'The threat is palpable... a great writer.' (Rudy Simone, author of Aspergirls: Empowering Females with Asperger Syndrome) Preston, 1866: Time is running out for Goldcord Asylum. Once a progressive establishment dedicated to curing the mental problems of the inmates, now the asylum is under increasing pressure to treat and release patients whether they are ready or not. Professional pride, personal ideals, financial pressures and dark secrets compete to determine whether Goldcord will survive.In the midst of this maelstrom of conflicting interests, Ivy Squire is committed. A strange young woman, so self-destructive that she must be kept in isolation, Ivy begins to reveal her story to new nurse Tilly Swann. But can Tilly find the key to Ivy's madness before she is dragged into danger by Superintendent Enoch Gale's increasing recklessness? A gripping, intense work of historical fiction, brought vividly to life by Jude Starling. 'Goldcord Asylum promises a cure, but you will find no rest there, just shocking violations of women whose only crime was to feel.' (Rudy Simone) Included bonus material: * The Eternal Tightrope Act: Asperger's Syndrome, Women, Ivy and Me * Hills to Hide Walls: Mid-Victorian Psychiatry and Asylums * Refined Melancholy and 'Nature's Mistakes': Mental Health Patients in the Victorian Era * A Little Miscellaneous Trivia