The Mask of Sanity

Written by Jacob M. Appel

Narrated by Dennis Adams

On the outside, Dr. Jeremy Balint is a pillar of the community: the youngest division chief at his hospital, a model son to his elderly parents, fiercely devoted to his wife and two young daughters. On the inside, Dr. Jeremy Balint is a high-functioning sociopath--a man who truly believes himself to stand above the ethical norms of society. As long as life treats him well, Balint has no cause to harm others. When life treats him poorly, he reveals the depths of his cold-blooded depravity.
At a cultural moment when the media bombards us with images of so-called sociopaths who strive for good and criminals redeemed by repentance,The Mask of Sanity offers an antidote to implausible tales of evil gone right. In contrast to fictional predecessors like Dostoyevesky's Raskolnikov and Camus' Meursault, Dr. Balint is a man who already has it all --and will do everything in his power, no matter how immoral, to keep what he has.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Everand Productions
• Release date: Jul 27, 2021
• ISBN: 9781094426372

Jacob M. Appel

Jacob M. Appel is the author of many novels and short story collections including The Man Who Wouldn’t Stand Up, Scouting for the Reaper, Phoning Home, Einstein’s Beach House, and Millard Salter’s Last Day. His short fiction has appeared in many literary journals including Agni, Colorado Review, Gettysburg Review, and more. His prose has won many awards including the Boston Review Short Fiction Competition and the William Faulkner-William Wisdom Award. His stories have also been shortlisted for the O. Henry Award and the Best American Short Stories. He has taught most recently at Brown University, at the Gotham Writers’ Workshop in New York City, and at Yeshiva College, where he was the writer-in-residence. His essays have appeared in The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Detroit Free Press, Orlando Sentinel, The Providence Journal, and many regional newspapers.

Reviews for The Mask of Sanity

[Tishjuan Taylor · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story started out boring but got good once you past chapter .

[Jon H · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Little character depth...I felt nothing for any of the characters just wanted the bastard to get his day of reckoning.

[Brenda Shealey Steele · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

First, I hope there is a book 3…there must be.

[Jay Cottrell · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I don’t normally leave reviews but this book was awesome. I binged it on a long drive and it made the time feel like nothing at all. Forreal this is a good listen.

[Lara Pretorius · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Love this book! The narrator did a great job though I do wish the main characters speaking voice wasn’t so annoying! The cliffhanger end was a great touch! ? I highly recommend a listen ?

[LynneGauthier · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Interesting book. Can’t say that I love the cliffhanger ending, but it did seem appropriate. Wonder if they are setting up for a sequel?

[M. ball · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I usually just leave star ratings but on the ones I really enjoy I have to write something this is a really amazing book

[nicole · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Excellent read. Decent pacing. I would have liked a less perfect ending for the protagonist. I feel like everything worked out a little too perfectly for him, but I was engaged throughout the entire story

[Connie andrews · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Very good. But what an unlikable guy! And what is up with that ending?

[Justin Walther · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It was a interesting book good read. The author puts you in the killer mind

[Monkey See, Monkey Eat · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I really wanted to stop listening about mid-way through the book. But, I dislike leaving books half-finished. It ends on a cliffhanger as if the author couldn't decide how to end the book any other way. I also found the narrator's representation of Balint's voice to be a little annoying (nasal and like he was speaking through his teeth).

[Ariel Archer OHara · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The whole premise was amusing if ridiculous, but that made it seem like something someone would actually do. But what a let down of an ending.

[starlet little · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Interesting storytelling style. I enjoyed it very much! Thank you!

[Jenn Handspiker · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

The end is annoying. It simply ends without resolution. Stupid way to finish. Knowing now how it concludes, I wouldn't bother pushing through the slow parts. Not worth the read.

[Donna Benoit · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It was ok. Not a fan of the ending or the narration.

