He has no name. He could be quite near as you read these words. Maybe the guy two aisles over at the bookshop where you picked this title up. Maybe you saw him and didn't give him a second look. If you had, you would have seen it. That certain something in his eyes. A glint of something unfamiliar. A gleam. An uncontrolled tremor of unease as you feel his relentless energy brush past you. Have you ever wondered at the inner workings of an insane mind? Ever considered what electroshock "therapy" might feel like to an unwilling participant? Flip this book over and turn the page. Walk with me inside the chambers of a disturbed mind, and do keep the lights on... Christopher Hartpence lives in Myrtle Beach, SC with his girl, Cindy, and their menagerie of pets (four cats, two dogs), where he's hard at work on his next novel, and/or designing video games. Look him up on the web and drop him a line! (candlebre.net or creativisms.org)

Superb war reporting which sits alongside that of Martha Gellhorn, Fergal Keane and John Simpson

From the author of The New York Times bestseller Self- Made Man, a captivating expose of depression and mental illness in America Revelatory, deeply personal, and utterly relevant, Voluntary Madness is a controversial work that unveils the state of mental healthcare in the United States from the inside out. At the conclusion of her celebrated first book--Self-Made Man, in which she soent eighteen months disguised as a man-Norah Vincent found herself emotionally drained and severely depressed. Determined but uncertain about maintaining her own equilibrium, she boldly committed herself to three different facilities-a big-city hospital, a private clinic in the Midwest, and finally an upscale retreat in the South. Voluntary Madness is the chronicle of Vincent's journey through the world of the mentally ill as she struggles to find her own health and happiness.

'My first serious blackout marked the line between sanity and insanity. Though I would have moments of lucidity over the coming days and weeks, I would never again be the same person ...' Susannah Cahalan was a happy, clever, healthy twenty-four-year old. Then one day she woke up in hospital, with no memory of what had happened or how she had got there. Within weeks, she would be transformed into someone unrecognizable, descending into a state of acute psychosis, undergoing rages and convulsions, hallucinating that her father had murdered his wife; that she could control time with her mind. Everything she had taken for granted about her life, and who she was, was wiped out. Brain on Fire is Susannah's story of her terrifying descent into madness and the desperate hunt for a diagnosis, as, after dozens of tests and scans, baffled doctors concluded she should be confined in a psychiatric ward. It is also the story of how one brilliant man, Syria-born Dr Najar, finally proved - using a simple pen and paper - that Susannah's psychotic behaviour was caused by a rare autoimmune disease attacking her brain. His diagnosis of this little-known condition, thought to have been the real cause of devil-possessions through history, saved her life, and possibly the lives of many others. Cahalan takes readers inside this newly-discovered disease through the progress of her own harrowing journey, piecing it together using memories, journals, hospital videos and records. Written with passionate honesty and intelligence, Brain on Fire is a searingly personal yet universal book, which asks what happens when your identity is suddenly destroyed, and how you get it back. 'With eagle-eye precision and brutal honesty, Susannah Cahalan turns her journalistic gaze on herself as she bravely looks back on one of the most harrowing and unimaginable experiences one could ever face: the loss of mind, body and self. Brain on Fire is a mesmerizing story' -Mira Bartók, New York Times bestselling author of The Memory Palace Susannah Cahalan is a reporter on the New York Post, and the recipient of the 2010 Silurian Award of Excellence in Journalism for Feature Writing. Her writing has also appeared in the New York Times, and is frequently picked up by the Daily Mail, Gawker, Gothamist, AOL and Yahoo among other news aggregrator sites.

In A Dose of Madness, Sheree shows her resilience and determination to live. My mother has battled this unfamiliar disease for over thirty years, and she never gave up. What I love about my stepdad is the fact that he never left her side no matter how difficult life sometimes became throughout their marriage. While growing up, I did not have a relationship with my mother, but I knew that she was trying to finish college so that she could make a better life for the both of us. One thing that she taught me was how important an education is. The relationship that we now have, I wouldn't change for anything in the world. She is the hardest working person I know--dedicated, fearless, and generous. I love her to the moon and back. From her one and only daughter, Christie Eve Dale

Lady Norah Macalister is perfection: beauty, charm, grace, elegance-- all a carefully constructed lie. No one would ever suspect her of anything scandalous, and no one is the wiser when a terrible secret threatens to destroy her. Major Trevor Hayward has unraveled after a decade at war with Napoleon—or so everyone believes. When his cousin is murdered Trevor finds himself the prime suspect. Placed under house arrest at the home of his oldest friend, Trevor doubts those investigating his cousin’s murder will see past his marred reputation. Refusing to accept her fate, Norah is determined to punish those who have wronged her. Her plan is ruthless, and she will see it through, even if she must manipulate those around her to avenge the wounds of her past. Norah is the most confounding woman Trevor has ever met, but he cannot deny, try as he might, that his best friend’s little sister is all grown up. When she is the only one who can prove his innocence, Trevor has little choice but to agree to her risky plot to destroy a mutual enemy. While Trevor and Norah collude and execute Norah’s plan, succumbing to the spark between them brings their secrets to light. Can they play with fire and not be burned? Or will the madness of their scheme be the downfall of them both?

Have you ever considered the possibility of past lives? Do they exist, and if they do how can you access them? This book is the account of one such life which appeared as the result of regression therapy. It documents a time when the old ways were being replaced by the new religion sweeping Briton. Luke the second son of a Northern King is sent on a quest by his father to discover the truths about the Holy Land. What he sees and the effect it has upon him form the basis for this adventure story. It also details the life of the author, and what events led up to his past life encounter, and details of the process involved, the effect it had on his life, and how past lives fit in with our concept of the universe...

Dying to fit in. High school wasn’t a grand time for everyone, but when a group of friends decide to meet up at a B and B ahead of their ten-year reunion, old grudges resurface, and one of them ends up dead. Now the owners, a kindly older couple, are on the hook for the accidental death due to anaphylaxis, but they insist no mistakes were made on their part. Fortune is asked to look into the situation before the inept local sheriff railroads the couple or simply allows gossip to run them out of business, which will cost them their home. Swamp Team 3 heads to Voodoo Island to find a way to clear the couple and finds a complicated mess of locked doors and old secrets awaiting them. Is Voodoo Island really cursed? Or can Fortune unravel the mystery and lead her team to victory?

What do you do when the voice in your head is telling you to walk out of your job and follow your dreams? What would happen if you listened to the voice in your head? What if you walked out of your job, left your home and a few hours later found yourself jobless and homeless, sitting on a park bench, with a pad and a pen and a desperate hope that the book you are going to write in the park will eventually change your life? That's what Craig Stone, professional nobody did. This is the story he made up to keep his sanity while living alone in Gladstone Park, North London, as he came to terms with the consequences of making bold decisions. He sat under a tree, writing about what it was like to be living under a tree. Craig was determined to write a book that would get him out of the park, a book so original it would be published and change the course of his life. The Squirrel that Dreamt of Madness is his story. An imaginative mix of fantasy and his own experiences, this funny and sometimes poignant tale will appeal to those looking for an original and edgy take on autobiographical writing. “One of our favourite guests of the year (and we seriously say that to very few people!)” – The BBC Comedy Café