February 15, 2022
Indomitable investigative journalist Nellie Bly spends 10 days in a notorious asylum in Rodale's historical novel. It's 1887, and after four months spent knocking on doors on Newspaper Row, aspiring journalist Nellie Bly has yet to take New York City by storm. The ever determined 23-year-old is especially good at asking questions and believing in herself, but so far all her tenacity has gotten her is a recommendation to write for the ladies' papers. It doesn't help that every prominent male editor in the city has the same belief--women are too delicate, too emotional, too inaccurate to efficiently report the news. So when Nellie stumbles upon an underground women's group called the Ladies' Ordinary, she's thrilled to discover a secret weapon that will help her prove her worth. There, Nellie meets a crew of women journalists who introduce her to the world of stunt reporting: "Nothing sells like a crusade and a girl in danger." With her friends' help, Nellie meets with Col. John Cockerill, the World's editor, and convinces him to hire her as a stuntwoman reporter who will infiltrate the infamous Blackwell's Island insane asylum for women. Easily enough, Nellie finds herself en route to the island, but what awaits her in the middle of the East River is more dreadful than she dared prepare for. When one week turns into 10 days, and with the Sun's Sam Colton hot on her story's tail, Nellie wonders if she'll be able to survive her dire circumstances long enough to relay her expos� to the world. While Rodale takes some liberties--for example, Blackwell's darkly humorous "Prayer Girl" is based on one line of the real Nellie Bly's "Ten Days in a Mad-House" (1887)--all her main characters are inspired by real historical figures. Rodale's affinity for writing about powerful women is clear, and she aptly records the lengths they would go to in order to overcome their societal boundaries: "There were all kinds of madness, she supposes, and hers was daring to dream." An energetic and bold tale of one of history's most enterprising journalists.
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April 1, 2022
Seven days in Blackwell Island's infamous Insane Asylum for Women. That's what Nelly Bly promises her editor in 1887 New York City, where women reporters were scarce and had to work hard to prove themselves worthy of a position at a newspaper. Bly took on this life-threatening assignment for the New York World with only a verbal agreement from her editor that he would get her released at the end of the week. Suffering cold, hunger, and physical and mental abuse, the women of Blackwell Island rarely saw freedom once they had been admitted. Nelly hopes her story will not only serve as an interesting piece in the paper but also give voice to the women trapped in the asylum. Based on a true story, the latest from romance writer Rodale (An Heiress to Remember, 2020) offers gripping details of the treatment of women in the asylum and in New York City at large. Readers will eagerly turn the pages to see if Nelly will escape the prison she willingly entered, all to prove herself worthy of a story.
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