Only Eleven Years Old

Faced with his parents' divorce, eleven-year-old Lucas runs away from home in the hope that his family will get back together to find him. While walking through the empty streets, he is picked up by a mysterious woman, who offers to take care of him and provide him with a loving family.

The boy then wakes up in shackles, confined to a bed in a decrepit house in the middle of nowhere and will have to face his deepest fears in order to survive in his new home.

Madhouse by Miguel Estrada begins with one of the most sinister sentences I've ever read:

"At only eleven years old, Lucas would live through all the horrors the human being is capable of."

This novella had me wondering if I would be able to make it to the end. As a mother, anything with the suffering of children is a tough read. Knowing "Lucas would live through" gave me some comfort, but left me wondering what condition Lucas would be in after the nightmare he's put through. Estrada's ever-increasing suspense overwhelmed any attempt to predict what would happen next. I felt as helpless as Lucas...more so, in fact.

Of course, I also wondered how his kidnapping would affect his parents. Nothing could have prepared me for the final blow delivered by the author. In hindsight, Estrada left a clue here and there, but, even after reading through a second time, the final horror remains shocking and I am fearful of the adult Lucas might turn into.

As always,
AstraDaemon