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Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus #10
Serpent's Tooth
A man walks into a trendy Los Angeles restaurant -- a disgruntled ex-employee with an automatic weapon -- and seconds later, thirteen people are dead and thirty-two more have been wounded. It is a heinous act of mass slaughter that haunts Homicide Detective Peter Decker.
But, though eyewitnesses saw only the lone gunman -- who apparently took his own life after his bloody work was done -- evidence suggests more than one weapon was fired. It is a disturbing inconsistency that sends Decker racing headlong into a sordid, labyrinthine world of Southern California money and power, on an investigation that threatens to destroy his reputation and his career.
But, though eyewitnesses saw only the lone gunman -- who apparently took his own life after his bloody work was done -- evidence suggests more than one weapon was fired. It is a disturbing inconsistency that sends Decker racing headlong into a sordid, labyrinthine world of Southern California money and power, on an investigation that threatens to destroy his reputation and his career.
432 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
326 people are currently reading
1594 people want to read
About the author
Faye Kellerman
179 books2,021 followersFaye Kellerman was born in St. Louis, Missouri and grew up in Sherman Oaks, California. She earned a BA in mathematics and a doctorate in dentistry at UCLA., and conducted research in oral biology. Kellerman's groundbreaking first novel, THE RITUAL BATH, was published in 1986 to wide critical and commercial acclaim. The winner of the Macavity Award for the Best First Novel from the Mystery Readers of American, THE RITUAL BATH introduced readers to Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus, termed by People Magazine "Hands down, the most refreshing mystery couple around." The New York Times enthused, "This couple's domestic affairs have the haimish warmth of reality, unlike the formulaic lives of so many other genre detectives."
There are well over twenty million copies of Faye Kellerman's novels in print internationally. The Decker/Lazarus thrillers include SACRED AND PROFANE; MILK AND HONEY; DAY OF ATONEMENT; FALSE PROPHET; GRIEVOUS SIN; SANCTUARY; as well as her New York Times Bestsellers, JUSTICE, PRAYERS FOR THE DEAD - listed by the LA Times as one of the best crime novel of 2001; SERPENT'S TOOTH; JUPITER'S BONES, THE FORGOTTEN, STONE KISS, STRAIGHT INTO DARKNESS, THE BURNT HOUSE, THE MERCEDES COFFIN and BLINDMAN'S BLUFF. . The novels, STALKER and STREET DREAMS, introduced Kellerman's newest protagonist, Police Officer Cindy Decker. In addition to her crime series, Kellerman is also the author of New York Time's bestseller MOON MUSIC, a suspense horror novel set in Las Vegas featuring Detective Romulus Poe, as well as an historical novel of intrigue set in Elizabethan England, THE QUALITY OF MERCY. She has also co-authored the New York Times Bestseller DOUBLE HOMICIDE, with her husband and partner in crime, Jonathan Kellerman. She has also written a young adult novel, PRISM, with her daughter, Aliza Kellerman
Faye Kellerman's highly praised short stories and reviews have been anthologized in numerous collections including two volumes of the notable SISTERS IN CRIME SERIES, Sara Paretsky's, A WOMAN'S EYE; THE FIRST ANNUAL YEAR'S FINEST CRIME AND MYSTERY STORIES; THE THIRD ANNUAL BEST MYSTERY STORIES OF THE YEAR; WOMEN OF MYSTERY AND DEADLY ALLIES 11. Her personally annotated collection of her award winning stories, THE GARDEN OF EDEN and OTHER CRIMINAL DELIGHTS, was published in August of 2006. H
Her other hobbies include gardening, sewing and jogging if her back doesn't give out. She is the proud mother of four children, and her eldest son, Jesse, has just published his fourth novel, THE EXECUTOR, from Putnam. She lives in Los Angeles and Santa Fe with her husband, Jonathan, their youngest child, and their French Bulldog, Hugo.
