Review: Too Rich and Too Thin

Too Rich & Too Thin: Not an Autobiography by Barbara Deshong

(For review from Phenix Publicity)

Synopsis:

When psychologist Jessica LeFave is summoned to profile the killer who drove a spike through the heart of the notorious Bernice Jackson, she has a deeply personal reason to be excited.

Bernice Jackson, dubbed the biggest liar in Texas had plenty of enemies.

She'd soared to the top of the Lone Star State's celebrity lists by shamelessly re-writing treasured historical events into wildly successful soft-porn novels and movies. But the piece of history Jessica cares about is that Bernice had been a psychiatry patient of her husband's at the time of his death.

Since watching her husband dragged from the bottom of Lake Austin - a Hilton receipt and another womans wedding rings in his pocket - Jessica has been a little crazy; obsessing over his files, even stalking patients with dodgy reputations. No one but Jessica believes her husband was murdered.

On her own, Jessica immerses herself in the bizarre movie-making family starring a doped-up basket case son, a daughter on a death-wish eating binge, and the ghost of Bernice Jackson who'd pushed her obsession with seeing herself as young and beautiful beyond any psychotic dream.

Thoughts:

This is not your average mystery novel. Barbara Deshong uses humor and her experience as a psychologist to bring the reader a great mystery. It's quirky, off beat and a lot of fun. This book not only will give the reader a great light read, but it also has a deep underlying theme.

In today's world people have become obsessed with the perfect body and what that might look like. Body image has become a huge issue leading to all kinds of problems in our society including anorexia and bulimia. Deshong shows us what a person who is overly conscious of her own body might look like. How obsessed they might become and to what links they would go to protect their own "ideal" of the perfect body.

The characters in this book are very well developed and the reader will identify with them. Jessica is stuck in a serious situation. Not only is she trying to profile the killer of an author who has many enemies even among her own family, but she is also trying to solve the murder of her husband. She is insightful and is able to see into the criminal mind and take the reader with her. She is a great character that I hope we may see more of in the future.

This is a great book that will make the reader open their eyes to not only a great story, but a very tough issue.

Too Rich and Too Thin: Not an Autobiography is available now from your favorite bookseller.

Check out my guest post with the author, Barbara Deshong here.

I give this one 4 out of 5 apples from my book bag!