[Cody Rabida · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love reading books because they afford a story to be more specific and narrow than a large production like a movie or TV show. In that vein, I loved The Mask of Sanity because it gave me something I've never gotten from another piece of media. A book where the main character suffers a psychotic break that the average reader can understand; logically, where he becomes a bad guy but maintains being the "hero". I was rooting for Jeremy the whole time, even when he murdered the innocent people in between him and his rival. It's just refreshing to read a story where the author doesn't try and end it by saying "We understand WHY he did it, but he was wrong in the end, and thus deserves to be caught/thwarted, etc." As far as I'm concerned, Jeremy performed his murders flawlessly and for good reason, and in the end got the better of his cheating, deceitful wife who took zero responsibility for her own actions, and went on to live a blessed life he worked for. Delilah was great, glad she was part of Jeremy's good ending.

[meboles · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Like Highsmith's Talented Mr. Ripley, we are drawn into the emotionless evil of this psychopath's goals with deft, unsparing prose.

[Crystal · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I wasn't sure about this book, but it drew me in. I definitely wanted to know what would happen. The end was sudden, and if it's not another book kind of ruins it for me. How the character fell into that role so easily though, it must've always been in him. This book was somethng else, glad I found it. I'm intrigued about this author now.

[Ma At · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was a love - hate scenario. Initially I thought the story was unfolding far too slowly. Then, at some point, I was hooked to the point of listening and shirking all other duties. The ending…I am speechless. No words other than WHAT!!!!!?!!!

[Cristina · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

finished the book in one day. i wasn’t enthralled in the storyline but i just had to know how it ended. i do think the storyline was good however i wished there was a more sinister motive or overall theme within the book. after the main character-Jeremy- accomplished his goal the rest of the book somewhat flatlined. even then it never felt like there was a climax in the book- maybe it was to mimic how emotionless and methodical Jeremy was. nevertheless the hope of a twisted fate or unexpected ending is what kept me reading and although the last paragraph made me think- i was in no way left wanting more.

[Susan Burns · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

SPOILERS!
At first, I hated the narration so much that I almost stopped reading it. But thenI realized that it lent itself to the emotioness main character’s behavior that I stuck with it and am glad I did. I kept wondering what would happen to Jeremy in the end, and, well…
The ending was abrupt, but I sort of liked it. Can we assume that Jeremy’s wife did look in his wallet, clammed up, and waited til the divorce was final? Her demands weren’t over the top, which I thought was strange, but maybe she was so reasonable because at that point, she knew who she was dealing with and didn’t want any repercussions. Who else could have figured out whoJ was?

[Pegi Johnson · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another great book. I meant to read this. It was better than I expected.

[Elizabeth Coulter · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Gripping tale, gruesome but probably how a psychopath thinks. The narrator wasn’t my favorite, but ok

[Dolores Weiss · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The characters, the movement, the unpredictable ending. Fantastic listening. Terrific

[Emma Smith · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I loved this book. There’s a great twist at the end and I really, really need there to be a sequel.

[Alexander M · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good I enjoyed this book very much....Very interesting and thrilling

[Mohammad Muji Paliwala · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A profound exploration of the sociopath’s psyche, ‘The Mask of Sanity’ stands apart from ‘American Psycho’ in its lack of graphic content while still maintaining a disturbing atmosphere. Written in the third person, the narrative feels as though the protagonist is personally recounting their story. The open-ended conclusion leaves readers pondering the implications long after the final page.

[Carmen Cupido · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Gripping. I am going to read all his other books!

[Naomi Lahners · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great story. Keeps your interest to the last word. Not woke.

[Nina Quartuccio · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This story minamally held my interest, although I believe if the author was more descriptive, especially on the murders it would have been more visually stimulating. There were no real peaks or heightened elements that can bring a reader on an excited climb thru the plot. It flattened out completely after the main character completed his goal. There were no real thrills and the abrupt ending, although some may think of it as a twist, leaves you hanging and questioning. The narrator was fine for me, with nothing good or bad to say about his reading. Ah...NG.