There are well over twenty million copies of Faye Kellerman's novels in print internationally. The Decker/Lazarus thrillers include SACRED AND PROFANE; MILK AND HONEY; DAY OF ATONEMENT; FALSE PROPHET; GRIEVOUS SIN; SANCTUARY; as well as her New York Times Bestsellers, JUSTICE, PRAYERS FOR THE DEAD - listed by the LA Times as one of the best crime novel of 2001; SERPENT'S TOOTH; JUPITER'S BONES, THE FORGOTTEN, STONE KISS, STRAIGHT INTO DARKNESS, THE BURNT HOUSE, THE MERCEDES COFFIN and BLINDMAN'S BLUFF. . The novels, STALKER and STREET DREAMS, introduced Kellerman's newest protagonist, Police Officer Cindy Decker. In addition to her crime series, Kellerman is also the author of New York Time's bestseller MOON MUSIC, a suspense horror novel set in Las Vegas featuring Detective Romulus Poe, as well as an historical novel of intrigue set in Elizabethan England, THE QUALITY OF MERCY. She has also co-authored the New York Times Bestseller DOUBLE HOMICIDE, with her husband and partner in crime, Jonathan Kellerman. She has also written a young adult novel, PRISM, with her daughter, Aliza Kellerman
Faye Kellerman's highly praised short stories and reviews have been anthologized in numerous collections including two volumes of the notable SISTERS IN CRIME SERIES, Sara Paretsky's, A WOMAN'S EYE; THE FIRST ANNUAL YEAR'S FINEST CRIME AND MYSTERY STORIES; THE THIRD ANNUAL BEST MYSTERY STORIES OF THE YEAR; WOMEN OF MYSTERY AND DEADLY ALLIES 11. Her personally annotated collection of her award winning stories, THE GARDEN OF EDEN and OTHER CRIMINAL DELIGHTS, was published in August of 2006. H
Her other hobbies include gardening, sewing and jogging if her back doesn't give out. She is the proud mother of four children, and her eldest son, Jesse, has just published his fourth novel, THE EXECUTOR, from Putnam. She lives in Los Angeles and Santa Fe with her husband, Jonathan, their youngest child, and their French Bulldog, Hugo.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 192 reviews
June 21, 2016
Lieutenant Peter Decker is back in an action packed mystery, to which I give 3.5 stars. In this tenth book in the series, we know the cast of characters, and Kellerman adeptly balances home and police life while developing them further. This time a deranged shooter enters Estelle's restaurant killing 13 including himself and wounding 32 others. It appears to be a simple murder suicide and Captain Strapp would like to keep things that way. Yet, in their investigations, Decker and his team of detectives find inaccuracies, forcing them to examine the case from every angle possible.
Meanwhile at home, the kids have become young adults and teenagers. Cindy has decided to enter the police academy giving her father even more gray hairs, and Sammy and Jake are begging to move closer to their friends so they can be at the center of the school social scene. Hannah is also growing up at the blink of an eye, allowing Rina to do more projects and run the home like a tight ship.
The case takes its toll on Decker as usual as he works long hours, often missing out on gourmet suppers and family life. His objective is to pin the crime on Jeanine Garrison, daughter of murdered multimillionaires Ray and Linda Garrison. Although an ice queen with an agenda, not all of the facts add up, forcing Decker and company into overtime. Even Cindy and Sammy help in this case, leading me to believe that she will be a top notch cop in her own right, and I look forward to seeing her in future cases. Rina seeing her husband's exhaustion even enlists the help of Abel, Peter's old war buddy, who is always good for a few laughs.
As always the mystery moved fast with twists and turns. Yet, as I have grown used to Kellerman's writing style, I could tell how this case would play out from the middle of the book; all Peter needed was to collect the evidence. All in all a fun mystery. Looking forward to the next case, especially with Cindy joining the police force and Sammy and Jake enjoying their teen years, Kellerman has much material to keep people interested for the duration of the series.
Meanwhile at home, the kids have become young adults and teenagers. Cindy has decided to enter the police academy giving her father even more gray hairs, and Sammy and Jake are begging to move closer to their friends so they can be at the center of the school social scene. Hannah is also growing up at the blink of an eye, allowing Rina to do more projects and run the home like a tight ship.
The case takes its toll on Decker as usual as he works long hours, often missing out on gourmet suppers and family life. His objective is to pin the crime on Jeanine Garrison, daughter of murdered multimillionaires Ray and Linda Garrison. Although an ice queen with an agenda, not all of the facts add up, forcing Decker and company into overtime. Even Cindy and Sammy help in this case, leading me to believe that she will be a top notch cop in her own right, and I look forward to seeing her in future cases. Rina seeing her husband's exhaustion even enlists the help of Abel, Peter's old war buddy, who is always good for a few laughs.
