definitely miscommunication about how this book was going to work. I thought it was a biography, very non fictiony, it's not. It reads as somewhat historical fiction, including some scenes previous to the life of poe with some questionable dialogue. It reads as fiction, but it wasn't what i was expecting or wanted. This reason is entirely personal and about my specific reading tastes.

It's a biographical novel of Edgar Allan Poe. I've always been interested in Poe's figure and in this book I found out some interesting facts about his life. Being a work of fiction, many of the details are highly speculative and, some of them, unnecessary.
There's no doubt that the book is well written. The prose is clean and precise. The historical context is beautifully depicted and it shows a deep knowledge about the ups and downs of Poe's life.
The novel is great. Very enjoyable and easy to read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this well researched biographical novel. I literally could not put it down! The author seems to have captured Poe’s multifaceted character. Now, I need to I go back and re-read all of Poe’s books!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this book. I found this book to be just fascinating! It is the story of the life of author Edgar Allen Poe. Even though this was written like a story (which I liked), it seemed to be based mostly on facts about his life. I really didn't know too much about him except for some of his more famous poems. This book gave me an insider's look at his fascinating life. I liked the author's writing style-it was easy to follow and kept my attention throughout the book. I hope he continues to write more biographies. Highly recommend!

Beautifully written historical fiction biography of one of America's greatest writers.

I've always been fascinated by Poe, both in his works, his life and of course his death (which is still such a mystery!) John Issac Jones created a beautiful novel here, weaving in historical facts and details along with fiction and speculation, nothing ever seems far fetched or unlikely and at times you can forget that it's not all fact. A gripping novel that I couldn't put down, I just had to see what would happen next, and what sort of story was being woven in regards to Poe's untimely demise.

A must read for fans of Poe!

This is a Brilliantly told biography of Edgar Allan Poe.
I am a die-hard Poe fan through and through, and I absolutely loved this book!
I was hooked from the first page, and devoured this morsel in one day! Edgar Allan Poe is a fascinating man, and this biography was engaging, entertaining and very well written.
A must-read for any Poe fan!

Above all, A Quiet Madness humanizes Edgar Allan Poe. Jones's dramatization is based upon fact, for the most part; the cause of death, however, is a conjecture. Nevertheless, this is a novel that must be read straight through from beginning to end.