetitive scenes,. I lost connection to the characters and interest in the outcome. The abrupt “cliffhanger” ending was dissatisfying and I won’t be reading the sequel.

I really enjoyed this debut novel by Ms. Nolden. She created a suspenseful and emotional atmosphere with her descriptions of North Brother Island. The characters are developed well throughout the novel and she creates drama between them with a nice twist towards the end. I had only recently heard of the island before finding this novel. It was obvious that the author had done her research when writing this book. I look forward to reading the next book that Ms. Nolden writes.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishing house, Freiling Publishing, for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions written in this review are my own. My review of The Vines can be found on Goodreads, Amazon, my Instagram and Facebook book club page, and my local library website.

The Vines starts out pretty slowly and jumps back and forth. That can make for a little bit of confusion. It took several chapters for me to get into this story but I am glad that I stuck with it. Overall I thought it was a decent story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Didn't capture my attention and engagement. Interested in trying it again though and hopefully it will take.

The vines was a great blend of science fiction, mystery and historical fiction.
I really enjoyed the multiple points of view, I’ve always enjoyed seeing things from different perspectives.

This being said, I just wasn’t invested enough in the story or the characters. I felt myself getting a little lost at points and having to reread

For men, The Vines and I are not a good fit. There's too much belief the reader needs to suspend and I couldn't connect with the characters and writing style in order to get there. Not my kind of latte.

Conceptually harrowing and dark, The Vines is a multi-pov blend of historical fiction, science fiction, and mystery. I didn’t know much about North Brother Island prior to going into this but I don’t feel like that effected my reading experience. The writing style made it a bit difficult for me to immerse myself in the story immediately and the pacing was a bit slow but the subject matter was enough to keep me intrigued throughout. I look forward to reading the sequel!

The Vines by Shelley Nolden

9781950948406

446 Pages
Publisher: Freiling Publishing, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA)
Relase Date: March 23, 2021

Fiction, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Medical, Diseases, Sci Fi, Fantasy

Cora lives on North Brother Island, off the coast of Manhattan Island, New York. She has lived there for a long time and has been a part of many medical experiments. When Finn Gettler comes to the island to explore the ruins, he meets Cora under disturbing circumstances. He doesn’t know why she lives there or why she doesn’t leave.

This book was unusual to say the least. There are science fiction aspects, but it probably could happen. Science experiments happen all the time. Who is to say that somewhere a scientist right now isn’t working on diseases to find a way for humankind to build immunities? There could be patients like Cora that we will never know about.

This book was fast paced, the characters were well developed, and it was written in the third person point of view. The author did a wonderful job with the history of the island along with the diseases contained there. After I finished reading the book, I did research on the island and the facility. I had no idea it was there or the type of diseases it held. If you like historical fiction with a mysterious medical twist, you will enjoy this one.

This was a very interesting book, and pretty timely in its fictional focus on microbiology. It spans from the present day to 1904 and some dates in between. Taking place on a secret island near NYC, the past and the present meet while a woman who is a host for a lot of deadly viruses is imprisoned and used by a family to try and discover the cures. Kind of dark, for sure. But engaging, and I cared about Cora, Finn, and Lily.

Thank you NetGalley for the copy.

DNF at 48% - this one just wasn't the right fit for me as a reader. I didn't jive with the author's writing style, and ultimately I wasn't invested enough in the plot or characters to look past it. I enjoyed the elements set in the early 1900s, but I couldn't connect with Finn at all which made the 2007 portions a bit of a slog. Given that this is planned to be the first in a series, I opted to cut my losses as I didn't see myself reading further books with the issues I was having up to this point. Totally down to my own preferences though!