18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Overstepping his experience, June 27, 2004
This is a crime story featuring Alex Delaware. In this story, Alex answers a request to help an old doctor in the South Seas organize some medical records for publication. Once Delaware arrives on the doctor's island, people start to die, and it's up to Delaware to pull together the clues of what's been happening and put an end to the deaths.
I found the story to be exceptionally preposterous as a murder/crime story. Kellerman seems to be writing from far beyond his experience, making up details and descriptions from his imagination rather than from fact or experience. One glaring example is when he has his main characters put on swim fins on the beach and then wander into the surf- -if you've ever tried this yourself, you probably still have the bruises to show for it, and won't forget to wait until you're well into the water to put the fins on next time you go snorkeling. Kellerman also manages to place McArthur at the battle of Saipan during World War II, among other gaffes. But worst is the entire premise of Delaware's trip to the island. Supposedly, Delaware, a psychologist who is notable enough to have stories printed about him in the popular press, receives a request to collaborate on a research and writing project with an unknown medical doctor who has lived on an obscure island in the South Pacific for years. The M.D. doesn't have any particular theories or hypotheses in mind that he is working on. Instead, he has some 40-50 years of unorganized records (from patients whom he has never sought consent to involve or use their records in a research project), and he expects Delaware to come out to the island and sort through the records on the off chance that there might be something worth publishing. This is the strangest notion I have ever read of how scientific collaboration operates- -obviously, Kellerman has never discussed scientific collaboration with any researcher friends that he might have. Much of the rest of the book runs at about the same level of quality and plausibility. The story itself takes a while to get laid out, but then picks up a bit through the second half and may hold the attention of determined readers.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Spiders and Deceit, March 17, 2006
"The Web" is Jonathon Kellerman's eleventh Alex Delaware novel wnd was first published in 1996. Delaware is a psychologist based in LA who earns his living as a consultant - largely working with the courts and the police. However, the action in this book largely takes place on a small island called Aruk.
Alex and his girlfriend, Robin, have been invited to Aruk by Dr Bill Moreland. Moreland, who has gathered a great deal of clinical data in his time on the island, wrote to Alex requesting his assistance in organising and analysing it. Moreland proposes working on the biological aspects of it, with Alex focusing on the psychological aspects. The benefits to Alex include a very nice salary for the duration of the research and, hopefully, joint authorship of a number of journal articles - or possibly even a book.
Aruk is officially part of the Mariana Commonwealth and a self-governing US territory. It is also a very divided island. Moreland lives on the island's leeward side, near Aruk town - the windward side is home to Stanton, a US naval base. The Navy has also blocked the southern beach road, after sailors were blamed by some for the murder of a local girl. This has caused some ill-feeling on the island and has also had a damaging effect on the island's economy. Unfortunately for the Aruk, it's not the last suspicious death the locals will see...
Moreland lives on a 700-acre estate which was originally built by the Japanese and used as their official headquarters when they controlled the island. McArthur forced them out during WW2 and established an American presence. Moreland bought the estate from the government when he left the Navy in 1963 - he had been stationed at Stanton himself. In fact, his former CO is now an influential senator and a possible presidential candidate. Part of the estate now includes Moreland's own `zoo' : the exhibits include a large collection of very unappealing arachnids and a ridiculously large and dangerous centipede. There is also a Banyan forest nearby, which was apparently laid with mines by the Japanese during the war. Alex and Robin aren't the only guests around the house; the others include Jo and Lyman Picker, both scientists. Jo, who works for the defense department, is the reason for their presence - she is on the island to study wind patterns. Lyman, a botanist who works for a wildlife organisation, is a bitter, arrogant and obnoxious man. Moreland's daughter, Pam, is also living there - she has only recently returned from Philadelphia following her divorce.
"The Web" is only the second book by Kellerman I've read - the other being "Flesh and Blood" - and I found this one much better and more credible. However, I wouldn't say it's perfect either. Delaware himself has a tendency to jump to conclusions, desperately clutching at straws in a bid to justify his position. His relationship with Robin is hard to take at times - they make an extremely cheesy couple and some of their conversations can be a little over-dramatic. There's also an occasional bout of pretension, with scientists apparently trying to sound intelligent in front of their peers. However, while I wouldn't call it a classic, it is an easily read and largely enjoyable read.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
His worst book yet, August 5, 1999
By A Customer
I have been an avid reader of Kellerman's books. However, this one was the worst. In an attempt to be unpredictable and exciting, Kellerman writes an ending that makes no sense. I'm not saying I enjoy predictable books, but this one was just logically inconsistent and boring with unrealistic characters. I only finished it because I hate to not finish a book.
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