Brilliant Insanity

by Yvonne Mason

Louis Reinhart has five days to live before he is injected with the lethal cocktail. Louis Reinhart has been given permission to tell the world his side of the story. a story which was not allowed to be told in court. The Fort Pierce Sentinel has agreed to send a reporter to interview Reinhart. However, Reinhart has been very specific as to which reporter he will agree to talk to. Her name is Mandy McQuaid. She is a rookie reporter. This is her first job and she is stuck in the obit section of the paper. Even though the Editor is not happy about Reinhart's request, he sends Mandy to conduct the interview. Reinhart has his own agenda. He believes he was justified in his quest for retribution and he wants to share it with the world. Not only does he want to share it with the world, but it is very important that he share it with Mandy. As Reinhart draws Mandy into his web of lies, and narcissistic behavior, one wonders where the next bend in the road leads. With an ending that will shock and amaze even the most seasoned reader, Brilliant Insanity is destined to become the brand of thriller that all others will be compared.

200 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2008

About the author

Quotes From Author by Yvonne Mason

“What you Don't Know About ME

Background: The eldest of five children, Yvonne was born May 17, 1951 in Atlanta, Georgia. Raised in East Point, Georgia, she resided there until 1970. Then moved to North Georgia, In 2006 she moved to Port St. Lucie, Florida where she currently makes her home. Licensed bounty hunter for the state of Georgia.

Education: After a 34 year absence, returned to college in 2004. Graduated with honors in Criminal Justice with an Associate’s degree from Lanier Technical College in 2006.

Awards: Nominated for the prestigious GOAL award in 2005 which encompasses all of the technical colleges. This award is based not only on excellence in academics but also leadership, positive attitude and the willingness to excel in one’s major.

Affiliations: Beta Sigma Phi Sorority

The Dream: Since learning to write at the age of five, Yvonne has wanted to be an author. She wrote her first novel Stan’s Story beginning in 1974 and completed it in 2006. Publication seemed impossible as rejections grew to 10 years. Determined, she continued adding to the story until her dream came true in 2006.

The Inspiration: Yvonne’s brother Stan has been her inspiration and hero in every facet of her life. He was stricken with Encephalitis at the tender age of nine months. He has defied every roadblock placed in his way and has been the driving force in every one of her accomplishments. He is the one who taught her never to give up.

Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did I read the same book as the five star reviews? The story was okay but not the deep twists or dark secrets I expected. Pretty predictable, in fact. An okay read that was dropped down to 3 stars (maybe i will go back and change it to two,actually) for two primay reasons. One: there didn't seem like there was much in the way of proofreading going on- lots of misspelled words and punctuation errors, misuse of words, and the conversation was very stilted. People use contractions in conversation. No contractions here. It was as if English was a second language for all of the characters. All this took away from the book and gave the appearance that it was written in haste. Two: I feel cheated by the fact that I paid 10 dollars for the kindle version for a book that used some if the largest font I've ever seen as well as generous use of blank lines between chapters. Sometimes it was two or 3 page turns on the kindle to get to more writing. This in addition to having approximately 10 lines on the page due to the large font meant I read it in about an hour. Not a worthwhile spend, and all in all left me with the impression it was part of a high school creative writing class. Good idea, poor execution.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant Insanity: Novel by Yvonne Mason

Reviewed by: Fran Lewis


Victim or murderer: Retribution or Revenge: Justified or Not: Is Marian Louise/Lewis Reinhart guilty or is he a victim of circumstances that were beyond his control?

My name is Marian Lewis/Louise Reinhart and I invite you to analyze my life and the reasoning behind my acts of revenge. I will state the facts as I presented them to the reporter that I chose to write my story. You decide whether I should receive that lethal injection or not.

The police took their time in finding me. In fact had I not presented them with the clues to find me I would never have been caught. They claim that I intentionally mutilated, chopped up, and used for fish bait eight women that they claim did not deserve to die plus three more that they now know about because I confessed to their murders to my interviewer. I must confess that I had no choice but to seek revenge on these women for what they had done to me. The first three of the eleven were just practice kills in order to make sure I got the EIGHT I intended to kill done the right way.

Yvonne Mason, a master at her craft, created through me, her main character an exquisite, intricate web of intrigue, deception, murder, and revenge in her acclaimed novel Beautiful Insanity.

Many would say that she portrayed me as a cruel, heartless, and unfeeling person who lured these women into his lair and committed a very heinous crime. However, each of these women played a vital role in what happened to me that fateful night and scarred me for life.

All of these women attended the same High School as I did. All of them mocked, ridiculed, and shunned me for being different. They made me feel that being superior in intelligence, not dressing flashy and not being in their social class made me an inferior person and the object of their ridicule. Most of the time I felt as if I was invisible when in the same room with them and other students in the school.

