Catherine House
Books | Fiction / Literary
3.3
(569)
Elisabeth Thomas
“[A] delicious literary Gothic debut.” –THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, EDITORS' CHOICE“Moody and evocative as a fever dream, Catherine House is the sort of book that wraps itself around your brain, drawing you closer with each hypnotic step.” – THE WASHINGTON POSTA Most Anticipated Novel by Entertainment Weekly • New York magazine • Cosmopolitan • The Atlantic • Forbes • Good Housekeeping • Parade • Better Homes and Gardens • HuffPost • Buzzfeed • Newsweek • Harper’s Bazaar • Ms. Magazine • Woman's Day • PopSugar • and more!A gothic-infused debut of literary suspense, set within a secluded, elite university and following a dangerously curious, rebellious undergraduate who uncovers a shocking secret about an exclusive circle of students . . . and the dark truth beneath her school’s promise of prestige.Trust us, you belong here.Catherine House is a school of higher learning like no other. Hidden deep in the woods of rural Pennsylvania, this crucible of reformist liberal arts study with its experimental curriculum, wildly selective admissions policy, and formidable endowment, has produced some of the world’s best minds: prize-winning authors, artists, inventors, Supreme Court justices, presidents. For those lucky few selected, tuition, room, and board are free. But acceptance comes with a price. Students are required to give the House three years—summers included—completely removed from the outside world. Family, friends, television, music, even their clothing must be left behind. In return, the school promises a future of sublime power and prestige, and that its graduates can become anything or anyone they desire.Among this year’s incoming class is Ines Murillo, who expects to trade blurry nights of parties, cruel friends, and dangerous men for rigorous intellectual discipline—only to discover an environment of sanctioned revelry. Even the school’s enigmatic director, Viktória, encourages the students to explore, to expand their minds, to find themselves within the formidable iron gates of Catherine. For Ines, it is the closest thing to a home she’s ever had. But the House’s strange protocols soon make this refuge, with its worn velvet and weathered leather, feel increasingly like a gilded prison. And when tragedy strikes, Ines begins to suspect that the school—in all its shabby splendor, hallowed history, advanced theories, and controlled decadence—might be hiding a dangerous agenda within the secretive, tightly knit group of students selected to study its most promising and mysterious curriculum.Combining the haunting sophistication and dusky, atmospheric style of Sarah Waters with the unsettling isolation of Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, Catherine House is a devious, deliciously steamy, and suspenseful page-turner with shocking twists and sharp edges that is sure to leave readers breathless.
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Author
Elisabeth Thomas
Pages
336
Publisher
HarperCollins
Published Date
2020-05-12
ISBN
0062905805 9780062905802
Ratings
Google: 4
Community ReviewsSee all
"This read like a rough draft of a book. "
C
CaitVD
""Something was getting out of control. I had thought that going deeper into the house, filling myself with its dark places, would feel good. But something was wrong."<br/><br/>Catherine House was the July pick for the Ladies of Horror Fiction readalong, and I enjoyed it! I'm an easy sell for boarding school / college novels, especially horror, so I figured I would like this one. Catherine House is odd, confusing, and vague, but none of these felt like negative things to me with this story. It's a fairly slow burn, which doesn't always work for me, but it did here. The story has a dreamlike quality, and there are a lot of unexplained things. It was mysterious, and I'm so curious about all the information that wasn't there. I feel like it still worked well enough to be a complete story, though. <br/><br/>I would definitely read another book by Elizabeth Thomas, and I hope she writes more weird gothic horror. I would also love if there was a spin-off in this universe!<br/><br/>CW - possible suicide (off-page), experimentation"
""I used to believe the house was haunted. Really, it was the other way around; the house haunted me."<br/>⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️<br/>In Catherine House, Elisabeth Thomas weaves together a beautifully haunting story where education becomes as consuming as it is enlightening. The story is set in a secluded, Gothic school with an eerie allure, a place that promises transformation but slowly devours the individuality of its students. Catherine House feels less like a place of growth and more like a machine stripping away creativity, binding students to the school's rigid ideals and expectations. Thomas's portrayal of the school reflects a biting critique of prestigious institutions, particularly Ivy Leagues, which often demand conformity over originality. The novel paints an unsettling yet accurate picture of how education can stifle curiosity and enforce uniformity, promising success at the cost of one's unique identity. The idyllic exterior of Catherine House hides a darkness that devours its students, showing how, for all its promise, the institution consumes more than it gives. This is one of my favorite novels of all time as it is an expert combination of gothic vibes, a realistic look at how damaging the education system can be, and dark academia elements throughout (including the actually day to day struggle of coursework, professor expectations, and the fear of failure)."
C Z
Cailin Zoltak
"Maybe I’m an idiot? I can’t really tell you the point if this book. A girl gets into an elite school that is pretty much unknown. They can’t have phones, internet, basically communicate with the outside world. She doesn’t love the school. Wants to find out her secrets. Her roommate disappears and then her boyfriend tells her about the schools main study is plasm. Doesn’t go into detail about plasm or what they’re doing with it. The school intends to make her part of the experiment but her one friend helps her escape in the end."