Author: Emily M. Danforth
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Genre: Horror & Paranormal Fiction, General Fiction
Year of release: 2021
Release Date 7th April 2021
Rating 
Synopsis
‘It’s a terrible story and one way to tell it is this: two girls in love and a fog of wasps cursed the place forever after…’1902, Brookhants School for Girls: students Flo and Clara are madly in love with each other, as well as completely obsessed with The Story of Mary MacLane, the scandalous debut memoir by 19-year-old MacLane. A few months later they are found dead in the woods, after a horrific wasp attack, the book lying next to their intertwined bodies. Within five years the school is closed. But not before three more people die on the property, each in a troubling way. Over a hundred years later, Brookhants opens its doors once more, when a crew of young actresses arrive to film a high-profile movie about the rumoured Brookhants curse. And as past and present become grimly entangled, it’s soon impossible to tell quite where the curse leaves off and Hollywood begins…
Review
Rhode Island, 1902, Brookhants School for Girls; Pupils Flo and Clara are head over heals in love, the pair come to be in the possession of The Story of Mary MacLane a scandalous debut memoir by the then 19-year-old MacLane. Sixteen year old Flo and Clara become infatuated with the Memoir and it’s author.
Some months later the pair are found dead in the woods behind Brookhants thanks to a horrendous wasp attack, the memoir found next to the departed their bodies interwoven. Three more deaths occur on the school’s grounds causing suspicion amongst the school’s staff and students. Seeing no-way to repair the schools tarnished reputation the establishment closes it’s doors.
A hundred years have passed since those tragic events at Brookhants School for Girls, once again the school is opening it’s doors, this time to Hollywood a trio of young actresses and crew arrive to film a high-profile movie the subject about the rumoured Brookhants events all those years before; now referred to as the Brookhants curse.
Past and present collide making it impossible to tell where the curse ends, and Hollywood begins….
I was very eager to read Plain Bad Heroines unfortunately my enthusiasm took a rapid nosedive and I really struggled to keep reading, I was hoping the story would improve and at times I felt like the story had taken a good turn, the hopes for this reader were dashed especially when it comes to the slow pace of the plot this making the 619 pages feel like a never-ending story.
Having now reached the end of Plain Bad Heroines and having now slept on my thoughts a little, I would say a clear highlight of this book was its narration approach was rather a clever idea. Majority of the foot notes I could have done without as some added absolutely nothing to the story at the time or in later chapters.
Every corner turned in this book leads back to romantic relationships or a desire to be in one, this was not something I identified as a problem in the beginning chapters but as the story crawled forward, I found it become a real bug for me in this book as it was everywhere and I as a reader needed to see other aspects of this book come to light before the ending arrived and this didn’t happen.
“I like it so much better when nobody expects anything from me and then I surprise them by delivering anything at all.”
“That bar’s so low you’re gonna stub your toe on it.”
― Emily M. Danforth, Plain Bad Heroines
So much of this book needed cutting down I felt like the ending suffered an abrupt end because to much time was spent elsewhere, I wonder if the book could be better suited to an audiobook due to its mammoth size.
“I’d rather we didn’t speak anymore. Let’s just wait together in unhappy silence.”
― Emily M. Danforth, Plain Bad Heroines
I gave the book two stars as I managed to finish this read. With continued thanks to Harper Collins Publisher Australia for sending a copy to read in exchange for an honest opinion.