True Detectives: A Novel

I usually find Jonathan Kellerman's books to be riveting, psychologically sophisticated, and overall thoroughly enjoyable. This one is lacking in all areas. The plot is thin, the story drags, and it just feels as if the whole book was thrown together without much fore or afterthought.
In addition, the narrator is completely mismatched for the story. His portrayal of the characters, especially Moses, is very poor, and it further detracted from the already dragging plot.
One wouldn't think that the book was written by the same person who created the Delaware-Sturgis novels.

Usually I really enjoy Kellerman's books, but this one bogs down and it is one of the few audio books I decided not to finish, after listening to about 3 1/2 hours, and I am deleting it from my IPod.

I also have read all of Kellerman's books as soon as they were released. This one was bad, I am sorry to say. Rambling, circumspect and irrelevant dialogue. The plot was lousy. Delaware's input was trite and equivalent to Psychogy Course 101. Ahab's written confession was impossible. I could go on but I don't want to reveal the plot for those unfortunate ones who buy the book. Jonathan's earlier books are 5-star and if you have not read them, avoid this one and enjoy Alex Delaware, Milo Sturgis, Robin as they are principles in exciting and plausible psychological thrillers.

I have read or listened to all of Jonathan Kellerman's books and find this one to be much much below his level in writing. Please bring back Alex and Milo ....

There aren't many constants in life, but the one thing I always thought I could depend on was a well-crafted, well-narrated novel by Jonathan Kellerman. Even those stories with marginal plots were entertaining because of the fun dialogue Kellerman furnished between Alex Deleware and Milo Sturgis.

But Alex and Milo are here replaced with two brothers, Moses (or "Mo", as he's referred to in the book, which never failed to summon images of the third stooge in my head, and the cartoon bartender from the Simpsons) and his half-brother Aaron. One is a detective, the other a private investigator, and they do not have the cordial relationship Alex and Milo have, nor the witty dialogue, and both are lacking any endearing qualities that might make a reader warm up to them.

I admit I did not finish this book. I made it a quarter way through before deciding it was just to painful to continue. I find it difficult to believe that Kellerman actually wrote this cold, unappealing work. I hope this is the last we ever hear of "Mo" and Aaron. Alex, Milo, Robin - we miss you!

I am addicted to listening to books on my MP3 player. I have even taken a chance on books by authors I have never heard of and have yet to be disappointed, until now. I thought I couldn't lose with a Jonathan Kellerman book but I did, I lost a download credit. It is confusing, over descriptive about things that don't matter and boring.

Ugh. Really dumb plot and mediocre writing. He ain't Michael Connelly.

If I had read this book in my usual fashion, I would have missed the exciting climax. However, I found this book confusing in the beginning, and then somewhat gripping, and then it seemed like they told me one ending twice, first in their conjecture, and then - aha! - they were basically right. The other ending I guessed to some extent. I have loved the Sturgis and Delaware characters of Kellerman's other books, but I was unfamiliar with Fox and Reed (or is it Reid). At times it was not certain what the plot of this book was, the relationship between the brothers or the illicit activities. This book was a mixed bag.

This was the worst J. Kellerman book I have read or listened to. It was distracting to have so much of the focus be on the small and insignificant details of the odd relationship between two brothers and their particularities. The suspense of 'who did it' got lost, making this book a boring read. The Sturgis/Delaware books keep a much better balance, thus making for an interesting and surprising storyline.

I've read, either in print or via audio, all of the Jonathan Kellerman books. In recent years, I've grown increasingly dissatisfied with the series, but this book really took the cake (if taking the cake means writing a poorly plotted, rambling, and murky book).

John Rubenstein, the narrator, usually does an adequate job, although I much prefer books in the series read by Alexander Adams (aka Grover Gardner). However, in this book, it is nearly impossible to tell which character is speaking. The narrator uses a variation of Milo's "voice" as Aaron (he adds a slight black patois), and he even goes so far as to use the same voice for a seventy-something female interior decorator. Moses, the other main character, is read as though he has a hearing disability. The character certainly is not referenced as having that challenge, but it is wildly distracting and adds nothing to the book (and, I suspect, was not intended by the author).

Save your money or credits for a better book.