As always the mystery moved fast with twists and turns. Yet, as I have grown used to Kellerman's writing style, I could tell how this case would play out from the middle of the book; all Peter needed was to collect the evidence. All in all a fun mystery. Looking forward to the next case, especially with Cindy joining the police force and Sammy and Jake enjoying their teen years, Kellerman has much material to keep people interested for the duration of the series.
November 29, 2017
Really loved this one!
January 29, 2019
4 Stars! Great read, not very often do I get so mad at one of the nasty characters, but I did this time! There is a problem though, no cop (especially a superior cop), and I do mean, no cop would stand by while another cop is being assaulted by a very nasty woman and blame the assaulted cop for being in the wrong - just not believable. - Ergo why no 5 stars!
From the blurb: A man walks into a trendy Los Angeles restaurant -- a disgruntled ex-employee with an automatic weapon -- and seconds later, thirteen people are dead and thirty-two more have been wounded. It is a heinous act of mass slaughter that haunts Homicide Detective Peter Decker.
But, though eyewitnesses saw only the lone gunman -- who apparently took his own life after his bloody work was done -- evidence suggests more than one weapon was fired. It is a disturbing inconsistency that sends Decker racing headlong into a sordid, labyrinthine world of Southern California money and power, on an investigation that threatens to destroy his reputation and his career.
From the blurb: A man walks into a trendy Los Angeles restaurant -- a disgruntled ex-employee with an automatic weapon -- and seconds later, thirteen people are dead and thirty-two more have been wounded. It is a heinous act of mass slaughter that haunts Homicide Detective Peter Decker.
But, though eyewitnesses saw only the lone gunman -- who apparently took his own life after his bloody work was done -- evidence suggests more than one weapon was fired. It is a disturbing inconsistency that sends Decker racing headlong into a sordid, labyrinthine world of Southern California money and power, on an investigation that threatens to destroy his reputation and his career.
October 31, 2018
Two-haiku review:
Restaurant shooting
Many killed, including perp
Why did he do it?
Plot not what it seems
Very nice complexity
Satisfying end
Restaurant shooting
Many killed, including perp
Why did he do it?
Plot not what it seems
Very nice complexity
Satisfying end
June 21, 2020
I was not a big fan of this book. There are quite a few reasons why. I felt like the lead, Peter Decker, was acting like a total jerk through the whole book. He was a misogynistic cry baby through the whole thing. It really turned me off to the book. The worst incident is when he comes home late from work and is pissed because his wife doesn’t greet him at the door like some form of step ford wife. He not only treats his wife like this repeatedly throughout the book, but his 24 y/o daughter. I found his attitude and treatment of the women in his life extremely distasteful. As the author is a woman, it only adds to my disappointment.
I also was not a fan of the useless discussion of Rins’s periods, useless discussion on her religion as it pertains to her period and hysterectomy. This all had absolutely nothing what so ever to do with the story. Nothing! It all felt very out of place, giving a weird, yucky quality that was useless. Ask yourself, what does a cops wife’s period have to do with a mass shooting? Weird.
I also disliked the police work in this book. I found it distasteful as well. His wife and kids and friend solving the mystery? Come on! Very amateur hour writing. The plot didn’t work either. Decker figured out who “done it” at the near beginning with no evidence and plots the rest of the story to get her? Seriously? This book is an all around loser. I would not recommend this book. As a matter of fact, I also pulled the next book in the series out of the library, it’s going back unread.
I also was not a fan of the useless discussion of Rins’s periods, useless discussion on her religion as it pertains to her period and hysterectomy. This all had absolutely nothing what so ever to do with the story. Nothing! It all felt very out of place, giving a weird, yucky quality that was useless. Ask yourself, what does a cops wife’s period have to do with a mass shooting? Weird.
I also disliked the police work in this book. I found it distasteful as well. His wife and kids and friend solving the mystery? Come on! Very amateur hour writing. The plot didn’t work either. Decker figured out who “done it” at the near beginning with no evidence and plots the rest of the story to get her? Seriously? This book is an all around loser. I would not recommend this book. As a matter of fact, I also pulled the next book in the series out of the library, it’s going back unread.
December 31, 2022
4 sterren - hardcover- bibliotheek boek
December 23, 2024
Rounded up from 3.5
March 7, 2021
A lot of fun, as always. I always think I know where things are going and I'm almost mostly right but still wrong about something. Exactly how it should be.
November 26, 2018
When she wrote SERPENT’S TOOTH many years ago, little did author Faye Kellerman know that her imagined plot line would replicate some of the mass killings so prevalent in today’s headlines.
A solemn young man walks into a crowded Los Angeles eatery called Estelle’s, orders a drink at the bar, then proceeds to pull a 9mm Smith and Wesson automatic out of his jacket, opening fire on employees and patrons with dire results. When the smoke clears 13 people are dead (including the gunman Harlan Manz) and 32 others lay wounded.
L.A. homicide detective Peter Decker is the man sent to investigate what appears to be a case of a disgruntled employee retaliating by committing mass murder. The more Decker learns about the crime from the forensics evidence, the less the crime makes sense. It appears that there was a second gunman and a specific target of this seemingly senseless mayhem. Could this be murder for hire with a ton of money as the motivator?
Decker’s prime suspect is a manipulative little sociopath who doesn’t appreciate Decker questioning her and in retaliation brings a trumped up harassment suit against him thereby ensuring his removal from the case. Couple that blow to his professional life with all the family drama present in Decker’s personal life and you have all the ingredients necessary for an interesting story.
While SERPENT”S TOOTH presents a relatively absorbing read hatched by the distaff member of the Kellerman family and I did enjoy this read, I must admit, when making a comparison and given the choice I do prefer hubby Jonathan’s Alex Delaware series to the Decker/Lazarus yarn.
A solemn young man walks into a crowded Los Angeles eatery called Estelle’s, orders a drink at the bar, then proceeds to pull a 9mm Smith and Wesson automatic out of his jacket, opening fire on employees and patrons with dire results. When the smoke clears 13 people are dead (including the gunman Harlan Manz) and 32 others lay wounded.
L.A. homicide detective Peter Decker is the man sent to investigate what appears to be a case of a disgruntled employee retaliating by committing mass murder. The more Decker learns about the crime from the forensics evidence, the less the crime makes sense. It appears that there was a second gunman and a specific target of this seemingly senseless mayhem. Could this be murder for hire with a ton of money as the motivator?
Decker’s prime suspect is a manipulative little sociopath who doesn’t appreciate Decker questioning her and in retaliation brings a trumped up harassment suit against him thereby ensuring his removal from the case. Couple that blow to his professional life with all the family drama present in Decker’s personal life and you have all the ingredients necessary for an interesting story.
While SERPENT”S TOOTH presents a relatively absorbing read hatched by the distaff member of the Kellerman family and I did enjoy this read, I must admit, when making a comparison and given the choice I do prefer hubby Jonathan’s Alex Delaware series to the Decker/Lazarus yarn.
April 7, 2013
Though not her strongest offering, Serpent's Tooth isn't the weakest Decker novel either. The book has an excellent opening. Kellerman makes you care about a scattered group of people in just a few pages - and then brutally murders a large number of them.
The pacing of the story is good despite the ultimate frustration: knowing who the killer is and not being able to prove it. Instead of letting this knowledge (shared by both readers and characters) slow the book down and just make it out-and-out frustrating, the process Decker and his detectives go through to get the evidence they need is interesting enough to hold a reader (or, in my case, a listener).
The weakest portion of the book is the end, which comes in a sort of faintly explained deus ex machina - so much so that a character in the novel even comments on it!
Kellerman also wove in more family moments with Rina, Cindy, the boys, and Hannah than in a couple of previous books. These moments are what set the Decker books apart from the glut of mystery fiction.
The pacing of the story is good despite the ultimate frustration: knowing who the killer is and not being able to prove it. Instead of letting this knowledge (shared by both readers and characters) slow the book down and just make it out-and-out frustrating, the process Decker and his detectives go through to get the evidence they need is interesting enough to hold a reader (or, in my case, a listener).
The weakest portion of the book is the end, which comes in a sort of faintly explained deus ex machina - so much so that a character in the novel even comments on it!
Kellerman also wove in more family moments with Rina, Cindy, the boys, and Hannah than in a couple of previous books. These moments are what set the Decker books apart from the glut of mystery fiction.
July 26, 2014
This is one of the earlier Decker novels and although I am reading it out of order, it is still enjoyable. The good thing about these books is that the author tends to give you the background information that you need in order to know who the characters are without bogging down the story. This is a very enjoyable book with several twists that will make you want to keep reading. I found that I actually enjoyed this more than some of the author's more recent Decker novels, the writing is tighter, the characters better developed and just overall, a better read.
