24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
I liked "old" Alex better....., January 22, 2009
I just don't know about the direction this series is taking in the last few books. It used to be that Alex was a child psychologist, and occasionally he'd run across something he needed Milo's help on, or Milo would need Alex's take on a crime so that he (Milo) understood it better. Alex's patients were interesting and his cases were interesting.
Now, Alex might as well be a cop. He goes along with Milo on every interview and every meeting, sits by while he does on-line research, and only seems to go home when Milo is going to type his report. Also, in earlier novels only Alex talked like a psychologist (Witness: "I didn't really get what was going on." Alex: "You had a hard time understanding the situation.") In this book, both Milo and Reed talk that way too. Sometimes I had to go back and really figure out who was speaking as they all sounded like Alex.
This book was OK, but I'd like Alex to go back to his career and leave the cop work to Milo.
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52 of 59 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
He's back in fine form, October 21, 2008
Jonathan Kellerman's books have been up and down for me in the last few years. It seems that once Robin left, the storylines left with her.
However, in Bones, Kellerman's newest book, I finally found the "old" Alex. Witty, genuine, interesting. The story of murder of prostitutes and of a music prodigy is the center plot, but for me, what worked best in this novel was the strength of the Alex character (something that had been missing in the last few books) he felt present in this storyline.
Of course, Milo is back and the banter and relationship between these two is always priceless.
The story moves at a rapid pace and was intriguing enough to keep me reading throughout with an ending that was a tad predictable, but nonetheless satisfying.
Finally, Alex is back.
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Grim Treasure Trove..., November 17, 2008
When a body is discovered, via anonymous tip and openly displayed in a marsh near LA, the strangest thing about it is the missing right hand. Shortly thereafter, three other bodies are discovered - also missing hands.
Then a man who goes to auctions for the contents of storage units finds a carved box containing small bones. Polished bones, like a treasure. The bones turn out to be human hands.
Detective Milo Sturgis and his sidekicks, along with Dr. Alex Delaware, the psychologist who frequently consults for the LAPD, all team up to search for what now appears to be a very disturbed killer.
Almost immediately, the first victim's connection to a wealthy family, whose musical prodigy child is a student of hers, leads to the pursuit of the caretaker, who has gone missing. Or is he hiding?
Most of the fun in the story is following the clues as the assorted team of "detectives" pursues the connections and where they lead.
Like most of Kellerman's Alex Delaware stories, this one is told with Alex as the first-person narrator - this technique lends itself to understanding how his clever mind works, as he sorts through the clues and speculates about the possibilities. We also are privy to a bird's eye view of his personal life, including his long term relationship with Robin.
These segues into the lighter moments of Alex's life, including his friendship with Milo Sturgis, help to lighten what could otherwise be a very grim tale.
And not at all surprising is the final revelation as to the motives and nature of the perpetrator/s - after all, the art of misdirection has been at play throughout the circuitous path to resolution.
Bones (Alex Delaware, No. 23) is a must-read for Kellerman fans.
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