Intriguing, suspenseful, and beautifully written, The Doll Factory is a gripping and original gothic novel. There were many events that took me by surprise, or pushed against my expectations, and for that I am grateful. So often, novels such as this are formulaic and therefore fall short. I also appreciated how Iris’s life post-escape was explained through a newspaper review instead of the typical “happily ever after” variety. I’ll definitely be looking out for Macneal’s future works.