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Carmine Delmonico #5
Sins of the Flesh
In the next installment in the “compelling, passionate, and gritty” ( Daily Mail , UK) suspense series, police Captain Carmine Delmonico is on the trail of not one but two killers.
“Some men and women, she reflected, fell into their proper profession, the only one they were eminently crafted to do. And this man was one such. Highly intelligent without the spark of genius, well educated without being entrapped by his learning, nigh infinitely patient, rational to the core yet subtle, empathetic when it suited him, and endowed with an analytical brain. A policeman by nature who might successfully have done a dozen other things for a living, but had lit upon the one he was made for.”
It’s August 1969, and police Captain Carmine Delmonico is away on a family vacation. Back at home, in the sleepy college town of Holloman, Connecticut, first one, then two anonymous male corpses turn up—emaciated and emasculated. After connecting the victims to four other bodies, Sergeant Delia Carstairs and Lieutenant Abe Goldberg realize that Holloman has a psychopathic killer on the loose. Luckily, Carmine’s beloved wife Desdemona sends him home from vacation early.
Carmine’s team begins to circle a trio of eccentrics, who share family ties, painful memories, and a dark past. They readily admit to knowing all the victims, but their stories keep changing. It’s awkward that one of them is a new friend of Delia’s, a woman she recently befriended along with the respected and innovative head of the mental hospital, who has been rehabilitating one very difficult patient to be her trusted assistant. When another vicious murder rocks Holloman, Carmine realizes that two killers are at large with completely different modus operandi. Like Delia, he finds this case too close to home when he barely escapes being next on the body count. Suddenly the summer isn’t so sleepy anymore.
Colleen McCullough’s riveting Carmine Delmonico books take you back to a time when detectives relied mainly on logic, intelligence, and instinct—and a good home-cooked meal or breakfast at Malvolio’s with colleagues. Sins of the Flesh is her finest mystery yet, pitting her beloved hero against every cop’s nightmare scenario in a plot that turns on the science that McCullough herself knows so well.
“Some men and women, she reflected, fell into their proper profession, the only one they were eminently crafted to do. And this man was one such. Highly intelligent without the spark of genius, well educated without being entrapped by his learning, nigh infinitely patient, rational to the core yet subtle, empathetic when it suited him, and endowed with an analytical brain. A policeman by nature who might successfully have done a dozen other things for a living, but had lit upon the one he was made for.”
It’s August 1969, and police Captain Carmine Delmonico is away on a family vacation. Back at home, in the sleepy college town of Holloman, Connecticut, first one, then two anonymous male corpses turn up—emaciated and emasculated. After connecting the victims to four other bodies, Sergeant Delia Carstairs and Lieutenant Abe Goldberg realize that Holloman has a psychopathic killer on the loose. Luckily, Carmine’s beloved wife Desdemona sends him home from vacation early.
Carmine’s team begins to circle a trio of eccentrics, who share family ties, painful memories, and a dark past. They readily admit to knowing all the victims, but their stories keep changing. It’s awkward that one of them is a new friend of Delia’s, a woman she recently befriended along with the respected and innovative head of the mental hospital, who has been rehabilitating one very difficult patient to be her trusted assistant. When another vicious murder rocks Holloman, Carmine realizes that two killers are at large with completely different modus operandi. Like Delia, he finds this case too close to home when he barely escapes being next on the body count. Suddenly the summer isn’t so sleepy anymore.
Colleen McCullough’s riveting Carmine Delmonico books take you back to a time when detectives relied mainly on logic, intelligence, and instinct—and a good home-cooked meal or breakfast at Malvolio’s with colleagues. Sins of the Flesh is her finest mystery yet, pitting her beloved hero against every cop’s nightmare scenario in a plot that turns on the science that McCullough herself knows so well.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 2013
51 people are currently reading
1276 people want to read
About the author
Colleen McCullough
129 books3,129 followersColleen Margaretta McCullough was an Australian author known for her novels, her most well-known being The Thorn Birds and Tim.
