And a vulnerable young mother, Margaret Baxter, is poised to be his next victim.

Robert is operating on patients recklessly, often with horrific results. But as her husband spirals into deluded megalomania, Ruth can't ignore her growing suspicions. Ruth believes in it as a miracle treatment and in Robert as its genius pioneer. Then she falls in love with charismatic Robert Apter - a brilliant doctor championing a radical new treatment, the lobotomy.

Since her brother took his life after WWI, Ruth Emeraldine has had one goal: to help those suffering from mental illness. Unable to remain silent any longer, Lucien will soon discover that looking for answers at House of Earth may be the most dangerous rule he can break. Continuing to meet Gabrielle in secret only reinforces his gnawing fear that something about his world is terribly wrong. New rules are put in place, and anyone who violates them is asked to leave and never spoken of again.Īs forbidden questions pile up, Lucien's willingness to obey weakens. Slowly, things begin to change at House of Earth.

But when his youthful curiosity draws him into town and to Gabrielle, a public-school student living a life wholly different from his own, Lucien's inquisitiveness about life beyond the commune and questions regarding the events of 9/11 threaten to unbalance everything he thought he knew. It's where Lucien is taught the importance of living in harmony with nature and building a peaceful and sustainable future. Lucien has everything he needs: a loving mama, a library full of books, and House of Earth, a private school nestled safely in the woods of upstate New York. Purchase here, free with Amazon First Reads

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