The Suspect [Abridged] [Audio Cassette]

Jerry Kennealy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2002

Robert Duran is an insurance investigator specializing in art fraud. He lives with his beautiful, fabulously wealthy wife in a magnificent house in Pacific Heights, California. When his wife vanishes, police suspect foul play and that she is dead. Her family hopes that Robert will be arrested and found guilty of a crime no one is sure has occurred. And now a madman is terrorizing Robert's every step, leaving bizarre messages, making threats, and swearing he won't rest until he has executed his final, perfect moment of revenge.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Robert Duran, a private eye with his own business in recovering lost art, has been hired to locate a stolen van Gogh. Anona Stack, a famous painter and Duran's wife of six years, has two children by the cruel and cunning Jason Lark. When Jason reappears in Anona's life, all hell breaks loose: There is a fire in her studio; Duran is roughed up; worst of all, Anona is kidnapped by an ex-con with a deadly grudge?and the police suspect Robert. Kennealy endows a standard thriller plot with exceptional characterization; Jason, for example, is a truly despicable villain without being a caricature. Kennealy's characters, combined with his seasoned ability to weave several plot elements into a smooth whole, make his latest effort stand out in the crowded thriller genre.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Sunset Productions; Abridged edition (June 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564312259
• ISBN-13: 978-1564312259
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,086,255 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm a native San Franciscan - a rare breed nowadays; a former policeman, fireman, licensed private investigator for more than twenty years, and past Vice President of the Private Eye Writers of America.
Married to Shirley, the love of my life, also a San Francisco native, we have two sons: Frank and Steve, and a grandson, Jake.
When I was struggling to get my first mansucript finished, a friendly, established author encourged me, saying that my background should be helpful, and then he gave me this piece of advice: "Write what you know, and fake the rest."
I've been writing ever since. My first books were all first person private eye adventures, including ten in the Nick Polo series, and most of the action took place in San Francisco.
The following eight thrillers moved around from London, to Madrid, Russia, etc., but usually had a scene or two in San Francisco (write what you know).
Now I'm back in the city with a new series, stating with JIGSAW, featureing an offbeat hero, Mr. Carroll Quint, and entertainment editor for the San Francisco Bulletin.
I'm presently working on STILL SHOT, the second in the Carroll Quint series.
Thanks for reading about me here, and I hope you enjoy my novels.

Jerry Kennealy

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A really chilling thriller, January 6, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Suspect (Paperback)

Roberto Duran is a very happy person. He blessed with a beautiful and wealthy wife, who happens to be the most lauded artist of the times. He loves his job, finding stolen art objects and catching the thieves who stole them. His track record is so good, insurance companies compete to hire his services. His current case is to recover a stolen Van Gogh valued at $28 million. The painting was stolen in daylight from the home of a Hollywood movie producer.

Roberto has many enemies, including his wife's former spouse, her son, their family lawyer, and countless criminals he helped get arrested. One of the men he sent up the river is about to be released. This individual plans to make his nemesis pay for all that time and suffering. He kidnaps his enemy's spouse and plants evidence to make it look like Roberto is the culprit. Regardless of the personal danger, Roberto realizes that if he is to rescue his beloved wife, he goes it alone as the police will not offer any help.

Jerry Kenealy, a two time Shamus nominee, has written his best novel to date with the publication of THE SUSPECT, a crime thriller that has prize winner written all over it. This book is a gritty work that is not for the faint of heart. Though very graphic, the tale is mesmerizing due to the heroic protagonist, who represents the best in human nature. At juxtaposition to the hero is the villain, who symbolizes the depravity of the human condition (think Beowulf vs. Grendel). It is this stark contrast that makes this story into an enthralling crime noir and leave readers chanting mas to Mr. Kenealy.

Harriet Klausner

5.0 out of 5 stars Insurance investigator investigates wife's disappearance, April 23, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Suspect (Paperback)

Robert Duran seems to have the world in the palm of his hand. Until his life gets turned upside down. An insurance investigator who specializes in recovering works of art, Duran has recovered paintings ranging from the Old Masters to the best of the current artists. Duran is very good at what he does, and he enjoys his work. He is brought in to investigate, and recover, a stolen Van Gogh; valued at more than $25 million, this painting was stolen - in broad daylight - from a Hollywood producer's mansion.

Among Duran's enemies, many of which were made over the course of a successful career, is a convict, recently released from a particularly miserable, high security prison. This nut case, Otto Kline, was put in isolation for 18 months, following his learning of his wife's death. She committed suicide - in a woman's prison. He swears revenge on Duran and Duran's wife, Anona Stack, herself an artist - both of whom Kline blames for his own wife's death.

This story takes a number of twists and turns, as Duran's wife is kidnapped, her former husband is poisoned, and her son is found dead.

While Duran is considered the prime suspect in all of this, he realizes that no one else is going to help him find his wife, and that time is running out. The anniversary of Otto's wife's suicide is only two days away, and Duran must work fast to find his wife - alive.

This is a fast-paced read; set aside a couple of hours, as you won't want to put The Suspect down.