Asylum

“All of us at the orphanage had one thing, one terribly important thing, in common: We were mistakes. I never really understood what that meant, but Sister said it often enough that I knew it must be true. We came from villages, farms, even the city itself; we were brought with favourite toys or blankets or in harsh, cheap, unraveling baskets or by some relative who hid us from the light of day. Those who brought us in were fed the lies. Of course he can keep his favourite blanket. Naturellement, she will have her stuffed rabbit with her in bed at night. Bien sur, there will be a good education. We love them all as though they were our own. Well, we were theirs, all right; but love didn’t have anything to do with it.” When four women are found over several months brutally murdered and shockingly posed on park benches throughout Montreal, Martine LeDuc—public relations director for the mayor’s office—fears a PR disaster. The women seem to have nothing in common: They’re of varying ages, backgrounds, and body types, and yet the macabre presentation of their bodies hints at a connection. Martine’s boss appoints her as liaison between the mayor and the police department, and she is paired with a young detective, Julian Fletcher. Together they dig deeply into the city’s past, uncovering dark secrets hidden during the 1950s, when orphanages in Montreal and elsewhere were converted to hospitals for the insane. It isn’t until Martine finds herself imprisoned beneath the old asylum that she can put the pieces together—and then it’s almost too late....