Dollhouse Asylum

Author: Mary Gray
Goodreads Rating: 3.66
Pages: 296
Format: ARC from BEA13

A virus that had once been contained has returned, and soon no place will be left untouched by its destruction. But when Cheyenne wakes up in Elysian Fields--a subdivision cut off from the world and its monster-creating virus--she is thrilled to have a chance at survival.

At first, Elysian Fields,with its beautiful houses and manicured lawns, is perfect. Teo Richardson, the older man who stole Cheyenne's heart, built it so they could be together. But when Teo tells Cheyenne there are tests that she and seven other couples must pass to be worthy of salvation, Cheyenne begins to question the perfection of his world.

The people they were before are gone. Cheyenne is now "Persephone," and each couple has been re-named to reflect the most tragic romances ever told. Everyone is fighting to pass the test, to remain in Elysian Fields. Teo dresses them up, tells them when to move and how to act, and in order to pass the test, they must play along.

If they play it right, then they'll be safe.

But if they play it wrong, they'll die.

This book was very interesting and I found it very hard to put down for very long. This was largely due to the fact that the book really made you wonder what was going to happen next. There were a few aspects of the book that really kind of irritated me.

I really did not care for Cheyenne very much. She was very submissive and was extremely naive plus her obsession with Teo bordered on creepy. Plus she bounces into and out of romances too quickly for my liking. Overall, not my favorite heroine character.

The plot is really what saved this book. As I said before, it was very hard to put this book down and I ended up just devouring it. It was very horror movie-like with an ending that was good and very poetic. Even the writing throughout the book was very poetic and descriptive, which was very nice given the background of the story. Some of the metaphors were repeated a lot (i.e. my heart was like a ping pong ball) but that didn't seem to bother me too much like it usually does because it fit (still bothered me a little though).

Overall, this was a great book that was an enjoyably short read. The main character really bothered me but the fact that the plot was really interesting helped this book get up to 3.5 stars.

The Courts Decision: