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Claire Roget #2

Dangerous Minds

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Can a psychiatrist prevent a crime when it exists only in a patient's mind?

When she receives a wedding invitation from one of her former patients, forensic psychiatrist Dr Claire Roget is more than a little alarmed. Highly intelligent and manipulative, Jerome Barclay suffers from a severe personality disorder. Although she has never been able to prove it, Claire believes him to be highly dangerous, responsible for at least three suspicious deaths - and she fears for the safety of his new bride. What's more, Jerome seems to know rather too much about Claire's personal and professional life, including intimate details concerning her other patients. What sinister game is he playing?

With no proof as to Jerome's possibly murderous intentions, Claire's hands are tied. Can she prevent a tragedy unfolding? And is Claire herself at risk?

224 pages, Hardcover

Published June 15, 2016

25 people are currently reading
79 people want to read

About the author

Priscilla Masters

51 books82 followers
Priscilla Masters' writing career started in 1987 when she published Mr. Bateman's Garden, a children's book set in Biddulph Grange Gardens belonging to the National Trust. After that she created Inspector Joanna Piercy and has now also written a number of Medical Mysteries.

Priscilla Masters lives in Shropshire, England. She works part-time in Staffordshire as a practice nurse.

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5 stars
18 (16%)
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29 (26%)
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43 (39%)
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
Profile Image for Fictionophile .
1,381 reviews384 followers
November 12, 2020
In January of this year I read "Recalled to death" by this author and I truly enjoyed it. So... that fact coupled with the psychological themes in this novel, I fully expected to enjoy "Dangerous minds" just as much. Alas, this was NOT the case. The principal reason for this is that I just couldn't connect or sympathize with the protagonist, Dr. Claire Roget. It wasn't that the character wasn't developed enough, it was just that I didn't care for her on any level. I found her to be self-involved, and singularly ineffectual at her chosen profession. This is just my own personal opinion, and I realize that other readers will disagree with me.

The novel, for the most part, concerned Claire's relationship with a former psychiatric patient, Jerome Barclay. Jerome is a psychopath who likes to taunt and tease Claire about things he may or may not do to others. It seems he has somehow amassed information on some of Claire's other patients, which has caused her to fear for them as well as herself. He seems to be orchestrating the other patients lives by feeding on insider information... but who on her staff is feeding him the information? When Claire receives an invitation to his wedding in the post, she agrees to attend. This is where she lost me as a reader. I mean really... how naive and foolish. She knows that psychopaths like Jerome feed on attention, so WHY does she attend his wedding? She tells her brother that it is "to keep an eye on Barclay", but this just doesn't seem plausible.

I found the novel frustrating. It was clear that all the people in Claire's professional life have deep-seated issues. Thus I was filled with a sense of unease and foreboding whilst reading it. Not in a good way, but more like watching a loaded commuter train heading toward a section of broken track - then being expected to relish the outcome. Nope!

Claire's personal life was also in turmoil, and this might have caused me to have more empathy for her, but I just didn't like her enough.

Set in Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, the novel could just as easily been set anywhere. This is a novel of manipulation, veiled threats, psychotic behavior, and ineffectual doctoring. It tells of those who - because of their mental conditions - are made even more vulnerable by a psychopath. It speaks to how they are often on the fringes of society and have no personal support system. The novel left me feeling hopeless...

"Dangerous minds" is the first novel in the author's series featuring forensic psychiatrist, Dr. Claire Roget. After reading this novel, I've decided that this is a series I will omit from my TBR...
883 reviews51 followers
May 6, 2016
I received an e-ARC of this novel through NetGalley and Severn House.

I have read two of the Martha Gunn police procedural novels written by Priscilla Masters and have been very impressed by them and look forward to each new release. Unfortunately this first book in a new series did not give me the same enjoyment experience I had with the other series.

Dr. Claire Roget is a forensic psychiatrist working with patients confined to Greatbach Psychiatric Unit in Stoke-on-Trent where she has offices to see outpatients as well. There is one specific patient who comes and goes through the system who causes serious unease for Claire, but without him acting out in such a way that he can be investigated and charged with anything criminal she just has to learn to live with his unwanted presence in her work environment and personal life.

