Book Review: Our Frail Disordered Lives by Mary M. Schmidt
For pride and avarice and envy are the three fierce sparks that set all hearts ablaze. – Dante Alighieri, Inferno
Our Frail Disordered Lives is a sweet, nasty, and entertaining morality tale. Mary M. Schmidt has created some exceptionally vivid characters of the human, demonic, and feline varieties.
Roach isn’t very nice, even for a demon. He’s misguided and foolish, but still dangerous. His frustration still seethes because Satan long ago cut off his opportunity to be written into Dante’s Inferno. That disappointment has spurred him on to a complicated plot of vengeance.
Grace and Kathleen are wonderful characters. They’re the kind of ladies I’d love to grow old with. Kathleen’s children inspire the fervent hope that they’ll be saved from disaster, while Grace’s cats, Dante and Virgil, are amazing and heroic, in their own way.
There’s a surprising amount of action once Roach hits his stride. With the help of Satan’s IT guy, Scorch, his scheming manipulates the targeted characters to achieve a stunning crescendo. Both Hell and Earth are threatened, mortal lives are endangered and some are ruined, yet, the book is still funny.
Thank you to Mary M. Schmidt, Lulu Publishing Services, and BookSprout for the advanced review copy. It was a privilege to read Our Frail Disordered Lives. I’m freely offering my honest and enthusiastic endorsement of this original fantasy. It’s a wonderful read; hilarious, thought provoking, and satisfying.
Cat's Game 