Skip to main content

The Medea Complex by Rachel Florence Roberts: A Book Review

The Medea Complex
Author: Rachel Florence Roberts
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery, Suspense, Psychological Thriller
Publisher: CreateSpace
Release Date: 2013
Pages: 272
Source: This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis:  ****BASED ON A TRUE STORY***

     1885. Anne Stanbury - Committed to a lunatic asylum, having been deemed insane and therefore unfit to stand trial for the crime of which she is indicted. But is all as it seems?

     Edgar Stanbury - the grieving husband and father who is torn between helping his confined wife recover her sanity, and seeking revenge on the woman who ruined his life.

     Dr George Savage - the well respected psychiatrist, and chief medical officer of Bethlem Royal Hospital. Ultimately, he holds Anne's future wholly in his hands. 

     The Medea Complex tells the story of a misunderstood woman suffering from insanity in an era when mental illnesses' were all too often misdiagnosed and mistreated. A deep and riveting psychological thriller set within an historical context, packed full of twists and turns, The Medea Complex explores the nature of the human psyche: what possesses us, drives us, and how love, passion, and hope for the future can drive us to insanity.  

     My Review: This is a dark psychological thriller of  Anne Stanbury, a woman who finds herself in an insane asylum thinking that she is kidnapped and is being held for ransom because of her wealthy father. She has no memory of the crime that she has been accused of committing, for murdering her baby son that has outraged the Victorian society. She also does not remember her husband, who is hurt that the woman he loves, has killed their only son. The Medea Complex is a story told from the perspective Anne Stanbury, her husband, Lord Edgar Stanbury, her psychiatrist, Dr. George Savage, and Anne’s maid, Beatrix, to examine the motive of Anne’s crime, to question what actually drives people to insanity. It also questions: what is the true meaning of sanity?

    Roberts has constructed an excellent cast of characters. All of them are realistic and complex, which is what makes them human. Each of the characters have their flaws. However, the person that the audience can trust the most is Dr. Savage. Dr. Savage represents the reader, because he is the investigator of the story. He analyzes and questions Anne’s mind and actions, and is always on a continuous hunt for the truth. Edgar Stanbury is relatable because we can understand the motive of why he is conflicted. He is torn between the love he has for his wife, but he also wants vengeance for the loss of  his beloved son. Beatrix is Anne’s only friend, but she too has dark secrets of her own. The most complex character is the main character, Anne. She is the most mysterious of them all. The reader is eager to see who she truly is.

     Overall, the story was fast-paced and suspenseful. It is full of twists and turns that will keep the reader on the edge their seat and eager to keep reading till the end. The settings is very descriptive and well built.The insane asylum is dark and eerily creepy, and the manor that the Stanburys live shows us that not is all as it seems. The main reason I give this review 4 instead of 5 stars, is that there were some scenes I felt that could be left out, for example there was a drawn out bathroom humor scene where the Inspectors talked endlessly on about their bladder control. I also felt that there were still a few loose ends, but I hope that the author can write a sequel to this book so she can tie them up. But aside from this, it was a well-written story. I recommend this novel to anyone interested in Victorian psychology, and fans of Stephen King, John Grisham, Primal Fear, and anyone interested in dark stories or psychological thrillers.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Potiphar's Wife (The Egyptian Chronicles #1) by Mesu Andrews: A Book Review

  Potiphar’s Wife (The Egyptian Chronicles #1) Author: Mesu Andrews Genre: Historical Fiction, Christian, Biblical Fiction Publisher: WaterBrook Release Date: May 24, 2022 Pages: 453 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: One of the Bible’s most notorious women longs for a love she cannot have in this captivating novel from the award-winning author of Isaiah’s Legacy .       Before she is Potiphar’s wife, Zuleika is the daughter of a king and the wife of a prince. She rules the isle of Crete alongside her mother in the absence of their seafaring husbands. But when tragedy nearly destroys Crete, Zuleika must sacrifice her future to save the Minoan people she loves.       Zuleika’s father believes his robust trade with Egypt will ensure Pharaoh’s obligation to marry his daughter, including a bride price hefty enough to save Crete. But Pharaoh refuses and gives her instead to Potiphar, the captain...

The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts: The True Story of The Bondwoman's Narrative by Gregg Hecimovich: A Book Review

  The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts: The True Story of the Bondwoman’s Narrative Author: Gregg Hecimovich Genre: History, Nonfiction, Biography  Publisher: Ecco Release Date: 2023 Pages: 430 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: A groundbreaking study of the first Black female novelist and her life as an enslaved woman, from the biographer who solved the mystery of her identity, with a foreword by Henry Louis Gates Jr.       In 1857, a woman escaped enslavement on a North Carolina plantation and fled to a farm in New York. In hiding, she worked on a manuscript that would make her famous long after her death. The novel, The Bondwoman’s Narrative, was first published in 2002 to great acclaim, but the author’s identity remained unknown. Over a decade later, Professor Gregg Hecimovich unraveled the mystery of the author’s name and, in The Life and Times of Hannah Crafts, hefinally tells her story.   ...

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn: A Book Review

The Rose Code Author: Kate Quinn Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Harper Collins Release Date: 2021 Pages: 635 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: 1940, Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire.        Three very different women are recruited to the mysterious Bletchley Park, where the best minds in Britain train to break German military codes.       Vivacious debutante Osla has the dashing Prince Philip of Greece sending her roses – but she burns to prove herself as more than a society girl, working to translate decoded enemy secrets. Self-made Mab masters the legendary codebreaking machines as she conceals old wounds and the poverty of her East-End London upbringing. And shy local girl Beth is the outsider who trains as one of the Park’s few female cryptanalysts.       1947, London.        Seven years after they first meet, on the eve of the roya...