Customer Reviews

Denial: A novel

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I decided to read this book because reading about the main character, Frank Clevenger, I knew he was not going to be your average character. It was as if they took Frank right out of the Sin City world. Even when the book gets a little boring, Frank's interesting personality will get you by.

The story itself is decent. People are being murdered, and Frank must figure out if an insane man did it. Of course, things get a little deeper than that and a good ol 'Whodunit' breaks out.

Between Frank's wife, his buddy at the morgue, multiple strippers, cops who hate him, transexuals, a religious police captain, and Frank himself, you have a lot of unique characters to read about. The dialogue between some of these people is very entertaining, as you could probably imagine.

I give it 3 stars, because the ending left more to be desired, but is that intentional due to it being a series? I'll find out more when I read the other books, which I do plan on doing.

This is the author's first book, and you can tell that at times. However, with the other books almost being guaranteed to be better, this is a very good begining of a series.

Ten pages into Denial, I hastily emailed a friend of mine who's a big fan of Hardboiled mysteries and told him, "Have I got an author for you!" This is believably seamy stuff, quickly paced, smart and scary, filled with deliciously flawed characters. Ablow doesn't even place his protagonist above the fray: Frank Clevenger is a forensic psychiatrist with severe addiction issues--including coke, women other than his partner, and twisted psyches. There is not a character in this book who is free of quirks and tics, and it is from this pallette of dark human vagary that the story draws its power and its very plot.

As one who lives in Eastern Massachusetts, I was taken by Ablow's adept use of local geography. Clevenger lives in one of those big houses in coastal Marblehead that require two doctors to support a mortgage; he works and plays, if such a word can cover his particular recreations, in his rag-tag hometown of "Lynn, Lynn, City of Sin," and in equally gritty Chelsea. The duality fits the man, an abused blue-collar boy beneath a professional veneer.

With its sex, blood and lines of white powder, this book is not for everyone. But for those who like their mystery dark and their humanity imperfect, it's a real find.

Susan O'Neill
Author: Don't Mean Nothing: Short Stories of Viet Nam

This is a fine debut smartly paced with all the twists and turns anyone could wish. Unusual for a debut, "Denial" is not plot heavy nor does it have a cast of thousands for us to keep track of.

Dr. Frank Clevenger is about as anti-hero as I have ever read; he is an all around addict: coke, sex, alcohol, and gambling. Plus, he plays the blame game on himself for every misstep in his life. I always feel when reading a mystery that the protagonist is my pilot, constant companion and must see us both successfully to the finish. After Dr. Clevenger, my next trip will be with someone more like McDonald's Travis McGee, who I can depend upon to not fold on me until the last villain is vanquished. With Frank, I was exhausted trying to get us both to the end without cracking up.

Frank is given a mercy job by an ambitious sheriff to sign off on whether an accused murderer's confession is admissible. The accused insists he is General William Westmoreland among other visions and ramblings. This murder sends Frank on a quest to find the guilty party who is viciously slaughtering his victims. The story is replete with abused and emotionally crippled victims, Frank included. The author's empathy and expertise are shown in representing these people. I admired the level of professionalism Dr. Ablow displayed in his understanding of state hospitals bureaucracy and the patients treated there.

"Denial" has a high level of eroticism that is in keeping with Frank's character; however, it may be too steamy for some readers. The book shows talent and promise. I will look for more works by this author.
-sweetmolly- Amazon Reviewer

Ablow shows considerable potential in his first novel, Denial. It has interesting characters,an interesting plot and it moves along at a fast pace. The only thing that kept me from rating it a "4" is that it is a little far fetched that the clues, which seem to consistently evade the police, seem to just "fall into Clevenger's lap". Denial is definitely a worthwhile read if you like thrillers, and I have already purchased Ablow's new book, Projection, which continues to feature Frank Clevenger, the psychiatrist.

This book literally jumped off the shelf and I had to buy it. I was initially put off by the coke-snorting doctor, who didn't seem to have his life together. But, I was hooked by page 19. Ablow's writing is real, not the stuff of Hollywood or those writer's who crank out a book every six months. There were definitely parts that made me reel and squirm. However, his insights into the human psyche are phenomenal. I've had enough therapy to know that the comments he makes about individuals and pain are well researched.

