The Mangled Spoon

by Joan Mauch

THE MANGLED SPOON is about what happens when evil finds a home in the Catholic Church.

Cello-playing psychiatrist Marcus Rukeyser has a problem: Miss Jane, his newest patient is catatonic. Discovered foraging for food in a dumpster clutching a curiously damaged antique spoon, Rukeyser learns she’s connected to three dead or missing nuns from a prominent Chicago parish. With only two weeks until she’s committed to a state mental institution, authorities make it clear they'll go to any lengths to prevent him from uncovering the ugly truth—including destroying his career, his home and potentially his life. This novel by author Joan Mauch is by turns frightening and thought provoking.

258 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 2014

About the author

At age six Joan Mauch excitedly recognized the letter "A" in her mom's newspaper and has been fascinated with the printed word ever since. For most of her professional life she's been involved with writing in one form or another ranging from writing news releases to promotional copywriting. Over the years she became something of a vagabond, having lived in Washington state, Oregon, Illinois and most recently Iowa, working at everything from teaching to selling real estate. When she isn't writing, Joan enjoys visiting her son in Florida or just hanging out with family and friends. REILLY'S DILEMMA is her sixth novel. Visit her website at joanmauch.com or facebook.com/joanmauch.author

Reviews

[Joan Mauch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Viga Boland for Readers' Favorite

If you like reading page turners that keep you guessing, you’ll enjoy The Mangled Spoon by Joan Mauch. From the moment you read about the starving, dishevelled, and disoriented Miss Joan who is found scavenging for food in a dumpster in Chapter One, you will be dying to find out how she got there and why she doesn’t want to let go of a mangled silver spoon. And Joan Mauch is not going to give you the answer till near the very end of the story.

There’s much in the news today about paedophile priests. It’s a hot topic of great consternation to the Catholic Church and its followers. What Joan Mauch does in The Mangled Spoon is create an intriguing fiction around this subject that everyone wants to cover up, both in the real world and in her story. A psychologist, Mark Rukeyser, is trying to get to the bottom of just who Miss Jane is and why she appears to have amnesia. Unable to get anything from her, he turns to police, priests, and nuns and keeps running into brick walls. In the process, he is threatened, and barely gets his family out of his house alive when it is set on fire. He suspects a cover-up, but who is covering up and why? Joan Mauch will keep you guessing.

Short chapters make The Mangled Spoon an easy-to-read book. Characters are well-drawn and the reader can relate to the emotions experienced by Rukeyser and his wife as he tries to get to the bottom of an unpleasant situation. Joan Mauch brings it all to a head in a rather movie-like swift finish that is the climax of the story, leaving the reader satisfied that the mystery has been solved at last.

[Chris Torretta · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was so into this storyline and then a few odd things started happening.

First, the relationship between the main character and his wife. There is so much going on here that I just do not understand. I get being a woman I can be mad and then turn on a dime but there is usually an explanation, which I then explain to my husband (if he doesn't already know). This however seemed really weird.


Then we have Markus himself. Ok, the fact alone that he wasn't getting the answers he wanted doesn't totally lead me to believe that he would push so hard for one patient. It's ridiculous. He's losing his family, his job, he's threatened more than once; it doesn't add up. Actually, at the threatening part I probably would push forward just because I would be curious because what is so important about a nun's death that people are trying to hide. And that's exactly it! The plot was just so weird at times ...

Full review at BTS emagazine!

Thank you to BTS emagazine and to the author for allowing me to read for an honest review!

[Kristy McCaffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is evil real or a product of mental instability? Dr. Marcus Rukeyser is a psychiatrist at St. Stanislaus Mental Hospital treating a catatonic young woman. Found wandering the streets of Chicago, she appears to be suffering from amnesia and possibly a traumatic event. Dubbing her Miss Jane, Rukeyser’s concern for her goes deeper than even he can understand, triggering flashbacks to losing his own sister to a mental institution years before. As he begins to suspect she’s a missing nun from a prosperous parish on the north side, he races against time to keep her from being committed to a more severe institution, one in which he’s certain she’ll never emerge, let alone live through. With his own marriage and family life unraveling due to his obsession, and very real physical threats against him, it soon becomes clear this woman is involved in something far more sinister than at first imagined. The Mangled Spoon is a taut, subtle mystery that will keep you hooked to the end.

[Mark Davidsaver · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author did a good job of setting up the mystery (which I won't give away) and it is a good mystery. She did a very good job of portraying the Catholic church in the 1960's and it's relationship to the laity. I also thought she added a lot to the mood of each of the scenes with good descriptions of setting, clothes and personal appearances. I thought the motivation of the protagonist and some of the ancillary characters needed more space. For example the relationship between the protagonist and his wife would turn on a dime -- seeming without enough happening in the book to justify it. All-in-all a good read which goes fast.

[Charles Browne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read! A haunting story of clergy abuse. Very well written with short chapters that keep you wanting to read more. You're hooked after the first few chapters. Highly recommended.