By Reason of Insanity

Rating:
Summary: An original!
Review: I had to get G. Miki Hayden's latest work, after enjoying PACIFIC EMPIRE. This is, in fact, a VERY fun read, written with wit and style. The twists and turns will keep you guessing till the end! I can't wait until Ms. Hayden's next book.

Rating:
Summary: Great little murder mystery.
Review: I have not read fiction for a number of years now, and this was a great story to break the drought.

I especially appreciated the mental approach over a more conventional method of story telling. I especially like knowing the reasons behind many of the comments. The lighthearted jabs at the psycho-medical profession were especially amusing to me, along with the knowledge the author exhibited in the knowledge of the controlled substances used in the profession.

My only misgiving is not having a sequel to this story to read. I understand it is not in the near future plans of this author.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good murder mystery with some unusual twists. See if the ending is as surprising as it was for me.

Rating:
Summary: Great little murder mystery.
Review: I have not read fiction for a number of years now, and this was a great story to break the drought.

I especially appreciated the mental approach over a more conventional method of story telling. I especially like knowing the reasons behind many of the comments. The lighthearted jabs at the psycho-medical profession were especially amusing to me, along with the knowledge the author exhibited in the knowledge of the controlled substances used in the profession.

My only misgiving is not having a sequel to this story to read. I understand it is not in the near future plans of this author.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good murder mystery with some unusual twists. See if the ending is as surprising as it was for me.

Rating:
Summary: An original!
Review: I read this book a year ago, but when someone was asking me for a good mystery to read, I thought of this one. The main character, setting, and tempo are different from most mysteries & I think that makes it both more memorable and more enjoyable than your average mystery. I would love to read another by this author!

Rating:
Summary: A wicked little mystery!
Review: On a quiet September morning in a small Michigan town, a young nurse is found brutally slain. Standing in for the ME is Dr. Dennis Astin, a psychiatrist. Then and there we realize BY REASON OF INSANITY is no ordinary murder mystery. Center City, with 32 homicides in nine months, is OUR TOWN as constructed by Woody Allen; and the self-medicated shrink is as quirky a sleuth as they come.

Nothing is as it seems in Center City. The (formerly) perky murder victim turns out to be a possible stalker. The police lieutenant in charge of the case is Astin's boyhood pal and romantic rival-for his own wife. Astin's new romantic interest thinks he's nuts-and the more Astin investigates the murder of Karen Sommer, the more he fears she may be right. But then everyone is a little crazy in this town.

Needless to say, not every reader will "get" the subtleties of this lean, mean little novel. Hayden turns a knowing eye and wicked sense of humor on the mental health care system (which the author covered for years as a reporter); on the ironic intricacies of the mating ritual; and on the mystery genre itself.

As one would expect from veteran author and writing instructor G. Miki Hayden, the prose here is crisp and effective. The result is a clever and original novel, as much social satire as who-dunit.

Rating:
Summary: Intriguing whodunit with a Hitchcock twist
Review: The story begins when Dennis Astin, M.D. becomes involved in the autopsy of Karen Sommer. The nurse's body was found in a park not too far from the St. Luke's Medical Center, where Dr. Astin practices psychiatry. Dr. Astin could have used the autopsy fee, but Dr. Tori Heller, internist from a hospital an hour's drive away got the case first. The venue is not a big urban medical center, just a small hospital central Michigan - in a Michigan winter. And this is not a cozy mystery - it is a Hitchcock style mystery. The murder is so gruesome that Dr. Astin feels drawn in to investigate. Handling the case is semi-competent Lt. Theodore Reesner, Dr. Astin's pal since childhood. The list of suspects is uncomfortably short, consisting initially on one Dr. Peter Zinn, a physician who is heavy into administration and money-making. As the story unfolds, we learn that Dr. Dennis Astin is carrying the burden watching over Dinah, his schizophrenic sister, who lives with their difficult mother. A half-hearted romance with Dr. Tori Heller leaves us wondering about Dr. Dennis Astin's libido, until we learn of his two-decade-long affair with Mary Ellen Reesner, wife of Lt. Reesner. And the longer Dennis Astin investigates, the more it begins to look like he is the prime suspect. Although Dr. Astin is an expert at finding the right psychoactive drug to stabilize others (described expertly in the book), he may not have hit on the right combination for himself. Doctor heal thyself. Michigan winter and rural setting lends a sense of isolation. The prose is lean, the milieu is haunting, and the ending is surprising.

Rating:
Summary: a fun read
Review: This book was a GREAT disappointment. The author, obviously, knows nothing of psychiatry or medicine in general. That she has done little or no research into the subject is painfully obvious. The writing is amateurish, stilted, and feels as though the author is trying to be witty, when, instead, she is just offensive.

