Mar 28, 2008 Posted by Nancy Williams on Mar 28, 2008 in 888 Challenge, Crime Fiction | 0 comments

Plea Of Insanity – Jilliane Hoffman

This is a courtroom drama with a difference. It is a courtroom drama with a definite purpose. The author actually seeks to teach the reader something and open their eyes as well as entertain them. It was an interesting combination which I really enjoyed, but which could take the average reader who is just looking for a bit of escapism by surprise.

Plea of Insanity starts out as a story of a rookie prosecutor, Julia Valenciano, who is given her big break by being asked to act as second seat in the murder trial of the decade. David Marquette has apparently slaughtered his entire family in one night, including his 6 week old daughter, and then turned the knife quite harmlessly upon himself. It appears to be a solid case, despite his engagement of one of the best (and most expensive) defence lawyers in town. But when a plea of insanity is filed, suddenly Julia is forced to realise that for the past 15 years she has been living a lie and this case is going to tear her entire life apart.

What it becomes is an exploration of schizophrenia, the nature of the disease and its often tragic and misunderstood consequences. As the author notes in the Epilogue, it is a disease which is rarely acknowledged because it remains such a mystery to medical professionals and the public alike. Like anything which isn’t understood, schizophrenia invites fear and scorn, and it doesn’t take long for Julia to realise that fear and scorn are the most damaging reactions possible. I knew very little about the disease, and I was glad of the care which Hoffman put in to explanations of the symptoms and effects. I could feel precisely when my own judgement of the situation changed – and it was at the time that Julia too began to understand how close schizophrenia was to her. The interesting thing is that Hoffman does still leave you questioning at the conclusion of the trial. You have to come to your own conclusion about who is suffering from the illness and who isn’t. The whole storyline was very well done.

It was a long book but it did keep you guessing. There were passages which were perhaps a little drawn out. I am not really convinced when one character says a line of dialogue and it is followed by two pages of the other’s characters thoughts before they actually give their one line reply. Yes, the mind works very quickly and yes it certainly kept the tension, but it generally found me skipping paragraphs to find out what was said, and then having to go back and re-read them in case I had missed something important.

Otherwise, it was a great book and one which has piqued my interest in schizophrenia – I would like to read more about it. And judging by the tragic true story upon which this was very loosely based, I think that is exactly the reaction that the author was seeking.

Rating: 7/10
ISBN: Book club copy – no ISBN
Publisher: BCA
Year: 2007
Date finished: 26 March 2008
Pages: 598
Challenges: 3/8 of category 1: Crime Fiction for the 888 Challenge