Product Description

#1 New York Times bestselling author Jonathan Kellerman writes unforgettable tales of crime and detection that expose the shadowy side of glittering Los Angeles. And in Evidence, readers are once again in the dexterous grip of a master storyteller and stylist equally skilled at teasing your brain and taking your breath away.

In the half-built skeleton of a monstrously vulgar mansion in one of L.A.’s toniest neighborhoods, a watchman stumbles on the bodies of a young couple–murdered in flagrante and left in a gruesome postmortem embrace. Though he’s cracked some of the city’s worst slayings, veteran homicide cop Milo Sturgis is still shocked at the grisly sight: a twisted crime that only Milo’s killer instincts–and psychologist Alex Delaware’s keen insights–can hope to solve.

While the female victim’s identity remains a question mark, her companion is ID’d as eco-friendly architect Desmond Backer, who disdains the sort of grandiose superstructure he’s found dead in. And the late Mr. Backer, it’s revealed was also notorious for his power to seduce women.

The rare exception is his ex-boss, Helga Gemein, who’s as indifferent to Desmond’s death as she apparently was to his advances. Though Milo and Alex place her on their short list of suspects, the deeper they dig for clues the longer the list grows. An elusive prince who appears to harbor decidedly American appetites, an eccentric blueblood with an ax to grind, one of Desmond’s restless ex-lovers and her cuckolded husband–all are in the homicidal mix spiced with eco-terrorism, arson, blackmail, conspiracy, and a vendetta that runs deep. But when the investigation veers suddenly in a startling direction, it’s the investigators who may wind up on the wrong end of a cornered predator’s final fury.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3459 in Books
• Published on: 2009-10-06
• Released on: 2009-10-06
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 368 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780345495150
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
L.A. police lieutenant Milo Sturgis investigates a double homicide at the site of an unfinished, obscenely large mansion in bestseller Kellerman's nerve-tingling 24th Alex Delaware novel (after Bones). Construction halted on the house two years earlier, and ownership can be traced only to a defunct holding company in Washington, D.C. The male victim is easily identified—Desmond Backer, who worked for an odd little architectural firm—but the female victim's identity isn't immediately apparent. Alex serves as a sounding board while Milo pursues assorted rumors and false leads: the site owners are Arabs, Asians, Muslims; the killings were vengeance; the victims were eco-terrorists; the deaths are linked to the disappearance of a Swedish or Swiss woman years before. Without magic, just steady, inspired police work, including horse-trading with the FBI and skillful interrogations, Milo uncovers the unsavory truth. (Oct.)
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Review
“Jonathan Kellerman’s novels are an obsession; once started it is hard to quit.”—Orlando Sentinel
 
“Kellerman really knows how to keep those pages turning.”—New York Times Book Review
 
“Kellerman doesn’t just write psychological thrillers—he owns the genre.”—Detroit Free Press



From the Paperback edition.

Review
“Jonathan Kellerman’s novels are an obsession; once started it is hard to quit.”—Orlando Sentinel
 
“Kellerman really knows how to keep those pages turning.”—New York Times Book Review
 
“Kellerman doesn’t just write psychological thrillers—he owns the genre.”—Detroit Free Press



From the Paperback edition.

Customer Reviews

"Evidence" of the change in Kellerman's style

Over the years, Kellerman's style has changed, and this Delaware book is a far cry from the early entries - such as "When the Bough Breaks" - that cemented his place at the top of the psychological thriller genre.

First, though labeled as "An Alex Delaware Novel", buddy Milo Sturgis is really the central character of this book. Delaware is along for the ride, and is primarily merely an observer, adding almost nothing to the actual advancement of the story. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy Milo as a character and have liked the couple of books in which he was intended as the lead. But the Delaware character seems to have been subsumed by Sturgis.

