Rating: 
Summary: One-sided, but worth reading
Review: The Siren's Dance is a rare find. Here is a brutally honest account of a failed professional and personal relationship by a specialist physician. I think Dr Walker is extremely brave to to have provided this highly personal account of what happened and how it affected him. He makes no excuses for his own mistakes (which are painfully obvious - hence the misguided criticisms of the book by some reviewers), nor does he seek to sugar-coat the story by downplaying the havoc that Michelle's mental disorder wrought on both their lives. He doesn't pretend to offer a dispassionate analyisis of BPD - he simply relates his perceptions of what happened and how he felt about it at the time. Thankfully, he does not try "professionalise" the account by censoring his thoughts and feelings.Many eminent psychiatrists and neurologists have written textbooks about the disorders they treat, and some have even written moving personal accounts of their interactions with their patients. But Dr Walker has done something much braver - he has told his own harrowing story, warts and all. By setting aside the professional mask to tell us his story - despite exposing his youthful naivity and lack of judgement - he provides a unique perspective on the challenges of treating and living with BPD. (By the way, the up-to-date clinical material in the appendices provides a helpful primer on BPD.)
Rating: 
Summary: What is it like to be married to someone with BPD?
Review: The term Borderline Personality Disorder seems to get thrown around easily. Sometimes it is even used as a pejorative. Friends and families often don't understand what someone married to a BPD goes through. This is a book to give them. Many of the instances in the book are very easy to identify with if you have ever been in such a relationship. Manipulation, all-or-nothing, up-and-down, good-or-bad, nothing in-between, suicide threats. This book is written by a psychiatrist but it is a memoir and not clinical...anyone can read it. I found it though to be a tremendous asset mainly because Dr. Walker put down his thoughts and motivations in ways that I could understand my own. I read it in one night unable to put it down.
Rating: 
Summary: A different view
Review: This book is hard to review because it is a combo. On one had it is a facinateing and entertaining story and worth a read for anyone. On the other had it is help up like a "medical guide" or a factual, researched thesis. Perhaps because of the name "case study" and the fact that the author is a Doctor.
While reading this book one should bear in mind that it is a memoir of someone's life - not a medical journal. If this is kept in mind the book is an insightful read. If, however, this book is taken as "gospel truth" it could be dangerouse to anyone dealing with a relationship that nvoles mental illness (either as the ill person or the non-ill person) It is one person's story... not a script that all relationships or all people with BPD follow.
My thanks to the heartfelt review of the "mood shifter" You may want to also read "An Unquiet Mind" as it is also a memoir and does not present itself like a self-help book.
Rating: 
Summary: Extremely Disappointing
Review: This is by far the shallowest account of a relationship with a borderline I have read. I wish borderlines in general were as explicit in their intentions and their extreme neediness as the main character honestly stated from the beginning in this story (except for the violent side). Also, in this case, the 'victim' was never mistaken for the 'bad guy', as it happens frequently, and the writer was able to get support even from the borderline's family.
Rating:
Summary: Siren's Dance
Review: Upon being asked to review "The Siren's Dance" by author Dr. Anthony Walker, I decided to read the reviews he has received thus far. After doing so, I was hesitant, to say the least. In the reviews the author was portrayed as arrogant, unethical, an alcoholic, abusive and sex craved. But what I saw was a human, someone that felt he could fix this woman, it's not unheard of. We must remember that behind every doctor, there is an infallible human being that isn't perfect and has faults. I would also like to clarify something at this point. Michelle was not Dr. Anthony Walker's patient, and was still a medical student. Furthermore, his supervisors knew he was dating her, and the only warned him about her mental illness. The author admits his mistakes in his courageous account of being married to someone with Borderline Personality Disorder.
People that suffer from BPD, are very manipulative. I have always equated it with a spider that lures its victim into the web, then attacking its prey. This book addresses something that's never been attempted before, that is the seductiveness, pure powerfulness of someone with BPD. They use their sexuality, seductiveness and charm to draw a man in. They view sex as the only way to keep a man, to make a man love them and hopefully never leave them. The only time they feel like they can be loved is when they have sex. Michelle herself says, "I know you still love me because you still make love to me, even after we fight."
As a sufferer of BPD, it was hard for me to read this book, I kept telling myself I was never that bad, but the truth is I was. Reading this book has helped me to see what I put my family and friends through. It's so much easier to blame others for our behavior. It helps us to not accept that we have a problem. It has only been after years of intense therapy, that I have changed and my symptoms aren't as severe as described in this book. Dr. Anthony Walker has personalized Borderline Personality Disorder, put a face to it, and revealed the emotional aspects of living with this disorder. He brings his readers an accurate, rather disturbing account of life with, and living with Borderline Personality Disorder.
On a personal note, in my opinion the ones that reacted so strongly against the book, do so because they aren't willing to admit the sheer powerful effect someone with BPD has over them, or to admit they are as bad as described in this book. I would like to point out that those that suffer from BPD aren't hopeless, and can achieve some relief from their symptoms. It angers me when people say they never get better because I know this is untrue. However, it does take intense therapy and hard work to change. I know this because I have done it. I am now in a healthy, happy relationship and stable. I think it's a shame that there are people out there that view someone with BPD as hopeless. I encourage anyone that feels this way to visit Suite101, where I address Borderline Personality Disorder.
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