Hot Pick of the Week and giveaway: Call Me Crazy by Quinn Loftis

Synopsis

"I’m looking out from inside the chaos. It must be a one-way mirror because no one seems to be able to see back inside to where I am. The looks on their faces, the judgment in their eyes, tells me everything I need to know. The most frustrating part about the whole messed up situation is that even though I’m the one that they stare at in shock, I am just as shocked as they are. I know no more than they do of why I lose control. What they don’t know is that I am more scared of myself than they could ever be.” ~ Tally Baker After a devastating turn of events, seventeen year old Tally Baker is admitted to Mercy Psychiatric Facility where she is diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. She has come to a place where she honestly believes that her life is over. Her mind tells her that she will never smile or laugh again, that she will never be normal again. It is in this unlikely place that she meets two people, different in every way, yet both critical to helping her realize that she has so much more living to do. Candy, a cantankerous sixty year old Mercy Psychiatric patient, is hell bent on driving everyone as crazy as she is. Candy shows Tally that, regardless of her diagnosis, the ability to push on and live her life to the fullest is her choice and hers alone. In the midst of Tally’s oftentimes humorous, sometimes heart-wrenching, escapades with Candy, a new patient is admitted to Mercy—a Native American woman named Lolotea. Along with this new patient comes a daily visitor, her son, Trey Swift. At first glance, it is obvious to Tally that he is incredibly handsome and unbelievably caring. But what she learns through her second glance, and many thereafter, is that there is much more to Trey than he ever lets on. It is during these daily visits that Trey and Tally build a friendship far deeper than either of them truly realize. With Trey, Tally feels for the first time since being admitted that someone is looking at her as a person and not as a disease. Trey begins to make it clear that he wants more than friendship, but she knows that she can never give him more. How can she, when she won’t even give him the truth? Tally doesn’t tell Trey that she is a patient at Mercy, and she doesn’t ever plan to. Her plans go up in flames when she finds out that Trey is a new student at her school, the school where her brokenness was found out in the floor of the girl’s bathroom in a pool of her own blood.

5 star review

Call Me Crazy is a beautiful, yet heart breaking story of a young girl who has recently been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder.  It is about her struggle to live and how she needs to learn how to control the disease and not let it control her.

You could say that Tally's life had been turned upside down that day in school when she completely broke down, and was found on the floor of the girls bathroom in a pool of her own blood.  Tally has been admitted to a psychiatric hospital where she is diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder.  Tally is only 17 years old and thinks that at this point her life is over.  How can she go back to school and face everyone after the incident?  Her parents have, for the most part been absent ever since she has been admitted.  They are having a hard time accepting that their daughter is Bipolar and instead of being there for her they become wrapped up in their own world and their jobs.  Now is the time when Tally needs a support system and the only people she has is her best friend Natalie and her new friend, a 60 year old woman who has been deemed by the courts as unstable and is now living in a psychiatric hospital.  Then she sees him, the boy that will change her life forever, the boy who will end up capturing her heart and help her to feel alive again.  His name is Trey Swfit.

Trey is visiting his mother at the same hospital that Tally is a patient at.   Trey is completely drawn to Tally when he first meets her and has every intention getting to know her and of making her HIS.  When Tally is with Trey she feels alive, and safe and not so broken, but she refuses to tell him the truth.  That she is a patient and not just a visitor like she lead him to believe. Tally figures that when her time at the hospital is over she can just walk away and Trey will never have to know the truth.  But it's not that simple.  Especially when she finds out that Trey will be attending the same school as her in the fall. Trey learns about the incident that the whole school has been talking about, he learns that Tally has Bipolar Disorder and was really a patient.  But The amazing thing about Trey is that he didn't care.  He loved Tally, he wanted to be there for her to help her and protect her.  But regardless of the fact that Tally has feelings for Trey, she feels broken and not deserving of Trey's love.  Will Tally be able to let Trey in, let him love her and find happiness? 

"I will spend the rest of our lives reminding you, that you may have bipolar disorder, but it does not have you.  It cannot have you because I have claimed you and I don't share."  ~ Trey

Quinn Loftis did such an amazing job with the character development and connection that you feel for these characters.  I felt the emotions right along with Tally. I wanted her to come out on top and fight it and most of all I wanted her to find her happiness, to realize that she can fight the disease and learn to live.  I felt the pain and fear as she struggled day to day.  The supporting characters were so amazing and a great support system for Tally.  Candy, one of the other patients, was a sassy, feisty, witty older woman who was always there for Tally.  Her best friend Natalie loved her no matter what and never treated her like she was broken or different.  She wanted things to be the way they always were.  Then there is Trey who I loved.  He is simply amazing and I love the way he wants to take care of her and protect her.  Everyone needs a Trey in their life.  He has his own issues with his mom and I think in a way he needed Tally just as much as she needs him.  He is willing to fight with her and for her and for that you can't help but fall in love with him. 

"She is mine.  She always has been, but now she has admitted it.  With all the darkness and ugliness in my world, all my pain, and anger, she is my sun."

Call Me Crazy was an emotional roller coaster that was written in such a way that you felt every emotion the character went through.  Tally's story was so real and raw and genuine.  It is a heart wrenching story of a young girl's struggles with bi-polar disorder.  Leaning how to not feel broken, how to love yourself, let others love you and to learn how to live.  Tally was an amazing a strong heroine.  There were moments and situations that occurred that I believe were very defining moments in Tally's struggle and watching her go through them will break your heart.  But she is strong and is a fighter.  This was a beautifully written story that will touch your heart.  I am not sure that my words can really do this book justice, but I have to say that Call Me Crazy is a must read.  Any book that can cause you to feel the emotions right along with the character, to feel that connection with them and to simply fall in love with them is an amazing book.  The ending was fantastic and the last line brought tears to my eyes.  Quinn Loftis you did an amazing job with Tally's story!

"I know that I am the one in control of this disease.  I know that I am not in this alone."


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