A Dash of Madness: A Thriller Anthology

by McKenna Gardner (editor), M. Irish Gardner, Elizabeth Gilliland

One man’s crazy is another man’s norm.

Inside, eight bizarre stories explore twisted perceptions and challenge conceptions about right and wrong. With a fascinating dive into several unstable minds, the authors examine different avenues for exposing warped cognition and mutilated logic. Each delivers a disquieting glimpse of reality.

Reformation by M. Irish Gardner: With a fresh start in life, the last thing freed inmate Todd Jefferson wants to do is live someone else’s, until the pros outweigh the cons.

Mouse and Cat by Elizabeth Gilliland: Mouse knows his place: among the filth and remnants of mankind. When given a chance to change his fate, his choice reflects more than just the intentions of his heart.

Stunner by Sarah Hunter Hyatt: As a stranger in a new town, Marin Overstreet is forced to confront a past she didn’t know existed, and defeat the man sent to silence her forever.

Five Humvees by Breck LeSueur: Three lives, three errs in judgment. Countless consequences reside within this twisted military thriller.

Morningside by F.M. Longo: Back on duty, Detective Morningside must defy the odds and solve the impossible by delving into the criminal mind.

Kissed a Snake by Ben Ireland: Abandoned as a child, Jason only wants to understand his father’s reasons. And to kill him for it. However, learning the truth leads to anything but satisfaction.

Fogo by David MacIver: A neighborhood arson, a broken home, and an overactive imagination are the least of Renata’s worries, especially when her dreams creep into her real life.

Proxy by Tim Andrew: For Bret Maher, death is a perk on the job. But when he takes on a new contract with guaranteed success, he may get more than he bargained for.

Genres: Thriller

420 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 14, 2013

Reviews

[Kayla and Josh Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not usually a big fan of thrillers, but I have to say that this book was awesome! These stories made me think, which doesn't happen very often. Every minute was spent wondering, "What's going on? How is this going to work out? ARE THEY CRAZY?!?"
I'd like to echo the other review I read and say that this is intelligent reading and I very much appreciated and enjoyed it. Characters were well thought out, stories were original (and that word doesn't even do it justice!) and this was all done in the span of a short story! It takes serious writing talent to pull that off!!
My husband and I are book junkies. Trips to the library often need a moving van to transport the amount of books we want to take home. One thing we both love to do is read the first line of a book or story. The better the first line, the better the story. Try it sometime and you'll see what i mean. And I have to say that each and everyone of these stories had EXCEPTIONAL first lines.
So if you're stuck in a rut in your reading selections or just "don't have time for reading," (let's face it, who hasn't said that at least once in their life?) this is the book to check out for its variety and great stories. It also doesn't hurt that even the busiest person can probably finish at least one story in a day and not feel like they're totally lost like if they'd been reading a novel. No excuses! Check this out!

[Penny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thriller/mysteries aren't typically my bill of fare. I also try to stay away from reviewing books by Xchyler Publishing, lest readers perceive a conflict of interest. However, I can honestly recommend this book to anyone looking for intelligent, adult literature. And, by "adult", I don't mean lots of sex, violence, and foul language. I mean well-written, complex, and thought-provoking stories about adults. The only exception to the age factor is "Stunner", written by Sarah Hunter Hyatt, which features teens.

Starting with M. Irish Gardner and her mind-bending "Reformation", and ending with Tim Andrew and his imaginative and speculative "Proxy", from cover to cover, each story in this anthology grabs the reader and sucks them, not only into the action, but into the psyches of their protagonists.

"Reformation" follows a young man recently released from prison on a voyage of self-discovery. In "Morningside" by F. M. Longo, the self-titled detective battles the bad guys and his own inner demons. The "Stunners" in Ms. Hyatt's tale bear life-long burdens imposed upon them by a secret government agency. The fantasy of "Mouse and Cat" by Elizabeth Gilliland explores the dark side of wishes coming true.

In "Five Humvees", Breck LaSeur takes on the complexities of war, broken promises, lost dreams, and forgiveness. Ben Ireland takes a road less traveled through Australia, and encounters the potholes of father/son relationships in "Kissed a Snake." Brazil takes center stage in "Fogo" (fire) written by David MacIver, when his protagonist wanders through alternate realms of reality. Finally, Tim Andrew gives his protagonist the ultimate career choice, just so long as he can survive the ordeal of doing nothing, in "Proxy."

If the reader seeks thought-provoking, original, and expertly crafted stories, engrossing excursions into the blind alleys, thoroughfares, and causeways of the human mind, I strongly recommend this book.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think the title of the anthology is slightly misleading… Half of the stories seem to have more thriller and less madness about them, but there are couple that are totally mental. :)

Reformation was odd in the beginning but she pulled off the split personalities pretty good… I think it would have been better to cut the very last scene and just left me wondering.

Mouse and Cat was basically a identity theft scam. I though it was actually fairly well done, but the ending was a whimper and the last antagonist had to basically tell you why they were the antagonist...

Stunner would be a good YA thriller scene in a larger novel, but as a short story it lacked enough to make me care who came out on top at the end.

Five Humvees.. I liked this one the least. Their were 3 POVs going and didn't have long enough to make me care about any of them.

Morningside could be a script for a Columbo basically. While good, just kinda standard fair museum heist.

Kissed a Snake... Got me caring more about Steven than Jason though, because we were told about Jason's ordeal but shown Steven's... That worked in the end because at the end I felt angry at Jason.

Fogo.. The story is fairly good, another take on the spilt personalities that actually makes you care more for the protagonist than Reformation, but the solutions to the problems were odd in the end. I also though the title was odd because I did not know it was Portuguese for fire until I went to look it up after reading.

Proxy I liked to most. But this one is full on SF thriller and I tend to like those... Exciting and intelligent.

[Dawn Crean · Rating 5 out of 5]

While I don't typically read much in the way of fiction, I enjoyed this little dash of madness. One story is reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes, one made me cry, one played out as a movie in my head. They were all engaging & interesting reads. I had fun reading this & I'm glad I did.

[jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was approached with a complimentary e-copy of A Dash of Madness, in return, I would be open and honest about my review. Knowing one of the authors, I couldn’t help myself, I jumped ahead and read his story first. Then I returned to the beginning. To begin with the title of this book is spot on, it contains an eclectic mix of entertaining stories that held my attention and kept me intrigued. This anthology did not disappoint.

[Cynthia Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun anthology. The first two stories sucked me right in, but once we got to the military themed stories, I quickly lost interest. The book wrapped up nicely with a strange tale at the end. Overall, good stories that makes you go, hmmm.