In this breath-snatching first novel of love, madness, and artistic identity, a young genius's obsession with a reclusive writer consumes those around him, as they begin to learn the truths that lurk beneath the surface.

"The Muse Asylum is an ingeniously plotted postmodernist mystery that introduces a young writer of exceptional gifts. David Czuchlewski writes with imagination, vision, and style."
-Joyce Carol Oates

The lives of three recent Princeton graduates-Jake Burnett, a reporter for a small Manhattan weekly; Andrew Wallace, a troubled genius convinced of worldwide conspiracies and cover-ups; and Lara Knowles, ex-girlfriend to both-weave together in a search to uncover the identity of the reclusive master of the modern novel, Horace Jacob Little.

A violent act lands Andrew in the Overlook Psychiatric Institute, also known as the Muse Asylum, a haven for the artistically gifted with mental illness. He spends his days working on his autobiography, the story of the Horace Jacob Little conspiracy, and his own efforts to protect his true love, Lara, from the dangerous author.

But when Jake-trying to make a name for himself by unmasking Horace Jacob Little-goes to visit Andrew, he finds himself caught in a game of cat and mouse, where victim becomes stalker and hunter becomes prey. After Jake inadvertently sets him onto the trail of the author, Andrew spirals deeper into madness. And only then does Jake fathom the author's secret, and the lengths to which Horace Jacob Little will go to protect it.

Part love story and part journey into the psychology of genius, The Muse Asylum is a tale of stunning reversals and reflections in a world where things are never quite what they seem.