Therapy

An Alex Delaware Novel

By: Jonathan Kellerman

Narrated by: John Rubenstein

Length: 13 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

"Been a while since I had me a nice little whodunit," homicide detective Milo Sturgis tells Alex Delaware. But there's definitely nothing nice about the brutal tableau behind the yellow crime-scene tape. On a lonely lover's lane in the hills of Los Angeles, a young couple lies murdered in a car. Each bears a single gunshot wound to the head. The female victim has also been impaled by a metal spike. And that savage stroke of psychopathic fury tells Milo this case will call for more than standard police procedure. As he explains to Delaware, "Now we're veering into your territory."

It is dark territory, indeed. The dead woman remains unidentified and seemingly unknown to everyone. But her companion has a name: Gavin Quick, and his troubled past eventually landed him on a therapist's couch. It's there, on familiar turf, that Delaware hopes to find vital clues. And that means going head-to-head with Dr. Mary Lou Koppel, a popular celebrity psychologist who fiercely guards the privacy of her clients...dead or alive.

But when there's another gruesomely familiar murder, Delaware surmises that his investigation has struck a nerve. As he trolls the twisted wreckage of Quick's tormented last days, what he finds isn't madness, but the cold-blooded method behind it. And as he follows a chain of greed, corruption, and betrayal snaking hideously through the profession he thought he knew, he'll discover territory where even he never dreamed of treading.

As provocative as it is suspenseful, Therapy is premier Kellerman that finds the award-winning author firing on all creative cylinders and carrying readers on an electrifying ride to a place only he can take them, for an experience they won't soon forget.

©2004 Jonathan Kellerman (P)2004 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Compassionate, intelligent protagonists, interesting secondary characters (including complex villains), strong plot lines, and clear, unpretentious writing. Kellerman delivers all these once again." (Publishers Weekly)

All wrong...

I'm a big fan of Jonathan Kellerman and his Alex Delaware mysteries. This is the first audio version that I've listened to. I must say that after having read all his works up to Therapy and then listening to John Rubenstein; the narration is all wrong. These are west coast characters and, if my memory serves me correctly, Milo is originally from the midwest. To have every character speaking with a strong Brooklyn accent takes away significantly from the story. While the story line is typical Kellerman (in a good way), I had a hard time getting beyond the bad voices.

Therapy needs therapy

I am an avid fan of Jonathan Kellerman and am always the first to praise and recommend his books to my friends. However, this one came across to me as a real bomb. Neither Alex nor Milo had his usual sparkle and their back-and-forths, usually so lively and entertaining, were dull, to say the least. The writing, itself, was not up to par but was better than a lot of writers on their good days. I guess what I objected to most was that the author went on and on about the characters' pasts and maladies rather than advancing the story. The killer identified himself halfway through the book and the rest was merely filling. I would rather read a short, really great book than a long, repetitive one.

I will, of course, listen to more of Mr. Kellerman's books and I'm sorry I felt compelled to write this review but when my favorite author, at least in this genre, fails I had to tell you about it.

Drop part 2...get to the point

After listening to hundreds of books I must say this one doesn't need two parts...one would be sufficient. Reader is excellent and the only reason I finished it at all.

Okay

As a long time reader of Jonathan Kellerman, I have to admit that this was not one of his best. this one was just a bit too contrived. But, it was still an entertaining and suspenseful and helped pass the time on a long commute.

silly plot, bad narrator

I couldn't stand this narrator - It made it hard to the believe in any of the characters. Also, Kellerman slips in bizarre right-wing commentary wherever he can. At least twice, the result is absurd, The cariacture of a leftist bookstore and the speech given there about Israel and Zionism were pure propaganda. Also, he tries to suggest that talk radio is run by anti-George Bush shock-jocks., oh yeah, and the villainous network of prison-reformers is another weird attempt to make progressives seem "outwardly nice" but secretly wicked and scheming. Since when did Richard Mellon Scaife begin paying Kellerman to depict a world in which none of us live?