Raised by her mother in Wellington and then Sydney, McCullough began writing stories at age 5. She flourished at Catholic schools and earned a physiology degree from the University of New South Wales in 1963. Planning become a doctor, she found that she had a violent allergy to hospital soap and turned instead to neurophysiology – the study of the nervous system's functions. She found jobs first in London and then at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
After her beloved younger brother Carl died in 1965 at age 25 while rescuing two drowning women in the waters off Crete, a shattered McCullough quit writing. She finally returned to her craft in 1974 with Tim, a critically acclaimed novel about the romance between a female executive and a younger, mentally disabled gardener. As always, the author proved her toughest critic: "Actually," she said, "it was an icky book, saccharine sweet."
A year later, while on a paltry $10,000 annual salary as a Yale researcher, McCullough – just "Col" to her friends – began work on the sprawling The Thorn Birds, about the lives and loves of three generations of an Australian family. Many of its details were drawn from her mother's family's experience as migrant workers, and one character, Dane, was based on brother Carl.
Though some reviews were scathing, millions of readers worldwide got caught up in her tales of doomed love and other natural calamities. The paperback rights sold for an astonishing $1.9 million.
In all, McCullough wrote 11 novels.
Source: http://www.people.com/article/colleen...
Raised by her mother in Wellington and then Sydney, McCullough began writing stories at age 5. She flourished at Catholic schools and earned a physiology degree from the University of New South Wales in 1963. Planning become a doctor, she found that she had a violent allergy to hospital soap and turned instead to neurophysiology – the study of the nervous system's functions. She found jobs first in London and then at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
After her beloved younger brother Carl died in 1965 at age 25 while rescuing two drowning women in the waters off Crete, a shattered McCullough quit writing. She finally returned to her craft in 1974 with Tim, a critically acclaimed novel about the romance between a female executive and a younger, mentally disabled gardener. As always, the author proved her toughest critic: "Actually," she said, "it was an icky book, saccharine sweet."
A year later, while on a paltry $10,000 annual salary as a Yale researcher, McCullough – just "Col" to her friends – began work on the sprawling The Thorn Birds, about the lives and loves of three generations of an Australian family. Many of its details were drawn from her mother's family's experience as migrant workers, and one character, Dane, was based on brother Carl.
Though some reviews were scathing, millions of readers worldwide got caught up in her tales of doomed love and other natural calamities. The paperback rights sold for an astonishing $1.9 million.
In all, McCullough wrote 11 novels.
Source: http://www.people.com/article/colleen...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
March 19, 2014
The last time I read a novel by Colleen McCullough, it was "The Thorn Birds". While I was surprised and intrigued to see McCullough has become a crime/mystery writer, "The Thorn Birds" this is not.
My main problem with the book is the first 125 pages, in which the endless background is supplied. It does set up the mystery--or three--but for the reader, it's hard slogging.
Once we got past all that groundwork, the writing started to feel more like the Colleen McCullough I so fondly remember with competent writing and snappy situations. I like Carmen Delmonico, and I particularly like his pit bull Frank. Great dog, that Frank!
Although there were some surprises, much of the book plodded for me.
My main problem with the book is the first 125 pages, in which the endless background is supplied. It does set up the mystery--or three--but for the reader, it's hard slogging.
Once we got past all that groundwork, the writing started to feel more like the Colleen McCullough I so fondly remember with competent writing and snappy situations. I like Carmen Delmonico, and I particularly like his pit bull Frank. Great dog, that Frank!
Although there were some surprises, much of the book plodded for me.
March 20, 2019
I must admit that this book was a big disappointment for SO many reasons.
1) The writing was irregular. By that, I mean the word order in places did not flow logically. Clauses would refer back to the first thing in the sentence, and not the object mentioned closest to it. It sounds trivial, but wasting time trying to figure out some sentences is not my idea of a fun read. It sounds like work. On top of that, the use of ellipses was also unusual. Yes, any reader past early primary school could work out the missing words, but it just read oddly.
2) The dialogue was unrealistic and felt forced. Husbands refer to their wives by name and not as "wife". Nor do uncles call their nieces "niece". But she was letting us know the relationship between the characters, you might say. Nope. She had already done that. And if she thought we had sieves for brains (I'll get to that in a bit), then a short little sentence such as, "Mary looked up at her uncle standing at the head of the table," would have sufficed.
3) Readers do have sieves for brains if it has been a few years since reading a book in the series. A bit of an introduction as to who everyone was would have been nice. Yes, I figured it out. But who knows what I thought before all the pieces fell into place.
4) The characters are so over the top they also failed. Let's take Delia as an example. Hideously dressed, always with lipstick on her teeth, but supposedly intelligent. Are intelligent women blind? Are they incapable of seeing that checks, stripes and paisley do not fit one outfit, especially in multiple colours? Is she incapable of noting that she put her lipstick all over her teeth and then rectifying that error the next day during the application process? It seems ridiculous to me. I expect better of an intelligent female writer, who should clearly understand that an intelligent woman can still be sensible while having quirky character traits. And that was just one character...
5) The plot had holes the size craters. Firstly, it relied on coincidence completely. Secondly, it relied on unrealistic conveniences. Third, it was just blatantly unrealistic.
6) Although this book was set in the 60s and represented the homophobic reaction of people, I was disappointed that a modern perspective didn't wangle its way in there somehow (It was written in 2013.). It might be anachronistic, but I found it unsettling that, after the mutilated man was found, the thoughts automatically went to the gay community, and at no point was an apology made for it. In fact, just to make things worse, by the end of the book the two "gay men" turned out to be straight after all, and just faking it. Errr.......
1) The writing was irregular. By that, I mean the word order in places did not flow logically. Clauses would refer back to the first thing in the sentence, and not the object mentioned closest to it. It sounds trivial, but wasting time trying to figure out some sentences is not my idea of a fun read. It sounds like work. On top of that, the use of ellipses was also unusual. Yes, any reader past early primary school could work out the missing words, but it just read oddly.
2) The dialogue was unrealistic and felt forced. Husbands refer to their wives by name and not as "wife". Nor do uncles call their nieces "niece". But she was letting us know the relationship between the characters, you might say. Nope. She had already done that. And if she thought we had sieves for brains (I'll get to that in a bit), then a short little sentence such as, "Mary looked up at her uncle standing at the head of the table," would have sufficed.
3) Readers do have sieves for brains if it has been a few years since reading a book in the series. A bit of an introduction as to who everyone was would have been nice. Yes, I figured it out. But who knows what I thought before all the pieces fell into place.
4) The characters are so over the top they also failed. Let's take Delia as an example. Hideously dressed, always with lipstick on her teeth, but supposedly intelligent. Are intelligent women blind? Are they incapable of seeing that checks, stripes and paisley do not fit one outfit, especially in multiple colours? Is she incapable of noting that she put her lipstick all over her teeth and then rectifying that error the next day during the application process? It seems ridiculous to me. I expect better of an intelligent female writer, who should clearly understand that an intelligent woman can still be sensible while having quirky character traits. And that was just one character...
5) The plot had holes the size craters. Firstly, it relied on coincidence completely. Secondly, it relied on unrealistic conveniences. Third, it was just blatantly unrealistic.
6) Although this book was set in the 60s and represented the homophobic reaction of people, I was disappointed that a modern perspective didn't wangle its way in there somehow (It was written in 2013.). It might be anachronistic, but I found it unsettling that, after the mutilated man was found, the thoughts automatically went to the gay community, and at no point was an apology made for it. In fact, just to make things worse, by the end of the book the two "gay men" turned out to be straight after all, and just faking it. Errr.......
February 1, 2022
I love much of what Colleen McCullough has written. This police procedural/crime mystery series is new to me - and of course, I'm coming in at the last book - but you don't have to read the prior books to enjoy this book. My only complaint about this book was that the end just wrapped up, super quick, with no real explanation of why everything suddenly became so simple. The characters are wonderful, the story is engaging, and the crimes are believable in context. The story is a period piece - taking place in the 1960s, so the political correctness/social awareness of more recent years is absent. I've already picked up book 1 of this series, and look forward to eventually reading them all. While not all of McCullough's writing appeals to me, it is always worth checking out, often is a treasure, and sometimes just a good read. This one falls somewhere between treasure and good read.
May 15, 2021
Enjoyable. Better than the previous book in the series. Conclusions seems a bit anticlimactic.
September 20, 2017
This is the last book in the Carmine Delmonico series, and with the death of Colleen McCullough it means there will be no more written. I enjoyed this series and wish there were more books in it to read. This one covers two different cases, one of missing women referred to as shadow women, a cold case, and an ongoing case of missing young adult men. Add to it a psychiatrist who apparently is also a neurosurgeon as she does form of prefrontal lobotomies, and it was sometimes hard to keep the story straight. Each of the books in this series has parts that really push the limit of belief, like the padded private en suite rooms for the psychiatrist's pet patient, a man who makes Hannibal Lector look like a good boy. But all in all it was a good read and hard to put down.
October 30, 2013
I won "Sins of the Flesh" in a Goodreads give away, As I began reading the book I had a difficult time getting into it, but I finished, and by the middle of the book I picked up interest and then had a hard time putting it down, staying up reading when I should have been sleeping; but it was worth it! If you like many characters with diverse careers and personalities, you will enjoy this. Is there a psychopathic killer loose committing the murders? Or are there two? Does a doctor 'cure' an inmate of the Institution for the Criminally insane? This book is shocking, creepy and surprising. I won't say anymore as I don't want to giveaway the story.
February 13, 2017
Perhaps this multiple murder mystery would have been more enjoyable if I had read the previous books in the series. It was sometimes difficult to follow and often seemed hard to believe. Unusual language and speech patterns. Not recommended:(
March 5, 2019
De Doornvogels was een schitterend boek, maar in andere boeken van dezez auteur heb ik dat nooit meer teruggevonden. Ondanks dat het een vrij recent boek is leest het eerder als iets uit de jaren 60 of 70; de periode waarin het boek zich ook afspeelt.
Ik ben blijven doorlezen, met enige moeite, omdat ik nu wel eens wou seten hoe het in elkaar zat maar het was amper de moeite. De plot zat raar ineen, de personnages waren bizar.... door het boek over Rome ben ik ook og niet doorgeraakt maar daar zit de historische achtergrond ten minste solide in elkaar....
Ik ben blijven doorlezen, met enige moeite, omdat ik nu wel eens wou seten hoe het in elkaar zat maar het was amper de moeite. De plot zat raar ineen, de personnages waren bizar.... door het boek over Rome ben ik ook og niet doorgeraakt maar daar zit de historische achtergrond ten minste solide in elkaar....
December 30, 2014
I picked this up at the airport bookstore because I was looking for a book that would fit the following criteria: 1) good, fast-paced, engaging plot (i.e. airplane book); 2) some minimal amount of literary value; 3) normal price; 4) could fit into my overstuffed carry-on. As someone who always peruses airport bookstores but never actually buys anything because I always go for flights prepared with reading material, I sort of wish that I had been warned that my expectations were too high. I walked up and down one pathetic aisle of the book store for approximately an hour completely creeping out the attendants because there was literally nothing that met all four criteria… how disappointing! Sins of the Flesh was my best option because the only criteria I wasn’t sure about (#2) seemed like it would be ok based on the fact that I had read the Thorn Birds a million years ago and really enjoyed it.
So, yeah… I was a little bit disappointed. This book was really not very good. The plot was completely bizarre. I never even got the slightest bit scared because it was so unrealistic. The characters were all over the place and strange. The plot pretty much dragged. But the worst… the writing was a mess! Basic rules of grammar like sentence structure and correct use of pronouns were blatantly ignored. Although there was nothing intellectually complex about this book, it was a really slow slog at first because I had to read each sentence several times to understand the odd wording and phrasing. I could just imagine that this editing process consisted of no one having the balls to criticize Colleen McCullough because she’s such a literary giant, but everyone acknowledging behind her back that she’s slipping in her old age. It was still ok though because the book did rally a bit at the end and the last 150 pages were very readable.
So, yeah… I was a little bit disappointed. This book was really not very good. The plot was completely bizarre. I never even got the slightest bit scared because it was so unrealistic. The characters were all over the place and strange. The plot pretty much dragged. But the worst… the writing was a mess! Basic rules of grammar like sentence structure and correct use of pronouns were blatantly ignored. Although there was nothing intellectually complex about this book, it was a really slow slog at first because I had to read each sentence several times to understand the odd wording and phrasing. I could just imagine that this editing process consisted of no one having the balls to criticize Colleen McCullough because she’s such a literary giant, but everyone acknowledging behind her back that she’s slipping in her old age. It was still ok though because the book did rally a bit at the end and the last 150 pages were very readable.
October 18, 2013
“Sins of the Flesh” by Coleen McCulough, published by Simon & Schuster.
Category – Mystery/Thriller Publication Date - November 12, 2013
This mystery is the fifth in a series featuring Detective Carmine Delmonico. The books are written so that the reader does not have to start at book one because each book is contained within itself.
Carmine is on vacation when corpses begin showing up in the little town of Holloman, Connecticut. Detectives Abe Goldberg and the eccentric Delia Carstairs are working the case and make the determination that a psychopathic killer is on the loose. Carmine cuts his vacation and returns to lead the investigation.
Delia has also been working on a case of several women who have disappeared, called the “shadow women”.
Abe gets the first break when he comes in contact with three eccentrics from the same family who provide vital information concerning the murdered men. These men were murdered in a most unusual way, they were starved to death.
Delia gets her break when she becomes involved with Dr. Jess Wainfleet. Dr. Wainfleet, a neurosurgeon/psychiatrist, works at an Asylum that houses the worst criminals of the country. She thinks she can rehabilitate them by neurosurgery and feels that one patient, Walter Jenkins (a hardened murderer), displays signs of rehabilitation.
A good mystery, especially when one finds the murderers, but the story is very convoluted and very descriptive.
Category – Mystery/Thriller Publication Date - November 12, 2013
This mystery is the fifth in a series featuring Detective Carmine Delmonico. The books are written so that the reader does not have to start at book one because each book is contained within itself.
Carmine is on vacation when corpses begin showing up in the little town of Holloman, Connecticut. Detectives Abe Goldberg and the eccentric Delia Carstairs are working the case and make the determination that a psychopathic killer is on the loose. Carmine cuts his vacation and returns to lead the investigation.
Delia has also been working on a case of several women who have disappeared, called the “shadow women”.
Abe gets the first break when he comes in contact with three eccentrics from the same family who provide vital information concerning the murdered men. These men were murdered in a most unusual way, they were starved to death.
Delia gets her break when she becomes involved with Dr. Jess Wainfleet. Dr. Wainfleet, a neurosurgeon/psychiatrist, works at an Asylum that houses the worst criminals of the country. She thinks she can rehabilitate them by neurosurgery and feels that one patient, Walter Jenkins (a hardened murderer), displays signs of rehabilitation.
A good mystery, especially when one finds the murderers, but the story is very convoluted and very descriptive.
June 20, 2019
I chose this book because I'd read 'The Thorn Birds' years ago and loved it.
Apart from the first chapter, which was chilling, I found the first third of the book hard going. It was overly described and the reader was given too much information. I was ready to shelve it. Then it took off and I was hooked. As I was reading I was appalled, horrified and tense with excitement and anticipation. A proper thriller.
