Breakdown (Alex Delaware, #31)

by Jonathan Kellerman

"Bestselling author Jonathan Kellerman has been universally hailed as the master of psychological suspense, and the blockbuster new thriller featuring Alex Delaware and Milo Sturgis confirms his status as today's preeminent practitioner of saber-sharp storytelling. Psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware meets beautiful and emotionally fragile TV actress Zelda Chase when called upon to evaluate her five-year-old son, Ovid. Years later, Alex is unexpectedly reunited with Zelda when she is involuntarily committed after a bizarre psychotic episode. Shortly after Zelda's release, an already sad situation turns tragic when she is discovered dead on the grounds of a palatial Bel Air estate. Having experienced more than enough of L.A.'s dark side to recognize the scent of evil, Alex turns to his friend LAPD Lieutenant Milo Sturgis for help in finding out who ended Zelda's broken life. At the same time, Alex is caught up in another quest: the search for Zelda's missing son. And when other victims vanish from the same upscale neighborhood, worry turns to terror. As Alex struggles to piece together the brief rise and steep fall of a gorgeous, talented actress, he and Milo unveil shattered dreams, the corruption of a family, and a grotesque betrayal of innocence. With each devastating revelation and damning clue, Alex's brilliant mind is challenged as never before--and his determination grows to see a killer caged and the truth set free. Praise for Jonathan Kellerman "Jonathan 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"--

"Psychologist sleuth Alex Delaware is surprised to get the call when well-known TV actress Zelda Chase turns up half-naked, half-mad in the LA's rural Westside. He has little connection to the starlet, save a psychiatric evaluation he performed on her adopted daughter several years ago, a child who has since vanished without a trace and whom Zelda refuses to talk about. When the actress turns up dead a few weeks later without a scratch on her, Delaware calls in police lieutenant Milo Sturgis to help him crack the case--or at least the wall of silence surrounding it. When the body of a second actress turns up with the same mysterious cause of death, Delaware and Sturgis start to wonder--is this a copycat case or a coincidence? When they uncover the death of another actress, a star from another era who vanished decades ago, never to be found, they realize they're facing one of the their most baffling, mind-bending cases yet"--

• ISBN10: 0345541405
• ISBN13: 9780345541406
• Publish Date: 2 February 2016
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Ballantine Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[Mystereity Reviews]

#31 in the Alex Delaware series, Breakdown is a story of mental health issues, secrets, lies and murder.

Alex is called one day to treat a woman who was put on a mental health hold (5150). He is told that she asked for him; Alex, however, never treated her, but did treat her son for a short period a few years prior.

Drawn into helping the woman, who later turns up dead from ingesting a poisonous plant, Alex, along with homicide detective Milo, works to solve her murder and find her missing son.

I couldn't put the book down, it was so good. Usually, Kellerman novels get bogged down in the middle, but not so with this one. The plot was steady through the book, and the ending was just right, apprehending the suspects through police work, not a car chase shoot 'em up climax.

For me, the only detraction in this story is that a few of the themes have been used in earlier books in the series. Which isn't really much of a criticism; after all, the main character is a psychologist so I'm not terribly surprised that some topics may be recycled. Still, the plot was riveting, complex and very enjoyable.

Lots of characters in this one, but it's not difficult to keep them straight. I loved the Chet Brett character ("You know the little mermaid statue? I made that.") made me giggle, In fact, the characters are what draws me to this series; always well-drawn, they are easy to relate to and likeable.

This book can be read as a stand-alone; there are a few references to prior books but would not confuse a first time reader. This is one of my favorite series, though, so I do recommend reading the whole series.