Murder Book [Hardcover]

Jonathan Kellerman (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: RANDOM HOUSE @ TRADE (1980)
• ASIN: B000N76AY0
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (99 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Jonathan Kellerman is one of the world's most popular authors. He has brought his expertise as a clinical psychologist to more than thirty bestselling crime novels, including the Alex Delaware series, The Butcher's Theater, Billy Straight, The Conspiracy Club, Twisted,and True Detectives. With his wife, the novelist Faye Kellerman, he co-authored the bestsellers Double Homicide and Capital Crimes. He is the author of numerous essays, short stories, scientific articles, two children's books, and three volumes of psychology, including Savage Spawn: Reflections on Violent Children, as well as the lavishly illustrated With Strings Attached: The Art and Beauty of Vintage Guitars. He has won the Goldwyn, Edgar, and Anthony awards and has been nominated for a Shamus Award.

Jonathan and Faye Kellerman live in California and New Mexico. Their four children include the novelist Jesse Kellerman.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Kellerman got BACK!, October 1, 2002

By 

Lori L. Graham "yose" (Whittier, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Murder Book (Hardcover)

Kellerman has been in a bit of a rut lately-- rich, good-looking doctor with attractive and accomplished girlfriend gets into the down-and-dirty blah blah blah. In The Murder Book, Kellerman not only shakes up Alex's life (with Robin's new gig [new life?] chief among the changes), but we finally get, in essence, a real Milo story-- much of the book is from Milo's point of view. By doing this, Kellerman drops not only the first-person but subtly alters his writing style to evoke a more Milo-ish tone. The story is made more involving by having a greater emphasis on fallibility than evil, thus making it more accessible and-- dare I say it?-- realistic.

So by combining an involving story with new character twists, more grey areas between good and evil, and the fresh perspective of Milo Sturgis, we get one of Kellerman's best books in years. Enjoy!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Probably the best in the series., October 14, 2002

By 

Nick G - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Murder Book (Hardcover)

Alex Delaware has seen his share of violent crimes but none like the collection he receives in the mail.

Alex receives an anonymous book in the mail. The book is called "The Murder Book", and in it are graphic pictures of various murders. The murders are all random, not connected, and stretch back many years. Alex has no idea why he has received this, or who sent it to him so it does the only logical thing he can...he turns it over to his lifelong friend, homicide detective Milo Sturgis.

Milo begins looking through the horrifying book only to be shocked by photos of a young woman tortured, strangled, and dumped by a freeway. Milo immediately recognizes the crime photos, it was the first case he ever worked on.

Milo has tried to forget the case he could not solve, but now many years later someone has opened a Pandora's Box bringing the past to the present, forcing Milo on an endless journey for answers. A journey that will take him to the darkest corners of L.A. exposing secrets kept for many years.

Can Milo and Alex solve the crime, and bring closure to a young woman nobody cared about?

`The Murder Book' is classic Kellerman storytelling; fast-paced, exciting, well written, and very suspenseful. The Alex Delaware series continues full steam ahead with, probably, the best entry in several years. Readers will be drawn in from the first chapter, and kept in a spell of shocks, and twists with every turn of the page.

Jonathan Kellerman writes the kind yarns that grab you by the throat, and keep you captive until the last page has been turned. Although this is a typical good versus evil story Mr. Kellerman makes it anything but typical by adding his masterful plot twists, healthy doses of action, and almost un-bearable suspense.

Longtime fans of the Delaware series will love this, and new readers will run out and by the earlier novels.

A MUST read for series fans, and thriller fans alike.

Nick Gonnella

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Delaware Discovers his Dark Side....., November 1, 2002

By 

Archmaker (California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Murder Book (Hardcover)

After a few years of Jonathan Kellerman experimenting with form, trying to expand the Delaware horizons, and exploring specific themes with some mixed results, he seemed to be getting back to basics in his last outing, Flesh & Blood, and has really regained his stride with this offering, The Murder Book.

The 16th in the Alex Delaware series, and Kellerman has caught his second wind and this story is a real page-turner and barn- burner! Kellerman is still playing with form, this time alternating between Alex Delaware's 1st person narrative, and a major portion of the book a 3rd person telling from his pal, Det. Milo Sturgis', point-of-view. He thereby gives us a deeper look at both Milo and Alex as we see Delaware from his friend's perspective.

Nice to see an author's interest and invigoration in a book so far down the line in a series. AND, the mystery and plot is a corker with Alex and Milo working a 20 year old case and uncovering really rotten people in the Hills of Beverly and Belair. Plenty of evil and fireworks.

Alex Delaware finally realizes what we have known all along. He isn't a police "consultant" because he likes to exercise his apptitude and training in psychology. He does it because he is an adrenaline junky and gets off on the danger! His beloved Robin has realized this and she has split. Permanently? More will be revealed.

Having hooked in to Kellerman many years ago, I had found several of the later books interesting, but lacking the bite and visceral grab of the earlier works. Well, Jonathan is back, full stroke, and I can't wait for the next Delaware novel. Five stars for this one, for Kellerman fans, of course.