The Purple Nightgown

For Fans of True Crimes, Historical Fiction, and Suspense

This next installment in the True Colors series gives readers another creepy crime story from American history. The Purple Nightgown takes readers back to the early 1900’s. Stella Burke would do anything to rid herself of terrible headaches. She checks herself into a “spa” run by Linda Hazzard. The promise of healing turns deadly for Stella. Linda Hazzard’s methods include starvation and abuse, and Stella finds herself in a prison that she can’t escape.

I read up on the story surrounding Linda Hazzard, and it’s truly horrifying that she convinced people to pay her money with the promise of healing and instead many people died from her questionable therapies. The author did a good job of shielding the reader from some of the more gruesome details, but still brought the story to life. There’s quite a bit of romance too as Stella finds herself falling for her longtime friend and chauffer. But her station in life prevents them from being together.

If you are a fan of the series, you’ll love the latest in the lineup. I always find it intriguing that the crimes and atrocities in these stories are all based on true events. Most of the time I’ve never heard of these crimes, so it’s interesting to see the authors’ take on the heartbreaking and sometimes horrifying events from the darker side of American history.  

Overall Rating:
4 stars (I liked it a lot and would definitely recommend)

Suspense Rating:
4 stars (lots of action and suspense to keep me intrigued)

I received an ebook review copy of this book through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.