Kellerman's style has become very terse and brief, lacking the descriptive elements and insights into Delaware's thoughts and emotions that characterized earlier works. In some ways this stylistic evolution is interesting, as there's a crispness that was lacking in earlier works, but it also seems to me to dehumanize the stories to some extent, and certainly turns Alex into a shadow presence in the story.

This book is, at its essence, much more of a strict police procedural - like an Ed McBain novel - than a psychological thriller. Looked at in that light, it's a pretty good book. But let's be honest: is that what the long-time Delaware fans are really looking for?

Caveat emptor.

The evidence points to another good thriller from Kellerman
The last few books in the Alex Delaware-Milo Sturgis series just haven't done it for me. On a whim I picked this up this morning at a local bookstore and started to read it shortly there after...and continued to read. Had popcorn for lunch while I read. A candy bar for dinner while I read. And finished it a couple of hours ago.

This is one of Kellerman's best. The book opens with a couple found dead by a night watchman in a compromising, artfully arranged position in one of the better neighborhoods in Los Angeles. At first glance they appear to be lovers caught in a tryst, but to Delaware and Sturgis the evidence suggests something darker and more sinister.

As Alex and Milo follow the evidence they experience twists and turns, but what is unique about this book is the focus on Milo rather than Alex. We get to watch him solve the crime and Alex becomes more of a background character. There are a lot of suspects from the dead man's boss to the home's owner, an Arabian prince. As Milo and Alex work their way through the suspects and the evidence, the story remains credible and exciting. Sturgis has some wonderful scenes from battling the FBI to interrogating a suspect.

This book goes a long way to revitalizing the series! Will be looking forward to book #25.

There is Much to Love and Enjoy in EVIDENCE
EVIDENCE, Jonathan Kellerman's latest book, is subtitled "An Alex Delaware Novel," but this branding is not quite accurate. Psychologist Delaware is certainly a presence throughout, and the first-person narration that tells the tale is in Delaware's voice. But the real focus of the novel is on LAPD Homicide Detective Milo Sturgis, who doggedly pursues a solution to a mysterious double homicide.

From the very beginning, there is nothing ordinary about EVIDENCE. The story commences with the discovery of two bodies in a half-finished house, which, even in its incomplete state, is a monument to ostentatiousness. The corpses are in carnal embrace, the man shot and the woman strangled. The identity of the female is unknown, but the male is Desmond E. Backer, a principal with a local architectural firm that has recently gone belly up. Backer, as it turns out, is quite the ladies' man, having dipped his pen in the company ink (among other places). Sturgis has no lack for suspects, as one of Backer's jealous lovers or one of their spouses possibly could have had the motivation to commit the dastardly deed. But the "who" isn't the only intriguing aspect of this case for Sturgis; he is also puzzled by the fact that the house where Backer and his ill-fortuned friend were found has sat unfinished for two years and that the identity of the owner seems to be a state secret.

With the always observant Delaware in tow, Sturgis begins making inquiries, slowly and methodically working his way through a labyrinth of connections that seem to lead to the rumored disappearance of another woman who no one seems to know. Sturgis is a determined investigator, but, as we learn through Delaware's intense and detailed narrative, the interrogation is where the detective really shines. In EVIDENCE, he does so on two occasions while following a trail that leads overseas and back, to a private air hanger, and, ultimately, all too close to home.

The plot and its two primary characters are more than enough reward for the time and money invested in experiencing Kellerman's latest work. However, the real star remains the city and environs of Los Angeles, which provides a never-ending wellspring for his stories. Kellerman introduces an important and unforgettable character, waiting until the last quarter of the novel to do so, and the gentleman almost steals the entire book in just a few paragraphs. And let's not forget the Los Angeles culinary experience in the Delaware/Sturgis series. Sturgis is a foodie of sorts; the tour of Los Angeles eateries continues here, making one ask the question: when might we look forward to the Milo Sturgis Dining Guide? Whether that volume ever comes into existence or not, there is much to love and enjoy in EVIDENCE, which satisfies and makes one yearn for more.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub