Everything seems to be going smoothly for Doctor Crissie Weil, a dynamic psychiatrist who treats her patients through the Internet -until a mad lawyer moves into her building, steals Crissie’s husband and tries to sabotage her career. Crissie cannot accept such behaviour without fighting back. Quickly, the two female characters of this psychological thriller are locked in a love-hate relationship, on the very brink of madness. Apfeldorfer, himself a psychiatrist, is on familiar ground with his main characters since one is a psychiatrist, and the other is afflicted with eating disorders. This is a well-told story that becomes progressively more disturbing as we discover that madness sometimes lurks where we least suspect it. In the novel, we are made to reflect on the future of psychiatry, which is gradually being revolutionised by the Internet. In the United States, Britain and Italy, psychotherapy is now readily available on-line, and such services are also being developed in France.

Gérard Apfeldorfer is a psychiatrist and psychotherapist. He is the author of Maigrir C’est dans la Tête, published by Editions Odile Jacob.