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Crack-Up: A Psychological Thriller
 
 

Crack-Up: A Psychological Thriller [Kindle Edition]

Eric Christopherson
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)

Kindle Price: £1.91 includes VAT* & free wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet
* Unlike print books, digital books are subject to VAT.



Product Description

Product Description

Best Mystery Novel, Red Adept Annual Indie Awards 2010

Argus Ward is a former U.S. Secret Service agent who runs a protection agency catering to the rich and famous. His best-kept secret--which he shares with lawyers, doctors and even psychiatrists--is his status as a high-functioning paranoid schizophrenic. One day, with little warning, he turns psychotic for the first time in twenty years. He lands in a secure psychiatric facility, charged with the murder of his most famous client, high tech industry billionaire John Helms, the wealthiest man in America.

Argus has no memory of the killing. A blood test suggests to him that some unknown enemy had switched his anti-psychotic medication with identical-looking dummy pills to purposely drive him insane.

A sign of lingering paranoia? His doctor thinks so. Even his wife.

Yet Argus escapes incarceration to prove his theory. With the law on his trail and a ticking time bomb in his head--due to a lack of medication--he discovers that his disease had been "weaponized" by a powerful group to secretly assassinate John Helms as part of a multiple assassination conspiracy of world-wide significance.

Or has Argus simply lost his mind again? What in the end is "real" and what is only imagination in his story?

And what is justice for the criminally insane?

Come lose your grip on reality. Read CRACK-UP.

79,000 words (316 standard pages)




* * * * * * * *

Also by Eric Christopherson: THE PROPHET MOTIVE
Red Adept Reviews Indie Award for Thrillers/Suspense, 2011

San Francisco police detective John Richetti infiltrates a bizarre cult on the trail of two murder suspects. But a series of sophisticated brainwashing techniques pushes him beyond the breaking point ...



Product details

  • Format: Kindle Edition
  • File Size: 397 KB
  • Print Length: 217 pages
  • Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
  • Sold by: Amazon Media EU S.à r.l.
  • Language: English
  • ASIN: B002HMCLFQ
  • Text-to-Speech: Enabled
  • X-Ray: Not Enabled
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #63,340 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
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Customer Reviews

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4.8 out of 5 stars
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars 74p Bargain 4 Oct 2010
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
After downloading lots of free books for my Kindle this was my first purchased book. It cost me 74 pence so I wasn't expecting alot.

Boy was I wrong, I couldn't put the Kindle down and read it in 2 days. Argus Ward is an ex Secret Service agent who had a dark hidden secret he is a schizophrenic. He controls his illness by medication but slowly his world unravels and he is accused of murder.

I won't say more than that except this book was worth every penny.
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
Argus Ward has a medical problem. He's a paranoid schizophrenic. But as long as takes his medication, he can function as head of the successful security company he established, and nobody need know his secret.

Then he starts seeing things - like a naked flight attendant on his plane. Then he starts hearing things - voices issuing strange and menacing commands. What's going on? Trouble, that's what, and Argus is soon knee-deep in it, charged with the murder of his most famous client.

Did he do it? If so, why, when he faithfully takes his daily medication?

Crack-up is by turns funny, exciting and actually quite scary - a truly original premise brilliantly executed. The action never lets up, with lots of twists and turns along the way. With a paranoid narrator, Christopherson has a lot of fun. Just about anything goes when you're in that mental state.

I have to say the behaviour of the cops (who were presumably meant to be sane) strained my credulity at several points. That didn't stop me enjoying this zany tale immensely, but it did almost cost the fifth star on the rating!

This is an exhilarating roller-coaster read, worth many times the modest price tag.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Hard to tell insanity from reality! 15 Nov 2010
By Jenni
Format:Kindle Edition
I've read a few books about this kind of "big-brother is watching you / big goverment conspiracy theory" subject but I have to say that this is the first time that the actual conspiracy itself was the sanest thing in the book!

I think that the author must have had a lot of fun writing this book - it is really hard at times to tell reality from insanity (which is the whole point of course) and I warmed quickly to the lead character. It gave me a very interesting insight into the world of temporary insanity. The storyline was well thought out and there was no "filler" - everything in the book was necessary to the story and it flew along at a fantastic pace!

I didn't give the book 5 stars as I tried to consider if I would have been disappointed if I'd paid the average paperback price for it and for me the answer is yes, I would, but if I'm honest, I don't usually buy this kind of book unless it has been vastly reduced in price, simply because this is not the type of genre that appeals to me. But it was absolutely better than I was expecting and entertained me far more than other books I've read in this genre (for example Dean Koontz, The Good Guy - waaaay too far-fetched for me)

Definitely 5 stars for value for money but I personally found the story itself a tad far-fetched and very hollywood-esque at times - however if this is the kind of thing that you like in a book then this is definitely one you should buy, you'll not be disappointed!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars Exhausting to read - !!
What I mean is, it's so full of tension, worry for the main character, will this nightmare ever end?? And the reader really doesnt know for sure...... Read more
Published 4 months ago by patsy
5.0 out of 5 stars My Head Hurts
This is a clever thriller and you get drawn into the world of Argus who is descending into psychosis and desperately trying to stay one step ahead of the authorities while he... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Galning
5.0 out of 5 stars excellent story
Excellent story. After reading the first chapter or so I thought this was going to be another poor thriller story but I was wrong. It is an excellent plot and well worth a read.
Published 17 months ago by Airline Traveller
5.0 out of 5 stars Far surpassed my expectations!
It was cheap and unique, so I thought I'd give it a go. Well, it certainly was different and it was brilliant :-)
Published 20 months ago by Southampton girl
5.0 out of 5 stars Good plot with a twist
I read this book on Kindle in a day. It has a good plot running through it with a unexpected twist at the end. Read more
Published on 26 April 2011 by Janet Strode
5.0 out of 5 stars Crack-Up
It's hard to review this without giving any plot away.
But what I will say is that it was such a good read. I wasn't sure whether Argus was or wasn't sane at points. Read more
Published on 11 April 2011 by Joo (in UK)
4.0 out of 5 stars Great fun
A great, pacey read, very funny in places. The paranoia was very well done - I was right there with him!
Published on 4 April 2011 by Susanne
5.0 out of 5 stars Riveting Read
I really enjoyed this book and could not put it down. I loved Argus and thought the paranoia and delusions were very well done - were they really there? Read more
Published on 2 April 2011 by L. A. Manning
5.0 out of 5 stars Everything you could want in a thriller
I have a 50 minute rail commute to and from work, and my test of a good novel is whether it keeps my head down for the entire trip. Read more
Published on 23 Feb 2011 by B. Hyland
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it
I really enjoyed this book. A different type of thriller but wholly enjoyable. Didn't expect it to be so good for the price! Buy it!
Published on 1 Jan 2011 by Catscorpion
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Popular Highlights

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&quote;
“Never before, in world history, has a government known or recorded so much about the smallest, most intimate details of its citizens’ lives.  Not in Mao’s China, Stalin's Soviet Union, or Hitler’s Germany . . .” &quote;
Highlighted by 4 Kindle users
&quote;
Excerpt from THE PROPHET MOTIVE by Eric Christopherson &quote;
Highlighted by 4 Kindle users
&quote;
company’s founder, president, and CEO, John Helms.  That’s right—the wealthiest person in America.  John was a client of mine.  I protected him.  Life and limb. &quote;
Highlighted by 3 Kindle users

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