In fact, some of his comments helped me with some work I am currently doing on my own childhood.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and can't wait for the next one! Thanks, Mr. Ablow.

I actually bought this book in error, thinking I was ordering something by another author Keith Snyder. You can imagine my surprise upon reading it, that I had accidentally come upon a debut novel by a really terrific writer.

Frank Cleavenger is a forensic psychiatrist who interviews suspected murderers. He also snorts cocaine and has as troubled a mind as some of the people he's interviewing but he knows how to keep it in check. The author is also a psychiatrist himself so the research is obviously first hand and this makes the main character so much more believable. In this book, a small town in Massachusetts has a psycho-murderer on its hands and Cleavenger is called in on the case.

Other characters that add to this psychological thriller are Trevor Lucas, a psychopathic plastic surgeon whose former patients are being killed and Kathy, who is living with Cleavenger while using Trevor as a part-time lover. Frank's volatile nature adds to the excitement of this book. Ablow has since written a sequel, Projection, which I'm anxious to read after getting through this riveting book all in one piece.

We have a seriously disturbed protagonist on our hands here who is gripped by a multitude of weaknesses. Frank Clevenger is a forensic psychologist, although it's the weakness of his own mind that becomes startlingly apparent.

The books begins with a gruesome murder that seems open and shut after a suspect, covered in the victim's blood, is found with the body. The suspect, however, is schizophrenic and may not be mentally fit to stand trial. This is where Clevenger is called into the case to assess the suspect.

From the opening pages, though, it's obvious that all is not well with Clevenger as he reveals the vices to which he is a slave. And it's not just one or two that has hold of him, you can take your pick from drugs, alcohol, sex or gambling. If it's self-destructive, he's got it covered.

As the story unfolds we explore the early life of Frank Clevenger and what happened to him to make him the man he is today. But the character development doesn't stop with him, each and every character that has a role in the story is analysed and their mind is laid bare for us to see. The effects of child abuse on the adult, years later, is the harsh underlying theme and is brought to life in a starkly realistic way. Although some of the scenes may be distasteful to some, the scenario rings all too truly and is presented well, within the context of the story.

If a character exists in Denial that is NOT a psychological quagmire, I didn't see him. The hero, the villain, and all supporting characters each have twisted lives of pain, despair, and antisocial behavior. Dr. Keith Ablow, in life a noted forensic psychiatrist, writes from the first person, and it is oddly refreshing to read a flawed, yet functioning main character navigate life's difficulties in spite of it all. Or perhaps because of it all. Frank Clevenger is established as a cocaine snorting, sex-addicted outlaw of the psychiatric profession, yet his calling is sublime: to heal the spirit of his patients.

The imagery is raw, detailed, and spot on accurate. I've worked in medicine and the law, and only someone well acquainted with the real deal could write in such a convincing, accurate manner. Some of the characterizations and plot were a tad trite. Ablow tends to embrace the mythical archetypes and stereotypes (the good whore, the doughnut eating cop). On the whole, though this book is easy to read, and hard to put down. I finished it in one long night, and recommend it to anyone who wants a gritty, grimy, crime novel that will carry you well to the finish.

I only picked this one up because I started reading PSYCHOPATH, but quickly realized that this was probably a series that needed to be read from the first novel. I am amused at the extreme difference in ratings and comments from other reviewers; but just being able to evoke such different reactions suggests that the author is doing something right. Ablow's Frank Clevenger is definitely not a likable character (and he does fall a touch short of Hannibal Lector's admitted sophistication), but at the same time I was fascinated by the story and am certain I will remain along on the ride for any future novels in the series. Also being a fan of Stephen White's Alan Gregory - another detective of the inner workings of the mind - novels, I believe that it will be interesting to compare & contrast the manner in which each character is affected by interacting with their respective 'clients', if that is the word for them.

I think this is an interesting debut novel. Loved the concept of having a lead character as a forensic psychologist that is addicted to cocaine, strippers and alcohol. It was a great concept to start a series. I'm definitely going to be reading the sequel to this book. I found it interesting how Mr. Ablow led you down the garden path before taking a sharp turn into moral ground at the end. What would you do? Turn in someone you love because you have to due to your job or help them and break the law? I just found the whole issue fascinating and can't wait to see how it all plays out in book two. I would highly recommend this book.