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I specialize in the provocative, scary, and strange—literally, as, much to the chagrin of my advisors at Princeton, I wrote my dissertation for my Ph.D. about three centuries of horror in literature and film. Crazy Time is my eleventh and most personal book. I wrote it as I was struggling to recover from one of the worst ordeals of my life, a series of events, one bad thing after another, that made me think—what if someone went through a REALLY horrific series of events, traumas so severe that the person became convinced that supernatural forces, possibly even God and Satan, were conspiring against her? This “what if” gave me a premise I thought people could relate to—most people have at least entertained the idea that the universe might have turned against them—as well as my heroine, Lily Henshaw, who not only entertains the idea but decides to fight back. Even though she might not be entirely sane, Lily faces adversity that would destroy most people, and she finds reserves of strength I can only wish I had. Her quest to find her way out of darkness was also my own, or at least a fantasy version of my own. I’m not saying she triumphs. You’ve got to read the book to find out about that. But she and Crazy Time helped me be a better-adjusted person, living in North Hollywood, California, with my husband and my cat, continuing to pursue my strange ways.
Reviewed by Vincent Dublado for Readers' Favorite
Crazy Time: A Bizarre Battle with Darkness and the Divine by L. Andrew Cooper is not just a horror novel, but a surreal world that you enter. At the heart of this dark tale is Lily Henshaw, who must face supernatural forces after a tragic event that led to the death of her friends. Two men in a pickup truck pursue and engage them in a brutal and deadly game called Crazy Time. Only Lily survived the game but it left her emotionally scarred and deeply traumatized. Another misfortune befell Lily when her brother committed suicide months later. Her brother’s death was allegedly part of a cluster suicide phenomenon that was reported in the media. More strange and creepy things are happening around Lily and she is under pressure to get to the bottom of the mystery, before whatever sinister force that is responsible gets to her. Perhaps God is in connivance with the Devil to test her, but whatever the case, Lily must make a bargain to get to the truth.
Themes that challenge the omnipotence and infallibility of God are becoming popular in an age where critical inquiry has been gaining ground. In many ways, L. Andrew Cooper’s Crazy Time puts this in the proper context of a surreal supernatural phenomenon that is committed to psychological manipulation, mystery, and suspense. Perhaps it is a novel that will stand the test of time. With its stark imagery and a 'no sacred cow' attitude, it is uncompromising, making it raw and bold. It is a powerful story that raises questions about existence and mortality. Another strength of this novel is its stance as it regards good and evil with equal measure, which reminds Lily that the truth she seeks could either be real or a delusion. The plot may be disturbing to many, but in the sense that you get drawn into it—for it does more than just scare.
