Wayward Girls

"After decades of bestsellers, Wayward Girls might be Susan Wiggs' opus. A gut-wrenching story of survival, friendship, and justice. Masterful."--Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author of The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell "The magnificent Susan Wiggs takes a leap into the history of women..a page-turner, replete with mystery and suspense."Adriana Trigiani, New York Times bestselling author of The Good Left Undone From New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs, a wrenching but life-affirming novel based on a true story of survival, friendship, and redemption. Set in the turbulent Vietnam era in the All-American city of Buffalo, New York, six girls are condemned to forced labor in the laundry of a Catholic reform school. In 1968 we meet six teens confined at the Good Shepherda dark and secretive institution controlled by Sisters of Charity nunslocked away merely for being gay, pregnant, or simply unruly. Mairin free-spirited daughter of Irish immigrants, committed to keep her safe from her stepfather. Angeladenounced for her attraction to girls, sent to the nuns for reform, but instead found herself the victim of a predator. Helenthe daughter of intellectuals detained in Communist China, she saw her temporary stay at the Good Shepherd stretch into years. Odessacaught up in a police dragnet over a racial incident, she found the physical and mental toughness to endure her sentence. Denisesentenced for brawling in a foster home, she dared to dream of a better life. Janicedeeply insecure, she couldnt decide where her loyalty layexcept when it came to her friend Kay, who would never outgrow her childlike dependency. Sister Bernadetterescued from a dreadful childhood, she owed her loyalty to the Sisters of Charity even as her conscience weighed on her. Wayward Girls is a haunting but thrilling tale of hope, solidarity, and the enduring strength of young women who find the courage to break free and find redemption...and justice. "Wayward girls is all about the power of female bonds...this isn't just a moment in timeit's a cautionary tale."Jodi Picoult, New York Times bestselling author of By Any Other Name