The Golem of Hollywood

By: Jonathan Kellerman, Jesse Kellerman

Narrated by: John Rubinstein

Length: 18 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's summary

“An extraordinary work of detection, suspense, and supernatural mystery. I spent three days totally lost in the world Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman have created. This is brilliant, page-turning fiction with mythic underpinnings that give it a special resonance; a rare collaboration where the sum is truly greater than the parts. The book is like nothing I’ve ever read before. It sort of took my breath away.” (Stephen King)

From Jonathan Kellerman, the number-one New York Times best-selling author and master of psychological suspense, and Jesse Kellerman, the international number-one best-selling author of The Genius, comes one of the most remarkable novels of the year.

A burned-out LA detective...a woman of mystery who is far more than she seems...a grotesque, ancient monster bent on a mission of retribution. When these three collide, a new standard of suspense is born.

The legend of the Golem of Prague has endured through the ages, a creature fashioned by a 16th-century rabbi to protect his congregation, now lying dormant in the garret of a synagogue. But the Golem is dormant no longer.

Detective Jacob Lev wakes one morning, dazed and confused: He seems to have picked up a beautiful woman in a bar the night before, but he can’t remember anything about the encounter, and before he knows it, she has gone. But this mystery pales in comparison to the one he’s about to be called on to solve. Newly reassigned to a Special Projects squad he didn’t even know existed, he’s sent to a murder scene far up in the hills of Hollywood Division. There is no body, only an unidentified head lying on the floor of a house. Seared into a kitchen counter nearby is a single word: the Hebrew for justice.

Detective Lev is about to embark on an odyssey - through Los Angeles, through many parts of the United States, through London and Prague, but most of all, through himself. All that he has believed to be true will be upended - and not only his world, but the world itself, will be changed.

©2014 Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman (P)2014 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"An extraordinary work of detection, suspense, and supernatural mystery. I spent three days totally lost in the world Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman have created. This is brilliant, page-turning fiction with mythic underpinnings that give it a special resonance; a rare collaboration where the sum is truly greater than the parts. The book is like nothing I’ve ever read before. It sort of took my breath away." (Stephen King)

"One of the craziest, wildest, and most compelling works of popular fiction in years.... It traverses genres, blasts them wide open, and moves on to explode yet another cliche. It’s a pretty remarkable thing, this Golem of Hollywood. Give it a go." (Commentary Magazine)

"I had very high and, yes, unrealistic expectations for The Golem of Hollywood...[and] the Kellermans met my expectations and blew the roof off of them.... The Golem of Hollywood transcends genre. It’s a whole that exceeds the sum of its very considerable parts, creative and otherwise. It’s a religious tale that doubters and non-believers will love, a mystery that literary snobs will appreciate, and a story so wonderfully told that your bookshelf must have it." (bookreporter.com)

Very disappointing.

Would you try another book from Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman and/or John Rubinstein?

I have read all the Jonathan Kellerman Dr.Delaware series.

If you’ve listened to books by Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman before, how does this one compare?

I kept listening thinking it was going to get better and make more sense but it never did.

What about John Rubinstein’s performance did you like?

It was his usual great job.

Any additional comments?

This book was just a waste of my time. I'm usually patient with books developing a story line but this just wandered around and never answered any of the questions posed as it went along. I was afraid I was going to be disappointed at the end and I was, even more than I anticipated.

Well written

Well written. Not to crazy about the ending, kinda a cliff hanger. Hard to follow.

Plodding Pace and excessive self examination

Any additional comments?

I bought this book based on how much I like the Alex Delaware novels. It just didn't work for me. The jumping between the modern world and the imaginary past, the constant alcoholic meandering of introspection and the (for me at least) heavy handed use of dramatic irony did not work for me. I won't continue this series.

Disappointing

Jonathan Kellerman is my favorite author.
This book is nothing like I would expect from him.
I dragged my way through it, but it seemed to take forever.

Interesting subjects!

I was captivated by the story; the locations; the cultures of the characters; the pace of the action; etc.)!’y On the down side, all that fascinating culture led to a lot of confusion that limited my enjoyment of the who-done-it aspect!! I prefer a good ol' Delaware & Sturgis story, thanx!

A disappointment

What would have made The Golem of Hollywood better?

Cutting out the entire historical storyline. If this had been a video I would have fast forward. And this comes from someone who has a good knowledge and interest in Jewish history and culture.

Has The Golem of Hollywood turned you off from other books in this genre?

It has turned me off the collaborations of Jonathan Kellermann. I'm a fan of his work but when he collaborates with another writer (mostly family members) his high standard definitely drops.

What about John Rubinstein’s performance did you like?

John Rubinstein is one of the best readers and I always enjoy his work. He makes you feel you listened to an entire cast of characters. But even Rubinstein could not save this book.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment. I regret I wasted my credit on this book. I always looked forward to a new Kellerman and even pre-ordered but this was a bomb.

Any additional comments?

I finished the book but I was tough as glue. Every time I finally go into the present storyline, there came another chapter with more Biblical history which made me more and more irritable. Next time I will not pre-order but wait until the reviews are out.

The End

The best part of this book was the Narrator! I'm a huge fan of John Kellerman, however, this is the worst audio book I've ever listen to. I'm trying to give him the benefit of the doubt by trying to read it in paper form. Maybe then the jumping back and forth and overall confusion will straighten out the story line for me. We'll see.

If you’re a Kellerman fan, skip it

Like many others, I’m a big fan of Kellerman’s Alex Delaware novels and John Rubinstein’s narration. This book doesn’t belong on the same shelf. In fact, if not for Rubinstein’s always sterling performance, I would have returned it. Except, I kept thinking it would find it’s path and be worth the time. Not so. While it does bear Jonathan Kellerman’s name, I suspect his name is there only to help out his son’s writing career. In short, the story never made sense. The investigation was all over the place and the religious mythology only served to distract from the storyline.
If you’re new to Jonathan Kellerman, skip this forgettable work and settle down with Alex Delaware.

Number of stars I've given this book probably says it all

I rarely write reviews. I rarely even find a book that I don't care if I finish. And, I've enjoyed Jonathan Kellerman's work for years. There have even been a few that I wasn't so fond of, but I still got to the end and I could've still said something good about them. This book is a bit of a mess. I do admit I learned a few interesting things about Jewish cultures and practices, so that gives it a couple of stars to begin with. But the flow of the story, the quality of the characters and an overall bad plot makes this book hardly worth the time to listen to it. It is rare for me, but I honestly didn't even finish this book. And there were a couple of chapters that I passed up on because they were so boring and I couldn't figure out how they related to the story. I'm sure that would've been explained in the end had I gotten to it. I do have to commend the narrator for his his usual excellent work. The quality of the performance had absolutely nothing to do with my personal difficulty enjoying this book. I logged in today to use my credits to move on to something else. Enjoy!

Modern day Jewish mysticism

What did you love best about The Golem of Hollywood?

I didn't like it at all, but my wife loved it. It was just too confusing for me to follow and I'm still not sure how it ended.

Would you be willing to try another book from Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman ? Why or why not?

Jonathan, yes. with Jesse, I don't know. I've read many of Jonathan's other books and enjoyed them. I've read many of Faye's and enjoyed most of them, but prefer a man's perspective. This was just too weird, i don't know if I'd read another.

Have you listened to any of John Rubinstein’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

He is great. His voice was the best thing about the book.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Going between modern day and Biblical times angered me.

Any additional comments?

My wife is a biblical scholar, reads Hebrew and has an understanding of mysticism and she really enjoyed the book. She liked it better than the Alex Delaware stories. She'd probably read others.