Casperian Books is please to announce the release of Garrett Socol’s debut novel, Fame & Madness in America.
When Brenda Bernstein poisons her husband of four days, little does she know that she is about to set off a media circus the likes of which haven’t been seen since O.J. got into a white Ford Bronco.
Brenda becomes an overnight tabloid sensation-and so does everyone she has ever come in contact with, from her grade-school nemesis to her 90-year-old grandmother. As the notoriety of her trial gathers momentum, her erstwhile brother-in-law is courted by reality TV show producers to host their newest dating game show, “Mating After Murder,” and her friend Veronica screen-tests for a remake of Body Heat, while the presiding judge at her trial wisely invests in a complete makeover for the benefit of the cameras infesting the courtroom. And let’s not forget Brenda’s mother, who is so thrilled to see her daughter gracing the cover of Time, she buys all copies of the magazine from her local newsstand.
Told in vignettes from the various important (and not-so-important) players’ points of view, Fame & Madness in America is a wildly entertaining romp that explores the world of fleeting popularity in a culture that worships celebrities.
Click here to read the first chapter of Fame & Madness in America.