Mad Mischief: A Novel

by Susan St. John

[chymerra]

When I read the blurb for Mad Mischief, I was intrigued. I have read very few books that take place in Africa. I have read even fewer books that take place on a photography safari. Since I am an easy-going reader, I figured I would enjoy reading it. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. I had to struggle to finish the book.

I did think that the storyline of Mad Mischief was interesting. A woman nearing the end of her rope goes on a safari with her husband and another couple. While on safari, the woman is abused and taken advantage of by the safari guide and husband. Almost suffering a breakdown, the woman soon realizes that she was stronger than she expected.

As I said, I liked the storyline. I thought it was well written and intriguing. The only thing, I didn’t like how the author jumped from past to present and back. I ended up rereading parts of paragraphs, which annoyed me because it broke my reading flow. I hate backtracking to previous chapters.

I felt terrible for Sarah the entire book. Max and her husband bullied her during her trip. She was taken advantage of by many people while in Nairobi. Not one person stepped in to help her, which saddened me. It was clear that she was losing her mind, and people kept using her. Even if she wasn’t my favorite character, I did feel for her.

Mad Mischief had to be one of the angriest books that I have read. Everyone was upset, and Sarah took the brunt of it. I couldn’t get over how everyone treated her. She was their verbal punching bag. It made me sick to read.

The end of Mad Mischief was confusing. It felt forced and rushed. I was left wondering what the heck happened. I was happy with what happened to Sarah, but it came out of left field.

Mad Mischief is not a book that I would read again. I thought that the storyline had promise. But that was overshadowed by unlikeable characters and a plotline that was hard to follow. Also, the anger towards Sarah in was hard to read.

I would give Mad Mischief an Adult rating. There is sex. There is language. There is violence. I would recommend that no one under the age of 21 read this book.

I would not reread Mad Mischief. I would not recommend it to family and friends.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**