The Murderer's Daughter

A Novel

By: Jonathan Kellerman

Narrated by: Kathe Mazur

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

From the creator of the acclaimed Alex Delaware series comes a tour de force standalone novel that illustrates perfectly why “Jonathan Kellerman has justly earned his reputation as a master of the psychological thriller” (People).

A brilliant, deeply dedicated psychologist, Grace Blades has a gift for treating troubled souls and tormented psyches—perhaps because she bears her own invisible scars: Only five years old when she witnessed her parents’ deaths in a bloody murder-suicide, Grace took refuge in her fierce intellect and found comfort in the loving couple who adopted her. But even as an adult with an accomplished professional life, Grace still has a dark, secret side. When her two worlds shockingly converge, Grace’s harrowing past returns with a vengeance.

Both Grace and her newest patient are stunned when they recognize each other from a recent encounter. Haunted by his bleak past, mild-mannered Andrew Toner is desperate for Grace’s renowned therapeutic expertise and more than willing to ignore their connection. And while Grace is tempted to explore his case, which seems to eerily echo her grim early years, she refuses—a decision she regrets when a homicide detective appears on her doorstep.

An evil she thought she’d outrun has reared its head again, but Grace fears that a police inquiry will expose her double life. Launching her own personal investigation leads her to a murderously manipulative foe, one whose warped craving for power forces Grace back into the chaos and madness she’d long ago fled.

Praise for The Murderer’s Daughter

“[A] taut thriller . . . with the richness and resonance of literary fiction.”—Washington Independent Review of Books

“A stunning page-turner with a truly fascinating femme fatale at its fast-beating heart . . . packed with ingenious, razor-sharp plotting, mesmerizing mind games and nail-biting suspense.”—Yorkshire Evening Post

“A tight, fast-paced narrative [with] a brilliant, kick-ass heroine.”—Library Journal

“Kellerman doesn’t let off-the-charts genius Grace become one-dimensional. Her backstory and challenge to fit in, even into adulthood, are an engaging part of this satisfying mystery, which, though billed as a stand-alone, could certainly make a spin-off series.”—Booklist

“An amazing tale of survival and adaptability in the face of neglect and murder.”—RT Book Reviews

Praise for Jonathan Kellerman

“Kellerman’s psychology skills and dark imagination are a potent literary mix.”—Los Angeles Times

“Kellerman doesn’t just write psychological thrillers—he owns the genre.”—Detroit Free Press

Critic reviews

Praise for The Murderer’s Daughter

“[A] taut thriller . . . with the richness and resonance of literary fiction.”—Washington Independent Review of Books

“A stunning page-turner with a truly fascinating femme fatale at its fast-beating heart . . . packed with ingenious, razor-sharp plotting, mesmerizing mind games and nail-biting suspense.”—Yorkshire Evening Post

“A tight, fast-paced narrative [with] a brilliant, kick-ass heroine.”—Library Journal

“[Jonathan] Kellerman doesn’t let off-the-charts genius Grace become one-dimensional. Her backstory and challenge to fit in, even into adulthood, are an engaging part of this satisfying mystery, which, though billed as a stand-alone, could certainly make a spin-off series.”—Booklist

“An amazing tale of survival and adaptability in the face of neglect and murder.”—RT Book Reviews

Praise for Jonathan Kellerman

“Jonathan Kellerman has justly earned his reputation as a master of the psychological thriller.”—People

“Kellerman’s psychology skills and dark imagination are a potent literary mix.”—Los Angeles Times

“Kellerman doesn’t just write psychological thrillers—he owns the genre.”—Detroit Free Press

Great Book

What did you love best about The Murderer's Daughter?

Everything was great. I had kind of tired of Kellerman's other, Alex Deleware, character. Almost did not buy this book. So glad I did.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Murderer's Daughter?

So many.

Which character – as performed by Kathe Mazur – was your favorite?

Who else but Grace.

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

Her kindness to damaged individuals.

Any additional comments?

His best book in a long time.

Better than okay, but...

In reflecting on what I enjoyed -- and didn't enjoy -- about this book, I think a lot of the issues I had with it comes down to the narrator. The story stars a child survivor who is eventually taken in -- and later still adopted -- by a couple of professors, so a considerable part of the novel deals with this man and wife couple, who serve as her mentors until their tragic death late in the book.

The problem comes about because the narrator has the man speaking in a kind of lilting, sing-song cadence, the sort of thing that be appropriate for a baby. But Grace Blades is an extremely -- really, really, super intelligent -- girl, then woman. That fact is laid on with a trowel. But the speech pattern -- which other adults also affect to some degree from time to time -- has the effect of making everything this supposedly highly esteemed Harvard professor say sound as though he's toying with her, teasing about everything. Not taking her seriously. And in the story line, clearly that's not it at all. Anyway, the voice affectation the narrator chose is supremely annoying. To listen to the audio book is one thing -- but if Grace had to listen to that for years on end, no wonder she's weird.