April 14, 2012
this was a great story. it was written in 1997ish and you can tell that it was "pre-CSI" because the forensics were up and coming, not a given. nevertheless, the plot and mystery were still worth reading.
April 8, 2014
Decker's a jerk. Why do I keep reading these?
January 28, 2016
I enjoyed this book a lot. My first one of Kellerman. I have another book to read by her.
March 21, 2017
Greed, money, and critical planning. Major components in this title. Is it Suicide, Murder, or hired Assassins? Where will all the clues lead the team as they follow those found in the carnage of a shoot out at a popular restaurant? Lieutenant Peter Decker will find his clues a little bit unorthodox in this title, but skirting around the planned scenario is the only way to unearth a devious plot. Every title I read in this series, makes my heart sore with knowledge with a thirst to know more. Religious beliefs, Bible stories, philosophy lessons, and basic human needs, desires, and behaviors. Decker's team included three members of his family plus a war veteran friend as well as his regular crew.
Who is the real psycho and why are there minions willing to follow blindly??
Who is the real psycho and why are there minions willing to follow blindly??
Read
January 22, 2019A guy walks into a restaurant and bring a drink. Most diners don't pay much attention but then he pulls out a gun and bullets fly. When the police arrive, it is horrific. It looks cut and dried as the shooter is found dead a the scene. Self-inflicted or is it? Read and find out.
March 25, 2017
I've read quite a few books in this series, and liked them all to different degrees. This was probably 3.5 stars. It didn't make my list of favorite mysteries that year, but I did note that it was "pretty good". I think it was the first in the series that I read.
October 3, 2023
A fast paced mystery with Peter Decker and his wife Rina. We know the
characters and the plot was great. This time it all begins when a gunman
Opens fire in a restaurant killing many and injuring many more. Although
Peter recognizes the killers face , he believes someone else is behind this
Mass shooting. A well written book . I enjoyed it. There are twists and
Turns , but all works out for a satisfying conclusion. Recommended.
characters and the plot was great. This time it all begins when a gunman
Opens fire in a restaurant killing many and injuring many more. Although
Peter recognizes the killers face , he believes someone else is behind this
Mass shooting. A well written book . I enjoyed it. There are twists and
Turns , but all works out for a satisfying conclusion. Recommended.
October 25, 2010
This book was just okay for me. Maybe because this is the 10th book in the series, but the first that I've read of Peter Decker or anything from Faye Kellerman on that matter, the story is a bit off for me. I couldn't really connect with the main character.
The story is about a mass shooting that's happened in an upscale restaurant that leads to the other events, which makes Lieutenant Peter Decker suspicious that the mass murderer was not the one dead on the scene, killing himself.
Although it is a fast pace read, I found that the plot was quite predictable. I didn't understand the relationship between Peter and Rina and the family, as well as Petter with his colleague at LAPD. And this book makes a reference of Orthodox Jew practice a lot, in my opinion, and I don't even understand anything about that.
Overall, I think this book was just an okay mystery-thriller story. I would have given it 1.5 stars if I could, but I guess 2 is generous of me and I'm feeling a bit generous with my stars right now :) This is to say that I don't think I'll read any more of Faye Kellerman's books in the future.
The story is about a mass shooting that's happened in an upscale restaurant that leads to the other events, which makes Lieutenant Peter Decker suspicious that the mass murderer was not the one dead on the scene, killing himself.
Although it is a fast pace read, I found that the plot was quite predictable. I didn't understand the relationship between Peter and Rina and the family, as well as Petter with his colleague at LAPD. And this book makes a reference of Orthodox Jew practice a lot, in my opinion, and I don't even understand anything about that.
Overall, I think this book was just an okay mystery-thriller story. I would have given it 1.5 stars if I could, but I guess 2 is generous of me and I'm feeling a bit generous with my stars right now :) This is to say that I don't think I'll read any more of Faye Kellerman's books in the future.