This is not a murder mystery novel, rather a psychological thriller. There were simply too many times when this main character acted foolishly. If the story had been written so that Claire had been forced into some of the situations she found herself in I would have been more accepting of her role. Instead, she went willingly into possible dangerous situations when all she had to do was use common sense -- and her training as a psychiatrist -- to keep safe. Not only was that an issue for me, but she really did come up with solutions to the problems of other patients much too quickly and easily. No.....this character isn't well written . And as if all of that wasn't enough, she's also a snob. At one point she refers to a family who had won the lottery as a "clod-hopping" family. Not nice and I didn't like her character much at all. No wonder she had trouble with her boyfriend. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3. (2 stars on Goodreads, 3 on Amazon because of the difference in star rating definitions.)
Profile Image for LucyLui.
464 reviews20 followers
September 22, 2018
Dangerous Minds by Priscilla Masters

Title - Dangerous Minds
Author - Priscilla Masters
Published - January '17
Publisher - Severn House Publishing
Genre - #Thriller
Pages - 224
Price on Amazon - Paperback - £12.99 Kindle - £6.02
ISBN - 1847517005

Dr Claire Roget is a Forensic Psychologist when she receives a wedding invitation from a former patient, She is more than worried. Jerome Barcley is a former patient, he is intelligent and manipulative and suffers from a serious personality disorder, but Claire has never been able to prove it.

She believes he is dangerous and is responsible for at least three deaths if not more. The other thing is Jerome seems to know all about Claire's other patients and all about Claire and her personal life. Can she prevent another murder? Is Claire at risk herself?

This book was a bit of an odd one, I kind of enjoyed the storyline, I liked the general plot, a psychologist trying to prevent one of her patients who is a psychopath when nobody believes her. The problem I had with the story was Claire. I found her to be rather annoying, unrealistic and unlikeable character. I don't know why she just seemed to really annoy me.

This affected the way I was pulled into the story, I found I wasn't totally hooked and just didn't find it extremely gripping. But I'm glad I read it at least once.

Rating - Three out of Five Stars
Would I Read Again? - No
Would I Recommend? - No
Would I read other books by the same author? - Yes

Reviews for this book can be found on:
Amazon (UK) under Lu's Reviews
Goodreads,
Net Galley (If a NetGalley Book)
My Blogs at http://www.readingbeyondobsession.co.uk/
www.lusreviewsblog.wordpress.com

Links to this review can be found at:
Twitter: @lusreviews
Facebook: @lucyluisbookreviews
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Profile Image for Damaskcat.
1,782 reviews4 followers
March 5, 2016
I thought this book was a really good idea for something a bit different in crime novels. I thought it was well written and while I thought the plot was intriguing I was not quite convinced by Claire's behaviour. Would an experienced psychiatrist even consider for a moment attending the wedding of one of her patients who she suspects of crimes which have gone undetected? I would have thought half a minute's sober reflection would have told her to decline.

That said I did find myself drawn into the story and intrigued by the lives of Claire's patients and by her own private life. Claire herself seemed to me to be a strange mixture of intelligence and naivety and I think she was in danger of talking on responsibility for everyone and everything which happened when it was obvious to this reader at least that she had no control over many of the people with whom she was in contact.

The sinister Jerome and his intrigues weaves through the story of Claire's professional and private life like a dark thread and his antics keep you on the edge of your seat while you're reading. Does he mean harm to Claire? What about his new bride Roxanne? I thought the insight into mental health was intriguing and that alone made the book worthwhile reading for me.