All I ever wanted from everyone, including my parents, was to be accepted for the person I was. That was not to be. Most people could not accept that I had a superior IQ of 170 and could learn just about anything with no problem at all. However, all of them wanted my help with their homework and did not hesitate to ask.

As a woman trapped in a man’s body, I could not cope with the way I was and I had myself changed into a woman on the inside. No one realized it until that fateful night which led to events that I will not tell because I do not want to give away the author’s secrets.

Mandy, the reporter that I chose to interview me before I receive that injection seemed scared at first and could not handle being in the interview room with me when she first met me. As the interviews continued, she became stronger and pushed to find out the one secret that I would not divulge until the very end. This secret would explain how her mother became one of my victims and a lot more. I even insisted that she was present for my execution or she would never know the truth about her mother or why I had chosen her as the only reporter for this exclusive interview.

Yvonne Mason’s description of Mandy and her reactions are not only creative but also so realistic the reader will feel that he or she is in the room with her as they read my account of each murder. Anyone with any kind of feeling might even feel sorry for these women, but most of them got what they deserved and they were better off for it. You will have to read this amazingly crafted novel to find out whether you agree that they deserved what they got, or you think I was right. After all, they were in unhappy marriages or relationships and really provided nothing tangible to society. So, why not put them out of their misery.

Yvonne Mason, also the author of Silent Scream, which this reviewer cannot wait to read, wrote an outstanding and very descriptive, realistic and heart wrenching story of revenge. She describes the inner thoughts and workings of a multiple-personality man/woman who was not content with his life. Each of the women killed had changed over the years and still craved to be the center of attention to their spouses and family. However, they were not. For a short time he made sure that they were and then he ended their sorry lives.


Although, a genius, he never really felt he belonged anywhere and with any one. Planning these murders was a full time job and he committed them to perfection. He might have felt that he won by killing them but in reality he did not. The lethal injection that he received could not bring back those he killed nor would it fill the void in those left behind.

There is a lesson to be learned in this novel in that people need to learn to accept others for who and what they are and ridicule them: Well: you see what happened to these women when they did!

I give this book FIVE STARS!

Fran Lewis

[Irma Fritz · Rating 5 out of 5]

BRILLIANT INSANITY: A BAD DUDE GETS HIS JUST DESSERTS!

Marion Lewis Reinhart is a bad dude and he’s about to get his just desserts. Reinhart is a lot of things, but he’s never rude. In fact, he rejects that label vehemently, reasoning his mother would not have allowed it. Ever the gentleman, he wined, dined and entertained his victims at restaurants, at his home, or on his yacht--until he killed them. When we meet him after 15 years of imprisonment at Florida’s Raeford Prison, he has exhausted all of his appeals and has just five days left to tell his story.

Reinhart fears not death by lethal injection; he only worries lest he die before the world knows his true reasons for killing eight—no, make that 11--women. He will only tell his story his way and to only one person: Mandy McQuaid, a young reporter at the Fort Pierce Sentinel.

In her novel, BRILLIANT INSANITY, Yvonne Mason spins out the confessions of serial killer Reinhart by using first person POV. When Mandy leaves the prison cell, the author uses omniscient POV when the reporter talks about her reactions to the interviews with Reinhart, or when she interacts with the two cops who chaperone her. At times, this shifting POV caught me by surprise, as I didn’t know who was speaking. While Reinhart takes his place assuredly as the star of this novel, I felt that the Mandy character would have benefitted from being fleshed out a bit more. In addition, the cops, Joe Dobbs and Allen Jones, are faint characters who don’t leave much of an impression.

In describing the murders, Marion Lewis Reinhart, who began life as a female, cleverly uses his “Lewis” or “Louise” voice depending on the mood s/he’s in, or the impression s/he wants to convey to the listener. Reinhart is convinced that the police are bumbling idiots. This is his chance to explain his true motives for the killings and he enjoys every minute of it. The author makes it clear that this is not your average misunderstood guy or gal. In his “brilliant insanity,” Reinhart transgresses into madness. He believes he only righted a wrong done to him years ago. He also believes that his victims’ lives were such that they were better off dead than alive.

The astute reader will get hints early on as to why Reinhart chose Ms. McQuaid in particular to hear his gruesome confessions. When the body count is complete, there’s still another story to be told, one of particular interest to our gal reporter Mandy. Read on, but don’t make any lunch dates with anyone you meet on the Internet!

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bone Chilling for sure - a great quick read that will make you think about the victims and their families. The reader receives insight into a killers mind, while a tale of suspense is woven by Ms Mason. Excellent book!

[Fiona · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW What a ride.

I loved this book - where on earth would you feel sympathy for someone like this...

Brilliant quick read.... Well done Yvonne...