Abbie Slocum, a forty-something, average, middle of the road, housewife and mother of teenage twin boys, tries desperately to keep her outwardly idyllic life together while spiraling into a dark pit of menopausal insanity. Her mind races with suicidal, murderous thoughts so outside of her normal character that it frightens her. The only person she can share the graphic images from her hormonally addled mind with is her best friend, Rachel, recently separated, and the mysterious and titillating Joan, a new friend from Rachel's singles support group. Women have survived this female passage of life since the beginning of time Why was Abbie having so much trouble handling it? As the battle to maintain her sanity rages on, Abbie, Rachel and Joan stumble into unfortunate, borderline comical, circumstances that lead to wild nights, experimenting with drugs and two suspicious deaths. Abbie's cop husband, Conrad, tries desperately to understand what's happening to his normally sweet wife. While vying for promotion, his family gets embroiled in a media frenzy that swirls around a murder trial in which Abbie is the primary suspect. Abbie takes the reader on an old jalopy ride of uncharacteristic outbursts and wild escapism that leads to tragedy and finally, into court where she just might have to plead 'temporary insanity'. "Astonishingly honest, this novel will take you on a wild ride with its unforgettable protagonist, a woman who is on a journey of shocking self-discovery. A book like 'Mental Pause' is long overdue and I am sure it will speak to millions of women who like me, identify with its message." Zvezdana Rashkovich, author, Dubai Wives "This novel zips along at a cracking pace and is full of fun. I loved it." Jo Parfitt, author and publisher "Abbie is riding the hormonal roller coaster and hanging on for dear life. She finds herself in a body she no longer recognizes, a marriage that feels overwhelming, and she questions her very sanity. Her existence has become one big hot flash inflamed by killer moods. A chance meeting seems to give her the escape she's desperate for but at what cost? Accused of murder she finds herself in a jail cell accompanied by her regrets and the gnawing fear that her life may be changed forever. It's a kind of mental pause that Abbie has never imagined, in a story that offers no letup from start to satisfying finish. Change of life, anyone? Mental Pause promises to take you way beyond." Stacey Donovan, author/editor, Donovan Edits "Love, attraction, hot flashes, pending empty nest, sizzling nights, shifting identity, the meaning of friendship, surprising twists and missteps galore -- it's all here Anne O'Connell has written a fun debut novel about one menopausal woman's desire to let her hair down, and the trouble that can result." Linda A. Janssen, author of The Emotionally Resilient Expat