Tag: Jonathan Kellerman

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Recent Reads in Crime Fiction

I don’t read a wide range of crime fiction, but there are a few authors that I always read when they have a new book out.

Stolen In Death by J.D. Robb came out in February and is book 62 of her In Death series. This series is my favorite because the main character is a woman and because it is set in a futuristic New York City. I love the way Eve Dallas looks at the world and how she tracks down the killers. There is an interesting array of supporting characters as well.

Jigsaw by Jonathan Kellerman also came out in February and is book 41 in the Alex Delaware series. Alex Delaware is a child psychologist who specializes in child custody cases and also consults with the LAPD, specifically with Detective Milo Sturgis. I enjoy the psychological intricacies of the cases Alex gets pulled into, and I really like the characters of Milo and Alex’s partner Robin.

Revenge Prey by John Sandford came out in April and is book 36 of the Lucas Davenport series. Lucas Davenport is a member of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension who does things his own way at times. I also enjoy the books with Virgil Flowers and Lucas’ daughter Letty.

I hope all three of these authors keep writing for a long, long time!

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Twisted

Twisted by Jonathan Kellerman is the second Petra Connor book and, as far as I can tell, the last. I read the first one, Billy Straight, at the beginning of April and finished this one near the end of the month.

I did like the book, but not as much as the first one. It seemed a bit more glum, for lack of a better word. It seemed like Petra was just going through the motions, both with her job and her relationships, and not really very happy or excited about either of them, which I guess is reality for a fair number of people but isn’t that much fun to read about.

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Billy Straight

I have been a fan of Jonathan Kellerman’s Alex Delaware series for a long time, and I recently looked through his body of work and found that he has written two books labeled as the Petra Connor series.  They are Billy Straight (1998) and Twisted (2004), and they are a spinoff of the Alex Delaware series.

In Billy Straight, the title character is a twelve year old runaway who witnesses a traumatic murder, a brutal stabbing.  He is not seen and runs away into the night. LAPD homicide detective Petra Connor is tasked with solving this murder.  The story switches between Billy’s reaction to what he has seen and Petra’s unfolding investigation, and as the plot unfolds, we learn more about Billy’s backstory as well.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  I was able to follow everything that was happening even though the perspective is changing in each chapter and could visualize the scenes easily.  I empathized with both Billy and Petra, and I appreciated the range of minor characters as well.

Do you enjoy detective novels?  Are there any that you recommend?