If you like crime stories which are a bit different then I recommend this first book in a new series. In spite of my reservations about this book I shall definitely be looking out for the next one in the series as the author writes well and creates interesting characters - even if I don't always like them! I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for review.
283 reviews1 follower
April 19, 2022
The writing is pedestrian, the characters stilted and the story difficult to believe. The book is very poorly edited with a lot of repetitive details. Claire deletes Grant’s number from her phone and a dozen pages later takes out her phone to contact him. She scrolls through her contacts. No Grant. Claire decides to attend Barclay’s wedding despite his stalking of her. She immediately suspects Astrid of being Barclay’s sidekick when he appears to know details of her cases.- with absolutely no proof. She sees Grant with a younger woman and immediately decides he’s left her for someone else. She desperately wants to contact Grant, even asking Adam to help, but when Grant does ring she doesn’t let him explain and puts the phone down! It is not often I give up on a book but lost the will to live with this one!
Profile Image for Karen.
2,080 reviews45 followers
July 8, 2018
While this was well written with a satisfying ending, I have decided that I don't enjoy this type of psychological/pathological bad guy plot.

Besides not being able to keep clear the differences between psychologists and psychiatrists, I just don't like it when the antagonist is not really responsible for their actions, however smart and clever they appear.

This story started out really slowly, and I almost did not continue it until the due date approached.

Claire is a likeable character but did not engage me completely as I like protagonists to do.

It was very helpful to have the author's note explain the 1983 Mental Health Act terms of detention.

It is very clear that one cannot arrest a person for what they are planning on doing.

I borrowed a copy from the public library.
Profile Image for Caroline.
765 reviews5 followers
March 25, 2020
A new to me main character from priscilla masters and weirdly my least favourite. Although I still found the book very enjoyable and well written and the psychological aspect was great. It was also interesting as always to read about crimes occuring in stoke on trent where I used to live. A great read but my heart belongs to Joanna and Martha her other 2 lead protagonists.
Profile Image for Sisley.
71 reviews
June 9, 2019
This book was very interesting, and definitely held my attention!
Profile Image for Lydia Hephzibah.
1,802 reviews58 followers
March 21, 2018
(3.5)

I put off this book for a while but it ended up coming to Canada with me, and I found myself pleasantly surprised. The book is far from perfect as Claire is a forensic psychiatrist but makes some highly questionable decisions and gets herself involved where she probably shouldn't, but it made for a good read. However, I think it would have been better had she stuck to the main story of Jerome as a creepy psychopath, rather than tying in a whole bunch of other characters he was purportedly manipulating, which didn't really go anywhere. I was endeared to this book more as it was set in my county, even giving my tiny home village a mention, which I doubt will ever be seen in another book as long as I live. I enjoyed the book, despite Claire's questionable decisions and some unlikely motivations from other characters (her boyfriend's reason for leaving after five years was irritatingly weak), and I'm happy to support a local author!
4,830 reviews16 followers
June 18, 2016
Dr Claire Roget was a psychiatrist. She got a wedding invitation from a patient she had seen in two years- Jerome Barclay. He had a severe narcissistic psychopathic personality disorder. He was totally unpredictable and Claire felt he was dangerous. Jerome hinted he had killed his family but was too smart to be caught and there was nothing Claire could do. Even though Claire had been trained not to feel when it came to her patients Jerome actually scared her. Now Jerome was to marry and his future in laws just won the lottery. Claire knew Jerome was inviting Claire to watch the events he had planned for love was not something Jerome could feel. Claire had other patients she seen st the clinic and on the wards she consulted for with two other psychiatrists - 8 wards between the three doctors in total. Somehow Jerome was getting information about her currant patients as well as where she lived and her phone number.
I am no sure how to put down the way i feel about this story. I definitely didn’t hate it nor did i love it. I did read the whole story even though slow moving it kept my interest to a good degree. It also had some twists in the story I didn’t see coming. Some questions I had just weren’t answered so that was a bit disappointing. So all I can say for me it certainly wasn’t a bad story nor was it great therefore I felt a three was a good score for this.
I received an ARC of this story for an honest review.
Profile Image for Elite Group.
3,116 reviews53 followers
June 22, 2016
Can a psychiatrist misdiagnose?

