Shatter (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: ferry accident, incident room, Veronica Cray, Christine Wheeler, Bryan Chambers (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Winner of Australia's Ned Kelly Award for Best Novel, Robotham's compelling fourth thriller (after The Night Ferry) finds clinical psychologist Joe O'Loughlin and his family in Somerset, where he teaches part-time at the University of Bath. When Joe fails to persuade a suicidal woman not to leap from a bridge to her death, he becomes obsessed with understanding the woman's motives. The woman's grief-stricken teenage daughter tracks down Joe, but the police don't take notice until another woman ends up dead under suspicious circumstances. Joe calls on an old friend, retired London detective inspector Vincent Ruiz, and together they race to catch a killer who uses psychological techniques Joe recognizes from his own practice to destroy people. Robotham smoothly mixes Joe's investigation and personal struggles with glimpses into the killer's mind. Even the sharpest readers may not anticipate all of the plot's agile switchbacks or foresee the chilling climax. (Mar.)
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Review

International Acclaim for SHATTER

“Shatter will have you turning the pages compulsively, desperate to get to the end, but not daring to miss a word.” —The Times (London)

“This is Robotham’s best psychological thriller.” —Daily Mirror (London)

“Thematically complex, artfully structured, beautifully written and observed, Shatter confirms Robotham’s place in the front row.” —Sydney Morning Herald (Australia)

“Michael Robotham delivers another gem, confirming his growing reputation.” —Spanningsblog (Netherlands) --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday (March 17, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385517912
• ISBN-13: 978-0385517911
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #133,400 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "They have no idea who they're dealing with.", March 21, 2009

By	E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The protagonist of Michael Robotham's "Shatter" is Professor Joe O'Loughlin, a clinical psychologist who teaches behavioral psychology at the University of Bath. He has been married for twenty years to Julianne, a beautiful and successful high-flyer in the corporate world, and they dote on their two daughters, twelve-year old Charlie and three-year-old Emma. Unfortunately, Joe's health has been deteriorating since he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease four years ago. In spite of tremors, twitches, and other alarming symptoms, he is determined not to let his illness define him.

Joe's fortunes take a turn for the worse when he is asked to talk a jumper down from the Clifton Suspension Bridge. When he reaches the site, Joe sees an unidentified female standing in the rain, naked except for a pair of red shoes. She is conducting an intense conversation on a mobile phone. The potential suicide barely notices Joe's presence and is not interested in anything that he has to say. This disturbing encounter foreshadows future similar incidents that will challenge O'Loughlin's ability to cope, both professionally and personally.

The villain turns out to be a psychopath who knows how to bend minds. He boasts, "You've got to be smart. You've got to know people--what frightens them, how they think, what they cling to when they're in trouble." He uses his considerable intellect and patience to threaten and intimidate those he hates. When the police, led by the tough and aggressive Detective Inspector Veronica Cray, finally comprehend what is going on, they desperately try to locate and apprehend the killer. Joe and his buddy, retired DI Vincent Ruiz, lend a hand in the investigation, but they are stymied by a phantom who strikes at will and escapes with ease. What is his motive and what will his endgame be? In spite of Julianne's protests that he is endangering his family, Joe refuses to back off.

"Shatter" has some powerful and wrenching moments, but it is not an unqualified success. Many readers will be skeptical that law enforcement officials would allow a civilian psychologist and a retired detective to attend briefings, read case notes, interview witnesses, and speak to the media. In addition, the identity of the perpetrator, "a bully, a sadist, and [a] control freak," is given away too early. He is a one-dimensional monster, straight out of central casting. Another plot point that might raise a few eyebrows is whether this individual's methods of mind control would work on otherwise confident, poised, and worldly women. Although the conclusion has its share of excitement, it is too predictable to be truly harrowing.

On the plus side, Joe is a sympathetic and caring person as well as an accomplished psychologist who constructs a fairly accurate behavioral profile of the suspect. At first, his marriage to the lovely Julianne appears solid, but it is actually developing ever-widening fissures; Robotham depicts both their tender and wrenching encounters with skill and compassion. The dialogue is generally clever and witty, and there are are some intriguing secondary characters, such as Darcy Wheeler, a mature sixteen-year whom Joe takes under his wing after her mother's death. In spite of its flaws, "Shatter" is a workmanlike and fast-moving novel that should appeal to fans of psychological suspense.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I couldn't wait; you don't have to, August 31, 2008

By	Richard B. Schwartz (Columbia, Missouri USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Shatter (Hardcover)

I've read each of Robotham's very impressive novels. When I saw that the U.S. release date of Shatter was pushed back to 2009, I ordered the British edition. It's on sale, so even with the shipping costs the final price was close to the standard, undiscounted price it will carry here.

This may well be his best to date. Reprising his top characters, psychologist Joe O'Loughlin and retired detective Vincent Ruiz, he has moved O'Loughlin from London to Somerset, near Bath. Setting is one of the things that Robotham does brilliantly, whether his characters are in northern Europe or in the sewers of London. Here, the solution of the case turns on the use of cell phone transmission technology and that requires Robotham to have a professional's knowledge of both that technology and the geography/topography of the west country in general, Bath and Bristol in particular. The results are very impressive.

He must also plausibly discuss the realities of abnormal psychology and Parkinson's disease (which afflicts O'Loughlin). Needless to say, he's up to the task. The antagonist is a military interrogator who has gone over to the dark side, utilizing his skills for evil purposes in an attempt to avenge himself upon the friends of his wife who, he believes, has betrayed him. The cat and mouse game is complicated by the fact that Joe's marriage to his wife Julianne is on the rocks and his involvement in this case not only impacts on his marriage but draws his wife and eldest daughter into the antagonist's orbit. To save his marriage and his family Joe must solve the case and find the person who talks his victims into destroying themselves.

The suspense is nonstop and the writing is expert. I stand by my earlier judgment that Robotham is the next big thing in crime and suspense writing. This was one of the top books of the summer for me (since I couldn't wait for the spring of 2009). Don't miss any of his books. Each is superb.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Close to McDermid's Tony Hill-Carol Jordan novels, September 7, 2009

By	carol irvin "c.k. irvin" (United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Tony Hill is Val McDermid's psychologist who works with police detective Carol Jordan solving murders (mostly serial ones) in her series novels. They are quite good as is its tv series. Now we have another UKer setting a mystery in England that is also about a psychologist who helps the police. This time it is Joe helping Veronica. He too is a university lecturer and his quirk is that he has Parkinson's disease. If Val McDermid were still writing the Tony Hill novels, I would be harsher on this than I am as being too derivative.

I still like the McDermid novels better and I like Tony Hill's strangeness better. Joe O'Loughlin is the psychologist in this novel and he lives with his family in Somerset. He teaches part-time at the University of Bath. He has a wife and two daughters and is fairly normal but for his interest in serial murders and his disease.

The murders in this novel are pretty interesting. The killer talks the victims into killing themselves. At first this seems preposterous but he has learned these techniques with the army while breaking prisoners. Joe walks into this murderer's first murder scene when he tries to save a woman who is about to jump off a bridge. We learn who the murderer is about half way through and he is a pretty interesting character too.

Like Tony Hill, Joe is very good at noticing every detail of human behavior. So the details he notices in stopping the murders are quite different from what the two detectives aiding him notice. These are a gay woman DI, Veronica, and a retired London Inspector, Ruiz.

If you like this kind of novel, I think it is worth a try.