Reviews

Turn of Mind by Alice LaPlante

enrichingerin's review

2.0

I actually was not able to finish this book. The choppy writing style to give you a feel for the narrators dementia just wasn't doing it for me. I was curious to know what happened, but unfortunately not enough to continue reading it.

amycrea's review

5.0

Having spent a good part of this summer dealing with crises involving my mother and her rapidly advancing Alzheimer's, I'm surprised I picked up this book to read now. What a wild, harrowing ride this is. The narrator, Dr. Jennifer White, is sliding through Alzheimer's, and she's being accused of killing her best friend. Watching her trains of thought, and how she interacts with those around her, often hallucinating, is fascinating and frightening.

susanbrooks's review

3.0

Unique. A 64 year-old doctor has dementia and is suspected of murder. We switch from present to past to her own unreality while
the police try to solve the murder.

kategci's review against another edition

4.0

Turn of Mind is a wonderful debut novel told from the point of view of an orthopedic surgeon stricken with Alzheimer's disease. Alice LaPlante seems to really capture that voice and the confusion and loss that accompany dementia. A surgeon, used to being in charge, Jennifer White struggles daily to stay in control of her life and her family members'lives with a backdrop of a murder. While not a mystery novel as such, the death of her best friend has left her with another loss and she tries to focus her thoughts to determine what actually happened that night. As she spirals deeper into dementia, she gets closer to answering "What happened?" This story captivated me from the first page, as the author so ably described living with an Alzheimer's patient.

jhow2's review

2.0

Based on the description, I was expecting to read more about the complex relationship between the main character and her best friend/“formidable adversary”, and I was kind of disappointed that there wasn’t more text devoted to it. I had a hard time getting invested in this book and the characters.

emiliefox's review

3.0

Great suspense. A little slow going at times, but some things I really, really liked in this book, this story. A nice little surprise ending, or at least something I didn't see coming. Plenty to think about with respect to the characters, after the pieces all came together. I almost wanted to listen again once I got to the end (book on CD), knowing now what I didn't know the first time.

naardvark's review

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

lizaroo71's review

2.0

this book is about jennifer white, a "retired" doctor with alzheimer's. she may or may not have murdered her best friend amanda. her husband, james, is dead. her son and daughter, mark and fiona, do their best to take care of their mother's needs, but mark is barely able to take care of himself.

the story is told from dr. white's perspective, so the narrative slips between past and present. often times jennifer is quite lucid; other times she is unaware of what is going on around her.

the book is divided into three parts. the first portion takes place right after amanda's murder. the second once white is committed to a home. the third when she plots her escape.

i think if the friendship between amanda and jennifer were further explored, the plot may have been stronger. as it stands, it is difficult to believe these women would have remained friends after some of the stunts amanda pulls.

susanob's review

4.0

A page turner! If you liked this book, you'll also like "Still Alice" by Lisa Genova. Both stories of intelligent women with Alzheimer's disease.

cycle1's review

3.0

I found this hard to follow.