Author:  A.J. Conley

Publisher:  PublishAmerica

ISBN:  1-4137-6572-6

The following review was contributed by:  Jennifer Brown & Click Here To View Jennifer Brown's Reviews

When we’re staring into the eyes of a monster, when we contemplate someone who’s done something really horrible, do we really consider what has happened to that person to make them do what they do? 

A.J. Conley has.  In her novella, THE MONSTER’S MIND, Conley shows us a criminal named Joshua Dawson.  A monster, really.  A man who murdered innocent children.  What goes on in Joshua’s mind?  What monster is really lurking within, and from where did that monster come? 

The doctor interviewing him intends to find out.  It’s the same doctor that stood before a jury and testified that Joshua was not sane, convinced a court that he should not be put to death, but instead has him hospitalized for the criminally insane.

Slowly Joshua begins to reveal his monster within and between his sometimes cryptic revelations and the doctor’s researching skills and dedication to the case, the monster takes shape.  The doctor begins to wonder:  who really was the monster that caused the death of those children? 

THE MONSTER’S MIND is an intriguing story that explores Conley’s ultimate question, which is that of forgiveness.  Conley’s clear intention is to call attention to the “human” of humanity and to make the reader ponder such murky subjects as free will and right and wrong. 

Unfortunately, the reader must get there mostly on his own.  For some reason, Conley’s message is clear, but her characters are not.  She gives Joshua no voice, with not a single sentence of dialogue anywhere within the story.  Additionally, she gives the mysterious “doctor” no name or identity.  There is no hint as to who her characters really are, which leaves their philosophies a little loose. 

What’s most intriguing about this is that Conley is clearly an experienced writer.  Her grammar is flawless, her writing style clear and concise, which would leave a reader to believe that she kept her characters flat for a reason.  However, that reason is unclear.  Is it a statement that Joshua and the doctor represent all of society and its warring factions of right vs. wrong?  Is it a suggestion that in today’s society The Judged (Joshua) have no voice and The Judger (the doctor) is often quick to dole out blame while remaining nameless, faceless?  Perhaps this level of mystery was Conley’s goal from the outset.

THE MONSTER’S MIND is an easy read and can be finished in one sitting.  It is good food for thought about assigning blame to the guilty and hastening to dub someone “monster,” while shocking the reader with an ending that will make her gasp.