The so-called "hero" of the story is a supposed psychiatrist with no redeeming qualities, who moonlights as a medical examiner pro tem. His attempts as psychiatry are laughable and his autopsies are atrocious. In a town large enough to have had thirty-two murders in nine months, the attention to evidence gathering is incredibly lax.

An example: "You won't forget to check for semen? Teddy muttered hesitantly. (Teddy is a lieutenant of police--apparently, there is no chief.)

(The "hero," our M.E., responds) "I don't know much about forensics, but I know that much."

"I guess we ought to get someone over from Sutterville to help you out," Teddy suggested in a louder tone, gazing at Astin (our "hero") a bit more alertly.

"Yeah, it wouldn't exactly hurt, now would it? Especially if you ever hope to go to trial with this thing. Imagine the defense cross-examining me. 'And how many autopsies had you performed to that date, Dr. Astin?' 'One and a half, sir. I got sidetracked during the second one having to go and deal with a living patient.'"

"The second one was O'Leary. You completed that one when you got back, didn't you?" Teddy appeared somewhat mystified.

"Actually, I never did. Charlene thought I was finished and turned him over to the Loewen Funeral Home. When I returned to the morgue the next day, I called Loewen to reclaim the corpse. By then, they had O'Leary shot up to the gills with embalming fluid. I let it go at that point. Seemed sort of moot."

"Oh, well" Teddy reflected. "I guess it was a heart attack." (This is a police lieutenant's reaction to an unexplained death?)

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The murder of a human being is nothing to be flippant about. Apparently, the author isn't aware of this. She treats the murder of a nurse as, almost, a joke.

An example: (The police lieutenant asks) "You're sure she was killed this morning, not last night?"

(Astin replies) "The body's still warm." He had taken her temperature. "I wouldn't want to take her to breakfast this morning or to a show, but there's still some heat."

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And the dialogue!

An example: (Tori, another doctor says, after seeing reporters outside the funeral home) "It's outrageous that they behave like that," she said.

(Astin responds) "The public asks for it. Hell, we insist on it. If we refused to read or watch this stuff, they wouldn't be assigned to cover it."

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Another example: (The police lieutenant says to Astin) "Tori Heller," Teddy said. "I think she wants to go out with you."

What is this? Seventh grade? I was of the impression that these were adults!

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Another example: (Astin, pretending to be a detective, says to the mother of the murdered nurse) '"Who would want to do something like this, Mrs. Sommer? Was there anyone who might have wished Karen any harm? A former boyfriend, maybe, who had threatened her? A current boyfriend who was jealous? Did she tell either of you anything like that?"

Mrs. Sommer was merely confused by Astin's questions. "Karen wasn't that type of girl," answered the husband for his wife. "She was a quiet person, very studious, very dedicted to her nursing. She was someone who really cared about others... Why is it always the good ones that they kill?"'

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Here's an example of dialogue between two medical doctors:

(Astin, the psychiatrist, says to Tori, the internist, in regard to giving the mother of the victim some Valium) "Of course she's upset. Her daughter's been murdered. But tell me, Dr. Heller, would you prescribe for a patient without obtaining a history?"

"No, I wouldn't. But the type of medication I prescribe is taken on an ongoing basis. And it can have dangerous side effects if not properly monitored."

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Enough said. Unfortunately, I'm not able to get a refund for the book.

Thank you. S. Welker, Downey, California

Rating:
Summary: A winner!
Review: Well, Ms. Hayden has gone and done it again. A wonderful follow-up to her impressive PACIFIC EMPIRE. BROI is a scintillating mystery set in small-town Michigan with an impressive cast of rich and vivid characters. My personal favorite is Dr. Dennis Astin, the protag. A bit of a hypochondriac, maybe, but I doubt if there is a man over the age of forty who will fail to recognize a smidgen of himself in this splendid character.

Hayden's mastery as a wordsmith is proven time and time again within the covers of BROI. She has an extremely characteristic style of writing that is economical but still manages to get across exactly what she wants to say with remarkable accuracy. As a writer myself, I often found myself staring off into space trying to figure out exactly how she had imparted a certain piece of information without me noticing. She is able to sum up in a single paragraph something that I and many other writers would require several pages to get across The red herrings are also incredibly subtle. I had settled on who I thought was the culprit about three-quarters through the book, but I couldn't quite pin-point exactly why I had targeted this person until I went back over the story in my mind and analyzed the gentle subtelties of the plot.

To sum up, a great book that I thoroughly recommend. According to the Publisher's Afterword, the next book in the Dr. Astin series will be TOO OLD FOR MURDER? Now, that *is* something to look forward to.

Chris Belton, author of Crime Sans Frontieres