And she is weird. In the sense of a personal triumph -- an abused abandoned child who goes on to conquer the academic/psychological world -- it's inspiring. It could happen, one supposes. Such a child could, I suppose, eventually become fabulously wealthy. But then to turn this creation loose on those who victimize, and have her turn into a cross between Jack Reacher and a female Rambo is more than even the usually-great writing of Jonathan Kellerman can handle. Or maybe it's just that Kellerman's Alex-and-Milo stories are so excellent that something as messy as this tale is bound to frustrate his Constant Readers -- or at least me, and I'm a huge fan of the basic series.

There's a schism in the story line, too -- this could better have been two books. The story of Grace growing up, facing all the endless difficulties the "system" and the world present is one thing. The female Rambo thing is quite another. It doesn't flow -- or maybe it's that the character is not congruent, as perhaps Alex Delaware might suggest. Or is it supposed to be that way? That Grace Blades (the suggestive name is overkill, too) is just an an unpredictable mess, and that's the point of the whole thing? Could be.

I have the feeling this is intended as the first in a new series -- and I'm not looking forward to that. I might try another one as a "paper" book, minus the flawed narration, but I won't hustle out to buy it.

I wish Jonathan Kellerman would stick to what he does best. I wish he would stop trying to write books with various family members, books which end up being worse than dreadful. I wish he'd just focus on the Alex-and-Milo books -- although I sense he's coming to a Conan Doyle moment, when he's so tired of his own creation that he's ready to kill him off, just to get rid of him. I hope that doesn't happen -- but then again, I'd rather see the series end gracefully than to see Kellerman drifting off into these new unworthy waters. Kellerman is better than this book. Much better.

Dark and Introspective

Better than average psych thriller... The mood is pretty intense, but the pace is easy... A slow paced thoughtful, rather than action packed, thriller... The internal dialogues, and the obviously skewed inner mental workings of Grace bring a lot to chew on while offsetting a somewhat weak plot... This book is more about the protagonist and her survival/defense mechanisms... The flashbacks are weaved in seamlessly... The narration is just right for the voice of the novel... Essentially a story of a survivor and the lengths she will go to in pursuit of further survival on her terms...

Abrupt ending

The book ended very abruptly and was anticlimactic. Not worth the read-listen. Not what I expected from Kellerman.

Gripping

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Narrated well with voices distinguishing each character which made the journey easy to follow. Well done!

So...What Happened?

I loved the narrator's voice; it was very soothing and made for easy listenjng.

The story was compelling but I thought the author got bogged down in the minutiae of the lead character's quest for answers without taking the listener back full circle to wrap up and reveal the consequences of this character's actions. For this reason, I felt the story to be incomplete. We're left to imagine and/or assume what comes next, which, for me, is unsatisfying.

Disappointing!

I've been reading Kellerman's books for many years. Some were better than others but the characters were always consistently well developed and the story lines believable. This new "stand alone" "thriller" lacked both those things. A weak plot that just never really captured my interest and characters that were more like caricatures really disappointed. Seems JK was just grinding it out.

Wonderful narration

Katherine Mazur is the perfect voice for Grace and for the story. Truly had no idea where the plot was headed and thoroughly enjoyed the ride.

Not what I was expecting, but I loved it!

Where does The Murderer's Daughter rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I've listened to hundreds, including all of Jonathan Kellerman's, and this is one of my very favorites

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Murderer's Daughter?

When the Grace and Andrew have their scheduled appointment and realize it was not the first time they've met.

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

I don't think so, but I thought she did a wonderful job. I plan to look for other books performed by her.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes it was. Wish I'd taken longer, but was so intrigued I finished it in two days.

Any additional comments?

Not at all like the recent Jonathan Kellerman novels. I've enjoying them all, but found this one particularly intriguing, and enjoyed the narration too.

Strangely Compelling

Kellerman introduces a new character; Clinical Psychologist Grace Blades, basically a female Alex Delaware with a little more of an edge. The book uses flashbacks to relate the character's history and background as a woman's hardscrabble past returns with a vengeance in the form of a psychopath killer and one of his victims. I had a difficult time slogging through the interminable first couple of hours of this one and had it been a different author I would have given it up and slated this one for return; don't. It begins to slowly pick up the pace in hour number three and much of the mid-portion of this book is five star worthy. It loses some momentum on the back end and the ending would have been better left unwritten but I still recommend this one heartily.