Amnesia (Peter Zaks Mysteries) [Hardcover]

G. H. Ephron (Author)

Book Description

Series: Peter Zaks Mysteries | Publication Date: September 2, 2000

If the only witness to a murder has amnesia, how do you catch the killer?

Instead of matching fingerprints or DNA, forensic psychologist Dr. Peter Zak solves cases by studying psychological clues and phenomena. Peter, whose specialty is the brain and behavior, consults for the Boston public defenders office, analyzing the thought processes and personalities of witnesses and defendants.

Sylvia Jackson was shot in the head and left for dead, her boyfriend murdered. Waking from a coma after six weeks, she remembers nothing-until three months later, when she begins to recall details of the crime and the killer. Finally, Syl accuses her ex-husband, remembering what seems like incontrovertible evidence of his guilt. But Stuart Jackson seems destroyed by his ex's ordeal; could he really be guilty of this vicious crime?

Peter quit consulting on trials a year ago when his wife was brutally murdered by a killer angered by Peter's suggestion of an insanity defense. But when his old colleagues call for help with this bizarre case, he's hooked. It's Peter's job to determine how reliable Syl's memory really is, and to use those memories to uncover the truth.

Amnesia is guaranteed to be the start of an intriguing and original crime series.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Forensic psychologist Peter Zak is still plagued by guilt over his failure to save his wife from death at the hands of a criminal angered by Peter's suggestion of an insanity defense at his trial. But he reluctantly agrees to evaluate the mental competence of Sylvia Jackson, whose memory of the events surrounding her boyfriend's murder seems to Peter to have been influenced by the Boston policeman who hasn't left her side since she awakened from a coma weeks after the killing. Although she remembers nothing at first, within a few months she is sure enough of significant details to implicate her former husband, whose lawyer calls on Peter's expertise to challenge her testimony. There's a connection between Sylvia Jackson and Maria Whitson, a private patient referred to Peter by a colleague after a failed suicide attempt, but the full import of it isn't teased out until the penultimate chapter. Meanwhile, the authors do an excellent job of explaining the vagaries of the mind, memory loss, and traumatic amnesia.

Amnesia, a collaboration between a sibling of the writing Ephrons and a Boston-area psychologist, is an engrossing thriller with a complex protagonist well versed in the etiology of false memory syndrome. Peter's mother and Annie Squires, a public defender whose patient affection awakens feelings Peter has buried since his wife's death, are appealing minor characters, and the particulars of the Cambridge setting--sculling on the Charles in a chilly, gray dawn, the memorable taste of a toffee-topped cone from Steve's Ice Cream--are nicely rendered. --Jane Adams

From Publishers Weekly

Boston psychologist and memory expert Peter Zak pits his wits against time and a brain-damaged woman's faulty recollection to prove a man innocent of a gruesome murder in this fast-paced first effort. Zak, still mourning his murdered wife, Kate, is cajoled into taking on a new case with former sidekicks defense attorney Chip Ferguson and PI Annie Squires (who will remind readers, at times, of Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone). Their quest: to show that Sylvia Jackson's memory is as faulty as her accusations against her ex-husband, Stuart, who's in the dock for murdering Sylvia's lover. The plot is compelling, but Zak remains a cipher. We learn only about his "oversized" build and his often distracting yuppie interests. The rest of the characters are similarly pale, except for Sylvia and bulimic Maria Whitson, whose sufferings are brilliantly rendered. Later, Maria's entanglements in the Jackson case are skillfully added to an already complex mystery. The depictions of cognitive testing are definitive and dramatic. Ephron exhibits a tendency toward clich?, however, and the self-important details of Zak's Cambridge lifestyle are intrusive, particularly if compared to the sophisticated "Spenser" standard set by Robert B. Parker. But despite its defects, this debut effort shows promise. If Ephron continues the series, no doubt Zak and his cronies will flesh out, providing mystery lovers with a welcome addition to the genre. Agent, Louise Quayle. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Minotaur; 1st edition (September 2, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 031226867X
• ISBN-13: 978-0312268671
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,851,758 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Memories are tricky..., September 20, 2000

By 

Barbara - See all my reviews

This review is from: Amnesia (Peter Zaks Mysteries) (Hardcover)

What a great mystery! This book is a delight to read. The writing style is taut and crisp, the characters (especially Peter Zak)multidimensional, and the theme profound. To what extent can we trust memories? With what confidence can someone (especially someone who has been hit in the head!) be trusted to recollect critical events? This psychological question is explored in a wonderful setting (Boston is the place, and it is beautifully described!). I really enjoyed some of the details of how psychological evaluations are conducted. Peter Zak shares with readers his myriad interests,such as Mission furniture,pottery and rowing on the Charles River. You can't put thjis book down! If you arelooking for a fun mystery, with an interesting and engaging main character,acolorful setting and a thought-provoking theme - this is it.It would be great to discuss in book clubs. I understand that anotherPeter Zak mystery is in the works (check the web site) and can't wait to read it!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I Liked Amnesia, August 20, 2000

By 

Terry Fritts (Moore, OK USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Amnesia (Peter Zaks Mysteries) (Hardcover)

At first I wondered if in such a thin volume I'd be able to connect with the characters. And a good number of characters are introduced. But by the end of the book I liked Peter Zak enough to wonder what would happen to him and care.

The story definitely moves right along but it doesn't move so fast as to be uncomfortable. There is ample description but usually not overdone. Although I am not nearly as enamored with wine drinking as the authors.

The suspense is just about right with a few twists and turns to keep things interesting right to the end.

But finally for me it is the sense that these could be real characters and whether I like them or not that would make me buy another volume.

And I would buy another one.

Terry Fritts

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mystery Lover's Delight, January 12, 2001

By 

Judith Lindenau "dulcie22" (Traverse City, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Amnesia (Peter Zaks Mysteries) (Hardcover)

As a mystery novel, "Amnesia" has it all! The location (Boston) is beautifully described, the characters are multi-dimensional and deftly drawn, and the plot is complex enough to pose an intellectual challenge but suspenseful enough to surprise the reader in the final chapters.

"Amnesia" was written by two people: a writer and her collaborator, a practicing forensic neuropsychologist. Their combined strengths result in the creation of a masterful mystery.