Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Waiting on Wednesday - Turn of Mind; Alice LaPlante


Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we are eagerly anticipating! Want to participate? Post your own WOW entry on your blog, and leave your link at Breaking the Spine. Here is one that I've been curious about:

Turn of Mind; Alice LaPlante
July 5, 2011 - Atlantic Monthly Press

A stunning first novel, both literary and thriller, about a retired orthopedic surgeon with dementia, Turn of Mind has already received worldwide attention. With unmatched patience and a pulsating intensity, Alice LaPlante brings us deep into a brilliant woman?s deteriorating mind, where the impossibility of recognizing reality can be both a blessing and a curse.

As the book opens, Dr. Jennifer White?s best friend, Amanda, who lived down the block, has been killed, and four fingers surgically removed from her hand. Dr. White is the prime suspect and she herself doesn?t know whether she did it. Told in White?s own voice, fractured and eloquent, a picture emerges of the surprisingly intimate, complex alliance between these life-long friends—two proud, forceful women who were at times each other?s most formidable adversaries. As the investigation into the murder deepens and White?s relationships with her live-in caretaker and two grown children intensify, a chilling question lingers: is White?s shattered memory preventing her from revealing the truth or helping her to hide it?

A startling portrait of a disintegrating mind clinging to bits of reality through anger, frustration, shame, and unspeakable loss, Turn of Mind is a remarkable debut that examines the deception and frailty of memory and how it defines our very existence.



26 comments:

  1. WOW is right! This does sound really gripping, Diane.

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  2. This one sounds good....and creepy.

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  3. Sounds like an exciting mystery. Great pick!

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  4. Wow! This one presents a unique twist on the "dementia" tale. Combining the phenomenon of the deteriorating mind with a murder mystery sounds compelling.

    Here's mine:

    (click my name)

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  5. Double wow - this sounds like a can't-miss thriller. Have a wonderful week and happy reading. Here's my WOW

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  6. That sounds fantastic, and a little heartbreaking!

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  7. Oooh, I'm intrigued. This one's going on my list!

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  8. I want to read this!! I find mental-illness and things of this nature in literature fascinating, and am building quite a collection of these types of books. This one is going on the short list. Thanks for sharing this!

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  9. I'm always very drawn to books regarding the memory and dementia. If you throw in a mystery, that's even better. :-)

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  10. This one sounds fantastic. I like literary thrillers a lot. Thanks for bringing it to my attention!

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  11. Crazy intense -- but I'm totally intrigued! I can't wait to see your review -- if it's gory, I might have to pass -- but if it's simply creepy, then I'm all over it.

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  12. Diane, in re: your comment about links, when I came back here to test the URL/Name creation, it takes me to my post.

    Is that only working for me?

    I'll do it again now....

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  13. This book sounds really good! I'm definitely checking this one out. My list is huge right now! haha. Thanks for the recommendation!

    My Waiting on Wednesday is:
    http://faybaysbooks.blogspot.com/

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  14. Not normally what I read but the premise has grabbed me , might just have to give it a try.

    My WOW

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  15. Sounds pretty suspenseful for sure! Great pick.
    Have fun reading!

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  16. This sounds really good. Just that expression 'disintegrating mind' gives me chills!

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  17. I've been trying to learn how to create links...if this works, you should be able to click to one of my sites:

    A JOURNEY

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  18. Sounds very very interesting ... and more than a little creepy.

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  19. I normally don't like dark books like that, but the combo of the murder and the broken memory sounds great!

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  20. Hi! I noticed your comment at Caren and Cody's place regarding my book so I headed over to say hello!

    Your blog looks fun, think I'll kick up my paws and have a look around.

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  21. Ooohhhh...this sounds like something I'd really like to read. I have to add it to my list.

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  22. Lovely cover. Dark story. Sounds intriguing! Look forward to your review.

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  23. This one does sound great...I love the whole concept!!

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  24. This sounds really, really good!

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  25. I just finished this book this week and I really enjoyed it. I'll be posting my review soon!!!

    -Amy
    Life by Candlelight

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  26. I really, really enjoyed Turn of Mind. Alice LaPlante has done a phenomenal job of taking us into the daily life of an intelligent woman stricken with a horrible, horrible disease. We stay with Jennifer as her mind deteriorates, but it is her brief moments of clarity that give us insight into what really happened the day that Amanda was killed. Did Jennifer really murder her oldest, dearest friend, or is someone close to her taking advantage of her Dementia? Alice LaPlante has taken this murder mystery to a whole new level.

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Thanks for taking the time to visit and double thanks for any comments. If you ask a question in your comments, I will try to reply to it here, or by email if your settings allow me to do so. Thanks again for visiting.