I don't usually read anything in the 'thriller' genre, but After Alice Fell by Kim Taylor Blakemore* intrigued me as a historical thriller. I wasn't actually sure what to expect from this novel. But I'm glad I read it. On the Page Set just after the Civil War, this book was dark and disturbing. But the writing was also incredibly beautiful. War widow and nurse Marion has returned home to live with her brother, Lionel; sister-in-law, Cathy; and nephew from her brother's first marriage, Toby. Marion's sister, the titular Alice, has died while a patient in an asylum and Marion is convinced that the institution is hiding something. Alice had been mute since she was fourteen years old. And, when we discover the cause of her silence, I am pretty sure I gasped aloud. That's a successful thriller, right? Lionel's first wife and Toby's mother, Lydia, died tragically as well. And though Marion isn't initially investigating that death, she does un...