Apart from the first chapter, which was chilling, I found the first third of the book hard going. It was overly described and the reader was given too much information. I was ready to shelve it. Then it took off and I was hooked. As I was reading I was appalled, horrified and tense with excitement and anticipation. A proper thriller.
April 26, 2020
Colorful, descripive characters, but very gruesome crimes being investigated. She does not go into detailed descriptions of such crimes, but enough information is given that lets your imagination take you to dark, horrifying places. There were two different investigations: one of several women who had disappeared without a trace, and had no one looking for them, and the other, several John Does whose bodies had been tortured and starved to death then discarded. The two cases overlapped a little. I guessed one, but was surprised by the other.
November 12, 2020
I had read and enjoyed the first 2 Delmonico stories, and almost everything else McCullough had written, so I was shocked that parts of this were written badly. The Delmonico books were always a bit over the top or unlikely, but in this one even more so, and there were quite a few grammatical errors and people speaking ridiculous sentences which real life people would never use. I wondered if perhaps, given that this was her last book, her many health problems had affected her writing. All that said, I still managed to enjoy the story.
January 29, 2018
Although you don't have to read these books in order, it's better if you do. I can tell the reviews that have been written after reading any of the books as stand alone novels. They talk about there being too many unnecessary characters which makes it confusing. The thing is, if you've read the books from the beginning, there aren't any unnecessary characters at all. Solving the murder is only half the joy of these books, the other half is finding out what the characters are up to now.
July 20, 2020
J'ai trouvé que le livre était trop éparpillé ! Au début, nous commençons avec seulement une enquête et 3-4 personnages, mais quelques pages plus tard, on se retrouve avec 3 enquêtes et plus de 20 personnages. La seule raison de pourquoi je l'ai fini, c'est parce que j'aimais le côté psychologique du livre.
July 30, 2017
A great who-dunnit that puts a new spin on psychopathic killers. Yikes! My favorite characters was Delia, the police sargeant because she is not your typical woman cop. This one woke me up so that I got up and read it in the middle of the night. I like Colleen McCullough . . . .
November 30, 2017
I liked this series
March 11, 2018
Tout est excessif, prévisible, lourd, je dirais même complètement débile.
August 19, 2018
3 1/2 Stars
March 2, 2019
It's hard to believe that the same author who wrote The Thorn Birds and The Touch wrote this series as well. Readable but unrecognisable as Colleen McCullough.
July 31, 2019
This book had no real focus and the sentence structure was odd sometimes. There were times i reread a sentence multiple times and couldnt understand it
I enjoyed her characters tho very vivid
I enjoyed her characters tho very vivid
December 21, 2021
I actually quit reading this after 40 pages. Pretty awful. What was CM thinking?
April 5, 2023
Well, the ending of this one may surprise you and it's definitely not for the faint of heart--but if you like mysteries, it's a pretty good one!
July 24, 2024
I'm just going to write what I said when I finished.
What?
What?
August 7, 2025
This is book 5, and the last in this series and I have enjoyed them all immensely. Highly recommended.
January 27, 2014
This is the fifth Carmine Delmonico detective novel that Colleen McCullough has written and I’ve read. Fans of her historical novels such as The Thorn Birds may be quite surprised at how different this series is. It’s brutal at times with attitudes that fit the 1960s setting and there’s no shortage of bodies on the streets of Holloman, Connecticut.
It’s somewhat appropriate to read Sins of the Flesh during a long, hot Australian summer because the book opens during a particular hot summer in Holloman, 1969. A man starved to death is found which sets off alarm bells for other men who have gone missing recently. Meanwhile, female detective Delia Carstairs is investigating a series of missing women and getting nowhere. How can a woman vanish and not be reported until months later?
It’s lucky for Delia that she’s made two new friends – Jess, a psychiatrist with a talent for brain mapping and Ivy, who runs part of her brother’s business. Both women have their own secrets – a reformed psychopath and a murky history. How will it all tie together?
