EDITOR’S NOTE: The first novel I completed reading in 2018 is CRIME SCENE. It made the New York Times Bestseller list, and I completely understand why. It’s a very good story with a lot to offer. Here’s the summary of the book from Goodreads, followed by my review . . . . . .
CRIME SCENE BY Jonathan Kellerman, Jesse Kellerman. Hardcover, 385 pages. Published August 1, 2017 by Ballantine Books. ISBN 0399594604 / 9780399594601.
Goodreads says: A former star athlete turned deputy coroner is drawn into a brutal, complicated murder in this psychological thriller from a father-son writing team that delivers “brilliant, page-turning fiction” (Stephen King).
Natural causes or foul play? That’s the question Clay Edison must answer each time he examines a body. Figuring out motives and chasing down suspects aren’t part of his beat—not until a seemingly open-and-shut case proves to be more than meets his highly trained eye.
Eccentric, reclusive Walter Rennert lies cold at the bottom of his stairs. At first glance the scene looks straightforward: a once-respected psychology professor, done in by booze and a bad heart. But his daughter Tatiana insists that her father has been murdered, and she persuades Clay to take a closer look at the grim facts of Rennert’s life.
What emerges is a history of scandal and violence, and an experiment gone horribly wrong that ended in the brutal murder of a coed. Walter Rennert, it appears, was a broken man—and maybe a marked one. And when Clay learns that a colleague of Rennert’s died in a nearly identical manner, he begins to question everything in the official record.
All the while, his relationship with Tatiana is evolving into something forbidden. The closer they grow, the more determined he becomes to catch her father’s killer—even if he has to overstep his bounds to do it.
The twisting trail Clay follows will lead him into the darkest corners of the human soul. It’s his job to listen to the tales the dead tell. But this time, he’s part of a story that makes his blood run cold.
MY REVIEW: When reading a collaboration I often look for variations in style or tone to see if I can pick up one writer's influence versus the other. This is a seamless novel. I was never aware while reading that it was the product of two writers.
It's been sometime since I've read anything by Jonathan Kellerman but I'm familiar with his works and characters. This is my first encounter with Jesse Kellerman, his son, and co-writer. It won't be the last. I'm adding "Potboiler" to my to-read list.
"Crime Scene" reminds me of Jonathan Kellerman's Alex Delaware novels. Along with the detective work is a generous amount of psychological suspense. Main character Clay Edison is a deputy coroner, but his investigative approach is similar to a police detective.
When he decides to pursue an examination to determine whether a death is due to natural causes or foul play, his motivation seems a bit confused. Maybe he welcomes the opportunity to stay in touch with the deceased's beautiful daughter, or perhaps it's just his curious nature - - an effort to make an often dull and unsatisfactory job seem more important. Once his investigation gets underway, it no longer mattered. I was pulled into the story and the twists and turns it took, as well as the great character reveals of Edison as well as the secondary players.
The story ends satisfactorily, but not in the way I expected. Sometimes it's not always necessary to share every bit of learned information. Judgments get made. Decisions are left to the proper deciders, those who are affected by them.
Through the voice of Clay Edison, his account of the story raises interesting questions about academic psychological experiments, the abuse of power and position, manipulation, friendships, the effects of upbringing on character, the mentally challenged, relationships and family. It's never heavy-handed or lecturing -- the main character just shares with us like an open book. Well done.
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