I struggle with book and movies that depict bad thing happening to children. The Shack comes to mind. Yet sometimes the very real and very painful is what ultimately forces a character to make the right decisions. C.J. Simone took that route with this YA novel, and she rightly includes trigger warnings, because she deals with difficult, but real issues, such as child/sex trafficking, sexual assault, suicidal ideation, and more.
As a reader, you’re invited into the minds of multiple “manic” characters who are each dealing with mental health issues. At times, it’s beautiful: Simone’ description of passionate musicians on stage is fantastic. At times it’s repetitive: I found myself wishing the characters and author would avoid making the same destructive decisions again and again–though perhaps that goes with the diagnosis. Though told from multiple perspectives, we follow Gabe, “a chiseled Italian boy with the smooth skin and blue eyes” who “was placed on earth to both delight and torment girls.” And he does, with his good looks, incredible talents, and a pronounced bipolar disorder. Gabe wrestles with demons, and no one knows how to help him, or what’s behind his psychosis. On stage, though, “he transforms into someone great, and yet the emotion in his voice tells of vulnerability… and isn’t that as appealing as the greatness?”
The novel spends considerable time describing the various characters’ destructive passions, so I can’t recommend the book for Middle Grade or timid YA or Adult readers, but Simone also weaves in a touch of Christianity through an innocent neighbor girl, Claire, whose quiet faith offers a touch of inspiration for the reader and more, eventually, to Gabe.
It’s edgy.
Still, for readers interested in tough topics that eventually offer a glimmer of hope, Simone is a talented author, her descriptive style is engaging, and her psychotic characters have depth and are believable. These are difficult issues to write about, but CJ Simone does it well by creating nuanced characters who go through some hard things. And “Going through the hard things, it’s not all bad, not if you turn it around. If it’s why you help someone.”
The Manic Mission is a creative and dark psychological thriller, and is one in CJ Simone’s “Children of the Mob” series. You can learn more about Simone and her work in GoodReads.
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