August 5, 2011
I believe this is the book where she introduces the character Webster, who hails from Mississippi. She uses hackneyed dialog for him, and the blatantly bad accent is ridiculous. The worst thing was having him refer to one person as "y'all" - that is NEVER done in the real south. We know that y'all means a group of people, it's always used collectively... duh. But then, in her later work (Street Dreams) she paints the south horribly - racially, and esthetically: "Yaakov, there are places in the good old USA where I wouldn't take you on a bet, and it's not just the Deep South or rural Texas. It's *lovely areas with pretty little homes and green lawns* and posters in their windows that say, 'The South shall rise again'" Kellerman is a regionalist idiot. This is the same writer who speaks of "the blacks" like "the cows" or "the end-tables" - doesn't anyone edit her for cultural literacy?
March 19, 2022
I am generally a fan of Kellerman’s police procedurals but this novel did not hook me at all. She never invited me to feel compassion and empathy for the victims, the story was too rough and gritty, and it seems that she was referencing well-endowed penises on every other page which had nothing to do, whatsoever, with the narrative. It seems within this novel and the previous two in the series, that she has become fascinated with male genitalia and writes as if she were are old, cigar-chewing writer of gritty, 1930s crime noir. When I got to the part of the book where she used such dated, grotesque, and vulgar verbiage as “hard schlong,” I knew my progress through the book was over. So, after having read 46 percent of the novel, I decided to DNF the book.
December 13, 2010
Another winner in the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus series, SERPENT'S TOOTH combines a solid mystery with interesting characters and relationships. I like the fact that there is less action from "other" points of view than in some of the previous books, and the dynamics of Decker's personal life remain interesting (despite the fact that I find some of the rituals they follow very weird -- as I do most religious ritual of whatever faith). Decker's daughter Cindy is becoming an intriguing character in her own right,and I wonder what's in store for her in the future.
November 25, 2012
Maybe reading a book after surgery isn't the best way to focus. but I found this book meandered too much. Too many characters. If you're a devout Jew, maybe you'd enjoy all the shiva mess. I'm not Jewish and found it distracting when I wanted to get on with the storyline.
I haven't read any of the other Faye Kellerman novels I took out, but if they're as dull as this, they're going back before I finish.
I haven't read any of the other Faye Kellerman novels I took out, but if they're as dull as this, they're going back before I finish.
November 10, 2016
I did not like how the police decided who was guilty and then just looked for evidence to fit their suspicions. They were right, of course, but it mirrors a worrying trend that occurs too often in real life.
February 24, 2011
Peter Decker and his family are such wonderful well rounded characters. I enjoy this series very much.
May 20, 2014
A distinct and persistent obsession with men's crotches. Ick. Pass
August 11, 2016
Another exciting book in the Decker/Lazarus series.
February 2, 2025
Spannend von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite, obwohl der Täter recht früh bekannt ist. Absatz lesenswert, wenn man Krimis mag, die sich nicht nur mit den Fall selbst befassen.
December 26, 2022
Ignore the Text on the Inner Cover…
The crime is solved scratch-up. While different guests are dining at pricey Estelle’s in Los Angeles, a man with a green jacket enters mostly unnoticed. That is, until the shooting starts. In the end, many of the diners are dead, and so is the man with the green jacket, gun close to his hand. Everything is solved? Well, there are some lose ends. A job to be done by LAPD Lieutenant Peter Decker and his team.
This case where everything seemed obvious took some good 60 pages to captivate me – well, it would have been way more, had I not read the text on the inner cover sleeve. Why the heck is it that some publishers have it to try and ruin it with this weird thing of going for a better pitch that just gives away too much? Anyway, this is a police procedural, so it is pretty OBVIOUS there is more to the killing – I just wish that where you are as a reader after the first quarter of the book would not have been spoiled on the book’s cover.
This is REALLY police procedural with emphasis on procedural. You wonder if anything is ever going to happen when actually you know who committed which crime from the beginning and what is really behind it from the cover summary (or from after the first quarter of pages). So, yes, it is probably realistic in as far as investigations might be dull – but is also is dull to read, at least some of the pages. Then, when it gets you to fast-turn the pages, it is also a bit of a far-fetched plot – that dual setup and the whole of the Decker’s involved etc.
There are references to the book before this – without explaining, so this cannot really be understood without having read book number 9, “Prayers for the Dead“ – not needed for the solution of this case, but still mentioned more than once. Oh, yes, and the exlamation marks. I read that in some other review and thus could not help seeing them. Faye Kellerman is big in exclamation marks and italics eg. page 202 But she is also big with a certain humor like when talking about preferring to be a cop rather than with the Feds: ‘...I really want to solve crimes, not wear sunglasses.‘ p 119
So does that make up for it? Not completely – I do not like having to go halfway through a book before it gets to me and then, what gets to me is a bit too much, and a large bit of it.
