Deception: An Alex Delaware Novel (Alex Delaware Novels) [Mass Market Paperback]

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Deception: An Alex Delaware Novel (Alex Delaware Novels) [Mass Market Paperback]

Product Details

Mass Market Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Ballantine Books; Reprint edition (February 22, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0345505689
ISBN-13: 978-0345505682
Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 0.9 x 7.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

By : Jonathan Kellerman
Price : $9.99

Customer Reviews

When Kellerman first brought the Delaware series forward, the books were a welcome and unique entry to the mystery genre: a psychologist who used his unique insights and training to solve crimes, especially those involving children, child psychology being Delaware's specialty as a shrink.
Milo Sturgis was a supporting character to whom Delaware would turn when he needed police support. But what made the series so appealing was the idea that Delaware was getting inadvertently involved in solving mysteries while trying to cure his patients, and his expertise as a psychologist would afford him the unique perspective from which to solve those crimes, in spite of the ineffectiveness of the police.
My, how times have changed.
Milo Sturgis is now the central character; Delaware's simply along for the ride, and to act as a sounding board for Milo so that we readers don't have to sit through endless exposition; his being a psychologist has become completely irrelevant, and isn't even used as a device anymore. Gone are the descriptive passages that establish place and setting, which were so evocative of LA in all its varied motifs. Gone are any personal story elements, such as those involving his girlfriend Robin or his dog; they've become nothing more than set dressing for the few passages when Delaware's in his house (presumably just to have something happen in a different physical scene). Dialogue consists of terse exchanges between Sturgis and Delaware; many of the scenes with witnesses or suspects remind me of the old "Dragnet" TV series, or maybe "Law ; Order".
The series has become a hard-boiled detective series starring Sturgis; it's almost on the level of pulp fiction; certainly "police procedural" genre rather than psychological mystery/thriller.
Now, on that level these recent books - including "Deception" - work okay... for what they are. So, I guess I'll give it 3.5 stars on that basis.
But if you're expecting classic Delaware, especially if you're a long-time reader, you're in for a big disappointment.
I understand that over time authors make creative decisions, and sometimes elect to change their approach to a character or series. That's certainly their right. But then we as readers need to be aware of what we're getting. Some people may well like this transition; others certainly won't.
As I said, as a procedural or hard-boiled detective novel, this book works okay. But as an "Alex Delaware Novel", I think it falls far short of the mark, and is overall pretty pedestrian.

Jonathan Kellerman has developed a winner in the characters of Milo Sturgis and Alex Delaware. Each new novel promises the maximum amount of entertainment with a puzzling new case. Deception, the latest in a growing line of well written novels, promises to turn over a few well place rocks to reveal the creepy humans who hide there.
In Deception, Elise Freeman, a faculty member from prestigious Winsor Prep Academy is found murdered and a DVD is found next to her body. When played, the DVD reveals a woman who has suffered abuse at the hands of multiple abusers for more than a year. As the story unfolds, it appears that the culprits are fellow faculty members and co-workers. As the details become more warped, Detective Milo Sturgis is assigned to the case. Both he and Dr. Alex Delaware must untangle the clues to get to the truth. However, that task is complicated by the resistance of both the school and the wealthy clientele that send their Ivy League bound children there.
Deception is a hand wringer. Should the upper class be allowed to hide behind a curtain thus hiding their own sins and should those that cater to this class be allowed the same privilege? This is an interesting question, because it appears that the answer to this question is usually yes.
Kellerman does a good job in keeping the story fresh and the characters interesting. After-all, after 25 of these books, keeping things moving isn't easy.
All in all, I think you'll be glad you read Deception.