Dr Claire Roget is a consultant psychiatrist at the Greatbach Psychiatric Unit in Stoke-on-Trent. She is shocked when a wedding invitation arrives from one of her most disturbing patients; Jerome Barclay, diagnosed with severe narcissistic psychopathic personality disorder. There have been deaths (of family members) that have been passed off as natural, but Claire suspects that he could be responsible for them. Her fear is now for his young bride.

Claire has other equally demanding cases; a fourteen-year-old with severe anorexia. A holocaust survivor suffering from depression and a man released from Broadmoor after killing a family of four, who she suspects will kill again.

Priscilla Masters deserves five stars for the huge amount of information written on the various mental illnesses she covers in this novel, however, I found the characters, including Claire Roget, one dimensional making the book lack depth.

Hopefully there are future books in this series which will give Priscilla Masters a chance to develop Claire Roget’s character with more depth.

Treebeard

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.
4,120 reviews116 followers
April 23, 2016
Severn House and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of Dangerous Minds, in exchange for an honest review.

When forensic psychiatrist Dr. Claire Roget receives a wedding invitation from a former patient, she is instantly concerned for the bride-to-be. She felt that Jerome was dangerous while under her care, but Claire was never able to substantiate her opinions with any concrete facts. Drawn into his game, will Claire be able to stop Jerome before he harms someone else?

Overall, I did not find Dangerous Minds to be as compelling as the synopsis indicated. There are just too many side plots, which took focus away from the main story. With Claire's professional and private life intertwined with Jerome's presence, the plot gets lost in the shuffle. I was not a big fan of the writing style, as the narrator's voice does not come through clearly. Claire is a professional woman, well educated and articulate, but the way she speaks does not convey this. For these reasons, I found Dangerous Minds to be a moderately interesting book, but not that particularly memorable.
Profile Image for Carly Jones.
39 reviews2 followers
February 2, 2025
A fantastic Thriller!

Clair Roget is a Psychiatrist that works for a mental health Hospital. She never expected to receive an invitation to the Wedding of Jerome Barclay, a previous psychopath patient of hers that suffers from a severe personality disorder. Clair believes this man is highly dangerous but has never been able to prove it. Can Clair prevent a tragedy from unfolding or will this man get away with his dangerous mind?

A full review on this book is also on www.carlysbookblog.com
Please feel free to follow this blog for reviews on many other books too.

Priscilla Masters is a fantastic author and I cant wait to read the next Clair Roget thriller, The Deceiver.
This book held me captivated right until the very end. I absolutely loved Clair Roget and all the others characters.
Such and easy read and I always understood what was going on. I also loved how every time a character came along we got a quick background of who they were so you never got stuck forgetting the characters.



Profile Image for Marla.
225 reviews2 followers
November 15, 2016
creepy. that describes the tone of this book. dr. Roget takes that creepy feeling a bit too far, thinking that her former patient has gotten involved in the lives of her other patients. she is not a very caring person, as I would have fired my secretary for giving away private information to a psychopath. I prefer the Joann Piercy books.
Profile Image for Gary Van Cott.
1,446 reviews8 followers
March 23, 2019
3.5 stars. I thought this book was ok, although I thought there was too much pointless foreshadowing in the early part of the book. I have read the author's DI Joanna Piercy series but when I looked at the ratings I can see that I have not rated them highly either. I have only read this once, that was enough.
Profile Image for Beth Cooksey.
229 reviews1 follower
April 6, 2016
Excellent read, it held my attention from beginning to end.
Profile Image for Stargazer.
1,743 reviews44 followers
June 6, 2016
I enjoyed a fair bit of the story but it just didn't ring true somehow for me.
Profile Image for Marli.
532 reviews10 followers
May 3, 2017
Not sure how to feel about this book. I thought the premise was interesting but the main character was not that likeable. The writing was compelling but sort of depressing. It is true the psychiatry is emerging as primitive and only so much can be done for mental health problems. The solutions the main character came up with seemed too easy.
The whole psychopath outline was frustrating and true but if you are expecting to come out of this story with any revelations you will be disappointed. It basically boils down to, win some, lose some.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews

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