Speedy Pensioner

Not Speedy Gonzales but Speedy Pensioner - that's me! The wood finally arrived yesterday in high winds and drizzle. Two cubic meters of wood was dumped on the pavement outside our house - not quite outside the door as our neighbour's van was there. The whole lot was inside the house in about an hour - truly! And now all my muscles hurt and still lot to do as I have piles of wood around the house that need to be stacked in their proper places. But that is another story for another day...

Today's story is about the book which I read in the cold house while waiting for the wood to arrive - Speedy Pensioner in this too as I read the whole book in one day. You Can't Hide is the first book by Karen Rose that I have read. One more of those serial killer books that seem to abound nowadays. I am trying to think of a book with just one murder in it, but cannot remember one single one.


The main character is a medical doctor and a psychiatrist, Dr Tess Ciccotelli, working with suicidal patients. Per also works for the police giving assesments of the criminals being tried in court. Per testifies as to their competence to stand trial. Sometimes that brings per to the conflict with the police. One such case where, according to the police Dr Ciccotelli helped a child and a police killer get free, had happened just before the beginning of the story and had caused the most of the police force to hate Dr Ciccotelli. The police believed that the killer had pretended to be mentally ill, whereas Dr Ciccotelli had pronounced the killer not responsible for pers actions, being continually tormented by demons attacking per.

Another main character is a police officer who is given the task of working the case where Dr Ciccotelli's patients are manipulated to commit suicide. It becomes clear that the killings are just tools to get at Dr Ciccotelli. From the actions it is very clear that the killer is a psychopath. Per has no empathy or any kind of feeling for any of the people per kills. Per manipulates people to get what per wants and killed even before these latest killings, without any remorse, first in an attempt to get what per wanted and later to make money.

Mental illness is an important thread in the book - has to be with a psychiatrist as one of the main characters. When killer is unmasked, but not yet caught, the fact that pers mother suffered from schizophrenia is made much of. It is almost given as an explanation for the actions of the killer. Dr Ciccotelli feels bad that per had not been able to help this person to get better or get any treatment for pers mental illness - schizophrenia. This is where an otherwise good novel falls apart. How could a person - even a fictional character - go through medical and psychiatric education and training and not know the difference between pcychopathy and schizophrenia. There is enough stigma and misunderstanding particularly of schizophrenia in the world for this to be a really bad flaw in the book. It adds to the confusion about these things and is totally inexcusable. 

The writer should have researched the illness better. The way the killer is portrayed is clearly someone who is a psychopath. This is how Wikipedia defines psychopathy: "Psychopathy is a personality disorder whose hallmark is a lack of empathy. Robert Hare, renowned researcher in the field describes psychopaths as 'intraspecies predators who use charm, manipulation, intimidation, sex and violence to control others and to satisfy their own selfish needs. Lacking in conscience and empathy, they take what they want and do as they please, violating social norms and expectations without guilt or remorse'. ...
Psychopaths are glib and superficially charming, and many psychopaths are excellent mimics of normal human emotion; some psychopaths can blend in, undetected, in a variety of surroundings, including corporate environments. There is neither a cure nor any effective treatment for psychopathy; there are no medications or other techniques which can instill empathy, and psychopaths who undergo traditional talk therapy only become more adept at manipulating others. The consensus among researchers is that psychopathy stems from a specific neurological disorder which is biological in origin and present from birth."


Psychopathy is not an illness like schizophrenia is. Schizophrenia can be treated and many suffering from it can and do lead normal lives never doing any harm to themselves or others. Its characterisation is different from that of psychopathy. Wikipedia states schizophrenia "is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a mental disorder characterized by abnormalities in the perception or expression of reality. Distortions in perception may affect all five senses, including sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch, but most commonly manifest as auditory hallucinations, paranoid or bizarre delusions, or disorganized speech and thinking with significant social or occupational dysfunction. ... The mainstay of treatment is antipsychotic medication; this type of drug primarily works by suppressing dopamine activity. Dosages of antipsychotics are generally lower than in the early decades of their use. Psychotherapy, and vocational and social rehabilitation are also important. In more serious cases—where there is risk to self and others—involuntary hospitalization may be necessary, although hospital stays are less frequent and for shorter periods than they were in previous times."

I liked this book on the whole and will read more of this writer's novels. I hope that in other books the research will be better.