The Burning

A Novel (Clay Edison)

By: Jonathan Kellerman, Jesse Kellerman

Narrated by: Dennis Boutsikaris

Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Things get personal for Deputy Coroner Clay Edison when a murder hits close to home in this riveting, emotional thriller from the best-selling father-son team that writes “brilliant, page-turning fiction” (Stephen King).

A raging wildfire. A massive blackout. A wealthy man shot to death in his palatial hilltop home.

For Clay Edison, it’s all in a day’s work. As a deputy coroner, caring for the dead, he speaks for those who cannot speak for themselves. He prides himself on an unflinching commitment to the truth. Even when it gets him into trouble.

Then, while working the murder scene, Clay is horrified to discover a link to his brother, Luke. Horrified. But not surprised. Luke is fresh out of prison and struggling to stay on the straight and narrow.

And now he’s gone AWOL.

The race is on for Clay to find him before anyone else can. Confronted with Luke’s legacy of violence, Clay is forced to reckon with his own suspicions, resentments, and loyalties. Is his brother a killer? Or could he be the victim in all of this, too?

This is Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman at their most affecting and pause-resisting - a harrowing collision of family, revenge, and murder.

©2021 Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman (P)2021 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“This is another superb crime thriller from the prolific and talented father-and-son Kellermans. Set in the San Francisco Bay Area during one of the state’s terrible wildfires, the story is . . . a riveting page-turner of a mystery with pulse-pounding action, and a compelling look at family dynamics and loyalty. The shock ending doesn't hurt, either.”—Booklist (starred review)

“As always, the Kellermans guarantee that readers will turn pages rapidly to enjoy the complex characters and intricate plot turns. It’s another winner for mystery readers.”—Library Journal

“Intriguing . . . the bestselling Kellermans provide food for thought along with a tidy mystery.”—Publishers Weekly"

Figured out at least part of it before the end.

But I loved the story. And I also enjoyed hearing some of the back story.

Not terrible.

The story and narration were good, but there were parts that were a struggle to get past.

The beginning of a new seriesThe beginning of a ne

I can taste the beginnings of the new series with clay Edison Amy and his brother luke

Okay, meh

Less engaging than previous books
Characters were surprisingly under developed. Story could have been a more interesting and engraving instead you always know what’s next th

Gripping Story

This story grabbed me right at the beginning and pulled me along. I wanted there to be more traffic on my drive home so that I could listen longer.

May have been ok with a different narrator

Not one of their best. The story was ok but the narrator for the main character spoke in a monotone, no emotion at all. Very hard to finish.

Boring, tedious, and awful narration.

This book was tedious. The narration was so flat I’m not sure whether the story was boring or the narration of the story was boring or a combination of both. At one point I think either a new narrator or a narrator in a better mood brought a small amount of life to the words. Even so, It felt like listening to a new reader in elementary school reading his summer vacation essay. The repetitious boring phone calls, the over the top animosity from the brother’s wife, the totally unrealistic dialog with the man whose wife was killed—they were all so gimmicky, but the dialog between the main character and his wife and daughter were ridiculous! Were they reading from a bad guide to couples’ communication? Only addressing the child as “she” or some inane nickname? Who does that? Why didn’t that character flaw (how to depersonalize and demean a child) get addressed? I like Jonathan Kellerman’s writing normally, I don’t know who wrote this

Great job!

I’m a long time reader of Jonathan Kellerman, and Jesse’s character development is really coming along!! I like this character and the story line was captivating and I was anxious to get back to the story, which takes some skill to get me to do. He’s certainly a chip off the old block, but definitely has his own style and I look forward to reading more! Well done!!

Eh

This had me excited while waiting for it, but I was let down. This was not a typical Clay Edison storyline, and I feel it should’ve went in a different direction.

Narration made this mediocre story unbearable

the narration was so slow and monotone that it took away from the story line. it was very difficult to listen to. i would not recommend this book.