3 stars.
The crime is solved scratch-up. While different guests are dining at pricey Estelle’s in Los Angeles, a man with a green jacket enters mostly unnoticed. That is, until the shooting starts. In the end, many of the diners are dead, and so is the man with the green jacket, gun close to his hand. Everything is solved? Well, there are some lose ends. A job to be done by LAPD Lieutenant Peter Decker and his team.
This case where everything seemed obvious took some good 60 pages to captivate me – well, it would have been way more, had I not read the text on the inner cover sleeve. Why the heck is it that some publishers have it to try and ruin it with this weird thing of going for a better pitch that just gives away too much? Anyway, this is a police procedural, so it is pretty OBVIOUS there is more to the killing – I just wish that where you are as a reader after the first quarter of the book would not have been spoiled on the book’s cover.
This is REALLY police procedural with emphasis on procedural. You wonder if anything is ever going to happen when actually you know who committed which crime from the beginning and what is really behind it from the cover summary (or from after the first quarter of pages). So, yes, it is probably realistic in as far as investigations might be dull – but is also is dull to read, at least some of the pages. Then, when it gets you to fast-turn the pages, it is also a bit of a far-fetched plot – that dual setup and the whole of the Decker’s involved etc.
There are references to the book before this – without explaining, so this cannot really be understood without having read book number 9, “Prayers for the Dead“ – not needed for the solution of this case, but still mentioned more than once. Oh, yes, and the exlamation marks. I read that in some other review and thus could not help seeing them. Faye Kellerman is big in exclamation marks and italics eg. page 202 But she is also big with a certain humor like when talking about preferring to be a cop rather than with the Feds: ‘...I really want to solve crimes, not wear sunglasses.‘ p 119
So does that make up for it? Not completely – I do not like having to go halfway through a book before it gets to me and then, what gets to me is a bit too much, and a large bit of it.
3 stars.
June 15, 2018
2.5 stars. This definitely wasn't my favorite book of this series - not because of the mystery aspect, but rather because it had Decker returning to the jerk-like behavior that almost made me walk away from this series a few books ago - case in point, Decker is hardly ever home due to his job but then gets butt-hurt and resentful when he does come home late one night and Rina doesn't act overjoyed to see him and immediately jump up to serve his dinner because she's in the middle of doing something else.
But I digress. The 10th book in this series, this one starts with a lone gunman walking into a restaurant and opening fire, killing 13 and wounding 30. But as Decker and his team start to investigate (to tie up loose ends because the gunman killed himself), Decker realizes that things don't seem to add up to there having been just one gunman.
As the investigation continues and suspicion falls on the daughter of one of the murdered couples, she succeeds in getting Decker thrown off the case. Which prompts Decker's kids, Cindy and Sammy, and Rina to get involved behind his back to help him solve the case, giving Cindy, who has been accepted at the police academy (much to Peter's chagrin!), a taste of what her future holds.
It was interesting to hear how the detectives came up with ways to investigate their main suspect without giving the appearance that she was still being investigated, though Decker did have a bit of tunnel vision where she was concerned. There were definitely several layers to that plot!
But the return of Decker the Jerk, though he did realize he was being a jerk and tried to check himself, really detracted from the mystery. I'm hoping this is not a trend that will continue in future books in this series!
But I digress. The 10th book in this series, this one starts with a lone gunman walking into a restaurant and opening fire, killing 13 and wounding 30. But as Decker and his team start to investigate (to tie up loose ends because the gunman killed himself), Decker realizes that things don't seem to add up to there having been just one gunman.
As the investigation continues and suspicion falls on the daughter of one of the murdered couples, she succeeds in getting Decker thrown off the case. Which prompts Decker's kids, Cindy and Sammy, and Rina to get involved behind his back to help him solve the case, giving Cindy, who has been accepted at the police academy (much to Peter's chagrin!), a taste of what her future holds.
It was interesting to hear how the detectives came up with ways to investigate their main suspect without giving the appearance that she was still being investigated, though Decker did have a bit of tunnel vision where she was concerned. There were definitely several layers to that plot!
But the return of Decker the Jerk, though he did realize he was being a jerk and tried to check himself, really detracted from the mystery. I'm hoping this is not a trend that will continue in future books in this series!
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