Monday, April 11, 2016

Turn of Mind; Alice Laplante

Turn of Mind; Alice Laplante
Brilliance Audio - 2011

Have you ever listened to "Playaway"Audiobooks? I love borrowing them from our library system, they are so compact and are perfect for walks, exercising and bedtime listening.  All you need to do is plug in your own earphones and (1) AAA battery (sometimes the batteries even come with them).  I remember wanting to try Turn of Mind when it was released in 2011 and, finally 5 years later - mission accomplished.  The audio was very enjoyable and the story pretty good as well (read by Jean Reed Bahle).

Jennifer White's best friend Amanda has been murdered. Her disfigured body had four fingers neatly severed from her right hand.  Jennifer has Alzheimer's and is a now retired hand-surgeon.  Could Jennifer have murdered her best friend, and, if so, why?

As the story begins Jennifer is living in her own home along with Magdalena, her caregiver.  She uses a journal to help her remember and, she is lucid enough to realize that she may not be able to remain at home much longer.  Her son James, 29 and daughter Fiona, 24 have her transferred to an assisted living facility where she is questioned about her friend's murder.  Although she is the prime suspect, she doesn't know whether she did it or not.

This was an extremely interesting story to listen to on audio.  Sadly, Amanda's character is never fully developed and the reader only learns about Amanda through Jennifer's recollections. Both women were high achieving women with strong personalities and mean streaks.

This was an addictive murder mystery.  Readers who like stories with unreliable narrators should try this one.  It kept me guessing and provides a twist or two as well. Unfortunately, something happens at the end that didn't seem to fit that spoiled it a bit.  Despite that the story does come across as a realistic look at what Alzheimer's does to ones mind.

4/5 stars
(library audio) 


12 comments:

  1. I didn't know there were Playaways for adults! The children in my class, in our school, love them! I do a horrible job at listening, though. When I listened to Kashaguro's latest I missed the whole ending, and I'm just finishing a reread (listening to) The Night Circus which I loved in print. But again, I've missed the details in audio. It could be because I'm driving, but I suspect it's more because I'm a terrible listener. Not a good modality for this reader.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Our library doesn't carry them but, many of the other libraries in our system do. I laughed when you said that you were a bad listener as, I can be as well and other rewind a track when something doesn't make sense. (I still love them though).

    ReplyDelete
  3. Reminds me to get one for bedtime...

    ReplyDelete
  4. I am very curious about this one...I read another book by the author, A Circle of Wives, which was also very intriguing. Stories about deteriorating minds fascinate me, especially as I've known people with these conditions.

    Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  5. This has been in my to-read pile since, yeah, 2011! Maybe I should go to the library and get the audio. My audio to print ration is two to one!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I have been anxious to try the Playaways from our library. Now you have encouraged me to give them a try. I'll give this one a try.

    ReplyDelete
  7. We don't have playaways at home, but I have noticed then in our FL library... may have to check one out! They would be perfect for my walk.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have wanted to read this for a while. One day!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I liked Turn of Mind. It was different, it was about Alzheimer's (which I have dealt with in my family) and it was almost Dostoevskian in the way it dealt with guilt. Glad to know someone else who has read it. Here is my review: http://keepthewisdom.blogspot.com/2011/07/turn-of-mind.html

    ReplyDelete
  10. I love the library play-aways! I only wish there were a wider selection.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I've never seen or heard of Playaways! I'll have to see if my library carries them, although I'm pretty happy with their Overdrive system and Audible.com (for a once-a-month treat).

    I read Turn of Mind back in 2011 and loved it... almost as much as Still Alice! You can see my review here. Her next novel, Circle of Wives, was less than remarkable.

    ReplyDelete

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.