Prison Blues [Mass Market Paperback]

Anna Salter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2, 2002

Eight months pregnant: a time when most women would want to stay off their feet. But forensic psychologist Michael Stone is no ordinary woman. When her old friend, the warden at Nelson's Point Correctional Facility, asks her to replace a psychologist who was leading the sex offender therapy group, Michael can't say no. As she soon discovers, her predecessor was dismissed for having sexual relations with an inmate -- and had befriended a smooth-talking prisoner in her group...a prisoner who now has his eyes on Michael. When violence erupts, leaving one inmate dead and one official in a coma, all eyes are trained on Michael's group. With no witnesses or weapons to be found, Michael races against the clock -- armed only with her knowledge of the psychopathic mind -- to uncover a vicious criminal network that might extend far beyond the prison walls....

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Anna Salter, Ph.D., is a forensic psychologist and internationally known authority on sex offenders. She is the author of three previous novels featuring Dr. Michael Stone -- Shiny Water, Fault Lines, and White Lies -- all available from Pocket Books. She also lectures worldwide and has written two academic books on sex abuse. Dr. Salter is in private practice in Madison, Wisconsin, and consults to the Wisconsin Department of Corrections.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Pocket (January 2, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671023535
• ISBN-13: 978-0671023539
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #263,892 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great psychology, fantastic action, May 1, 2002

By 

booksforabuck "BooksForABuck" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Prison Blues (Mass Market Paperback)

When a former friend gets caught having sex with a prisoner, psychologist Michael Stone gets drafted to take over her group. Michael (although she has a man's name, Michael is definitely female) is eight months pregnant and has issues of her own, but she agrees to take the job partly to learn why her normally conservative friend could have made such a horrible mistake.

What she finds in the psychology group surprises and frightens her. Her friend insists that one of the inmates is innocent but Michael knows exactly the kind of manipulating disorder Jim Walker represents. The group isn't functioning right but that is the least of Michael's problems. She suspects that the group may also be involved in something more serious than corrupting the morals of a psychologist. Despite her pregnancy and the strongly urged advice of her baby's father, Michael decides she has to investigate.

Author Anna Salter obviously knows psychology and the mindset of deviant personalities. Even better, she combines this knowlege with a powerful story-telling sense to deliver a powerful and thrilling story. The more Michael investigates, the more loose ends turn up, and the farther into danger she falls. Salter weaves in multiple inter-related subplots involving the warden's family, a serial sex offender who the warden vows to protect from prison violence, and Michael's own issues with the loss of independence that a permanent relationship with a man and another with her baby have to represent.

Highly enjoyable--I couldn't put it down.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't buy this book if you don't like staying up all night!, February 6, 2002

By 

Paul Hixenbaugh (Valley Village, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prison Blues (Mass Market Paperback)

When I bought this book I hoped that it would manage to be as good as Salter's previous Michael Stone mysteries, "Shiny Water," "Fault Lines," and "White Lies." After starting it on the train home from work I found myself unable to put "Prison Blues" down. This new novel takes Dr. Stone to a new level, both personally and professionally. The beauty of this novel lies in the way the different plots and subplots are entwined. This results in an break-neck pace that keeps you reading from first page to last. When Dr. Stone is contacted by an old friend to take over a prison therapy group, the 8-months pregnant Stone agrees. Little does she realize that she will end up investigating a murder, an attempted murder, and a drug ring. In her personal life, Stone has to deal with her own adverse reaction to her impending motherhood and her boyfriend Adam's "overprotectiveness". And of course, no Michael Stone novel would be complete without havoc caused by her indomitable mother. This storyline makes for a fascinating look at the life of a forensic psychologist. This novel rings true as something that could only have been written by an expert. I loved it and cannot wait for the next one.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well paced and compelling, March 2, 2004

By 

Larry Gandle (Tampa, Florida) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prison Blues (Mass Market Paperback)

Michael Stone, forensic psychologist, is asked to lead a group session at Nelson's Point Correctional Facility, Vermont. The group consists of sexual predators who suspiciously appear to be hiding something from her. Michael is replacing Eileen Steelwater who was fired after being discovered having sex with one of the inmates. Michael wonders why Eileen would break her ethical code. Violence breaks out in the prison. The group Michael leads becomes increasingly suspect. What are they hiding and why?
Anna Salter's writing is reminiscent of the early excellent work of Sue Grafton, Sara Paretsky and Patricia Cornwell. This is a character rich work that never delves into the excess. The minutia of Michael's life is kept to a minimum in favor of plot progression. Michael Stone is a likable character and her supporting staff reasonably realistic. Ms. Salter, a forensic psychologist, herself, manages to mix just the right amount of fact with fiction so as to never appear preachy. The story, itself, is both compelling and well paced. This is not the most exciting of the nominated books in this category, but, it is the best written and my choice for the Edgar.