Readers' rating:
Published Sep 2012
296 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
Dr. Regina Moss has built herself a successful career as a psychiatrist in Boston: she enjoys a lucrative private practice, hefty consultation fees, and a reputation that inspires colleagues and patients alike. Why then, is Regina haunted by her past? Why does her own daughter barely speak to her? What's the story with her gruff, softhearted husband Walter - and why can't Regina stop thinking about the lanky new tech on the ward? An Age of Madness peels back the layers of Regina's psyche in a voice that is brash, bitter, and blackly humorous, laying bare her vulnerabilities while drawing the reader unnervingly close to this memorable heroine.
From the author of The Preservationist, which was hailed as "hilarious and illuminating" by The Los Angeles Times Book Review and "pithy and smart" by the New York Post, comes the latest turnabout in a career filled with unexpected surprises. An Age of Madness brings a sharp edge of psychological realism to a story filled with startling revelations and heartrending twists.
"In the deftly sketched Regina, Maine has created a touchingly human reminder that scar tissue isn't always visible, but unwittingly shows how an uneven story can fail to measure up to a well-drawn character." - Publishers Weekly
"Psychiatrist Regina Moss, the center of An Age of Madness, is a harsh and pessimistic healer whose own private terrors make her at once insightful and unforgiving. Like all good writers, David Maine is fascinated by the mysteries of character. The doctor's halting journey toward understanding her role in what happened to her family is genuinely suspenseful: she is a formidable opponent, and the opponent is herself." - Jincy Willett, author of The Writing Class and Winner of the National Book Award
"In this haunting exploration of an American tragedy, David Maine peels away the boundaries of what can be known and what can be admitted. Intriguing and uplifting." - Stuart Archer Cohen, author of The Army of the Republic
This information about An Age of Madness was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
David Maine was born in 1963 and grew up in Farmington, Connecticut. He attended Oberlin College and the University of Arizona and has worked in the mental-health systems of Massachusetts and Arizona. He has taught English in Morocco and Pakistan, and his books include Fallen, The Preservationist, The Book of Samson and Monster, 1959. He lives in Honolulu, Hawaii with his wife, novelist Uzma Aslam Khan.
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