Delirium by J.F. Penn

“Not for the faint-hearted”

When a prominent psychiatrist is found murdered in the old hospital of Bedlam, Detective Sergeant Jamie Brooke finds herself investigating the history of madness to fathom the motive. Blake Daniel, a reluctant psychic, helps her to research the case, only to discover that his own family are entwined with the shadowy forces that seek to control the minds of the mad.

As the body count rises, Jamie discovers that the tendrils of conspiracy wind themselves into the very heart of the British government. Can she stop the killer before madness takes its ultimate revenge?

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Why I Liked It

If you haven’t read Desecration, don’t miss the great start to this series. If you have read it, then Delirium is a must-read follow up.

This exciting yet frightening new thriller follows Jamie (a Detective Sergeant) and Blake (a reluctant psychic) as they take on a case centring on mental illness. The unique insights into the mentally ill, their experiences and how they are and were ‘treated’ are truly frightening.

This book is not for the faint-hearted but I like that it makes me consider the more dark and disturbing non-fiction side of life for a change while wrapped up in an entertaining story. It is superbly researched; the settings and history lessons are richly described. You can’t help but feel everything the characters feel. Jamie and Blake are interesting lead characters, and the peek into Blake’s family history adds more depth to his role in future books. You want to see the pair take down the criminals who are not your typical bad guys, but worse, respected professionals abusing their positions of power.

What is perhaps most discomforting is the fact that being mentally ill is not something that just happens to others. As the author says in her notes, “… there is a spectrum of madness in all of us, it’s just a matter of degree.” This is well portrayed in the book as Jamie deals with her grief over Polly’s death (“It wasn’t hard to die, it was only hard to live.”), and with the reference to the number of people in society on prescription drugs for anxiety and depression. The following quote also sums up how we’re all basically mad:

“But aren’t the mad, the crazy, actually the ones who work at a job they hate, with people they can’t stand, digging themselves deeper into debt, medicating themselves daily with food and TV and alcohol?”

Who disagrees?!

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