Genre:
Contemporary Fiction/Mystery/Woman’s Fiction
Description:
“Cass
Adams is crazy, and everyone in Deacon, Kansas, knows it. But when
her good-for-nothing husband, Roland, goes missing, no one suspects
that Cass buried him in their unfinished koi pond. Too bad he doesn’t
stay there for long. Cass gets arrested on the banks of the Spring
River for dumping his corpse after heavy rain partially unearths it.
The
police chief wants a quick verdict—he’s running for sheriff and
has no time for crazy talk. But like Roland’s corpse, secrets start
to surface, and they bring more to light than anybody expected.
Everyone in Cass’s life thinks they know her—her psychic
grandmother, her promiscuous ex-best friend, her worm-farming
brother-in-law, and maybe even her local ghost. But after years of
separate silences, no one knows the whole truth. Except Roland. And
he’s not talking.”
Author:
“Kelly
Stone Gamble was born and raised in the Midwest… all over the
Midwest. By the time she graduated from high school, she had run away
from home twice and attended twenty-two different schools.”
To
learn more about Ms. Gamble check out her website or Facebook page.
Appraisal:
There
was a lot of dark humor in this twisted tale that could have taken
place in any small town. The story exposes some serious issues of
mental illnesses being improperly medicated by doctors who treat
beyond their expertise. Cass lived her days in a fog and the best
decision she ever made was dumping her pills down the toilet on that
fateful day. Crazy ran in her family. When Cass was five, her mother
committed suicide. Cass and her nine-year-old sister, Lola, were left
in the care of their grandparents. Their grandma Babe was known for
making potions, reading auras, and told fortunes with tarot cards.
She was considered the town witch.
This
story is told through multiple points of view that are clearly marked
in each chapter heading. Each character rang true as they told us
their perspective of the events as they unfolded. I could feel the
sheriff’s frustration, and had to giggle as Cass’s big city
lawyer put his spin on the situation. Small town secrets always have
a way of coming to light, much to Maryanne’s dismay. The local
fifth grade teacher has several secrets of her own and is expertly
woven into Cass’s, Roland’s, and Clay’s lives. Clay was
Roland’s older brother who after being discharged from the army
after two years’ service, now spends his time with his worm farm
when not working at the local hardware store. To say this town has
colorful residents is an understatement.
I
found this an entertaining read that pulled me in and kept me reading
till my eyes wouldn’t stay open any longer. The setting of this
book happens to be relatively close to where I live, so I could
identify with the people, the problems that they dealt with, and
situations that arose a little too easily. I appreciated the fact
that Cass attempts to take full responsibility for herself instead of
playing the crazy card and she doesn’t see herself as a victim.
This was a well told story that left me with a smile on my face.
FYI:
Added
for Reprise Review: They
Call Me Crazy was the winner in the Contemporary Fiction category for B&P 2015
Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran February 11, 2015.
Format/Typo
Issues:
Even
though I read an advanced readers copy and normally don’t comment
on editing or formatting issues, I came across no issues to note.
Rating:
***** Five Stars
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Approximate
word count: 60-65,000
words
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