They Call Me Crazy
They Call Me Crazy by Kelly Stone Gamble 2014 mystery
This story is told from several points of view but each has its own chapter with the name of the POV person at the top so it isn’t difficult to keep them apart. This was done in “The Girl On The Train” and I’ve used this technique in my latest book. It helps to get deep into the mind of the main characters.
The characters are dysfunctional to say the least. The story begins with Cass burying her husband, Roland, in the poi pool he was digging. We learn how he verbally abused her and she throws out all the pills the doctor was prescribing for her craziness. We also find out that cheating Roland has been stealing her disability check and buried the cash in mason jars in the yard under all his plants. The reader is sympathetic toward Cass but knows she has killed her husband. How is she going to get out of this one?
If she was smart, she would dig up the money and leave town but she goes into town to buy a new shovel and since Roland was her shadow in the past, being alone raises a red flag to those who know her. We discover through the other characters that Roland cheated on Cass with any woman in town but her ex-best fired Maryanne has a secret that goes beyond the cheating. Gamble also reveals Roland’s brother and the sheriff have secrets which are revealed later in the story. This is another good technique for keeping the reader turning the pages – hint at a secret but wait to reveal it.
Gamble peels back layer after layer in the story, taking us deeper into the secrets and thoughts of the characters so that we understand them by the end of the story. This reveal is deeper than most mystery stories where there are good guys and bad guys. The characters in this story have good and bad traits which impact their decisions. Gamble shows how a tragic incident or bad advice in the past impacted the rest of that person’s life until they finally said enough was enough.
The story could have gone very dark but Gamble uses humor and keeps the situation more in the style of “The Gazebo” than “Fargo.” When she tries to move Roland’s body, it becomes hilarious and leads to the discovery of her crime. Her sister provides an excellent lawyer but you’ll have to read the story to discover the final outcome. It’s worth the read.
For more book reviews, go to http://www.authorfreeman.wordpress.com