For me, the star of this series has always been Carmine Delmonico, but Carmine is on holiday in California for a sizeable chunk of this book. While I enjoy Delia and her quirky dress sense (which is described at every opportunity), she doesn’t have as finely honed an eye for deduction as Carmine. The competing crimes of the men kidnapped and starved to death and the missing women made the action a little stop start for me. While the introduction of Delia’s friends was interesting, it was quite obvious that they were going to play a role as suspects. I was very interested in Jess and her rehabilitation of Walter, a psychopathic criminal as there was a lot of neuroscience explained well. Walter was probably the stand out character for me as he was fascinatingly repulsive in his actions but incredibly clever in the cunning execution of them. (I did love the way he called his new self the ‘iWalter’ – is this a sneaky dig at Apple?) I found the character of Jess more confusing as the book went on until I realised why she was so fascinated with Walter, as ultimately they shared a lot of the same traits. As for Ivy, although the reasons for her actions were explained, I didn’t feel they gave me a good answer as to ‘why’?
I should have known from previous Carmine Delmonico novels that the ‘why’ is not always explained in full. But in Sins of the Flesh, I found it frustrating as everyone had something to hide – but why didn’t Rha (Ivy’s brother) and Rufus help out the police when they recognised someone from a painting? After the suffering they had been through, why did they not want to help? Did they suspect who was killing the men and want to protect them? Why would they protect a murderer after their tragic life story? I would have liked these characters to be more fleshed out.
After all my questioning, I’ll keep reading the Carmine Delmonico series. The historical setting means that there’s more analysis and deduction of human character, which I enjoy. I’m just hoping to see more of Carmine and a more tightly woven plot next time.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
It’s somewhat appropriate to read Sins of the Flesh during a long, hot Australian summer because the book opens during a particular hot summer in Holloman, 1969. A man starved to death is found which sets off alarm bells for other men who have gone missing recently. Meanwhile, female detective Delia Carstairs is investigating a series of missing women and getting nowhere. How can a woman vanish and not be reported until months later?
It’s lucky for Delia that she’s made two new friends – Jess, a psychiatrist with a talent for brain mapping and Ivy, who runs part of her brother’s business. Both women have their own secrets – a reformed psychopath and a murky history. How will it all tie together?
For me, the star of this series has always been Carmine Delmonico, but Carmine is on holiday in California for a sizeable chunk of this book. While I enjoy Delia and her quirky dress sense (which is described at every opportunity), she doesn’t have as finely honed an eye for deduction as Carmine. The competing crimes of the men kidnapped and starved to death and the missing women made the action a little stop start for me. While the introduction of Delia’s friends was interesting, it was quite obvious that they were going to play a role as suspects. I was very interested in Jess and her rehabilitation of Walter, a psychopathic criminal as there was a lot of neuroscience explained well. Walter was probably the stand out character for me as he was fascinatingly repulsive in his actions but incredibly clever in the cunning execution of them. (I did love the way he called his new self the ‘iWalter’ – is this a sneaky dig at Apple?) I found the character of Jess more confusing as the book went on until I realised why she was so fascinated with Walter, as ultimately they shared a lot of the same traits. As for Ivy, although the reasons for her actions were explained, I didn’t feel they gave me a good answer as to ‘why’?
I should have known from previous Carmine Delmonico novels that the ‘why’ is not always explained in full. But in Sins of the Flesh, I found it frustrating as everyone had something to hide – but why didn’t Rha (Ivy’s brother) and Rufus help out the police when they recognised someone from a painting? After the suffering they had been through, why did they not want to help? Did they suspect who was killing the men and want to protect them? Why would they protect a murderer after their tragic life story? I would have liked these characters to be more fleshed out.
After all my questioning, I’ll keep reading the Carmine Delmonico series. The historical setting means that there’s more analysis and deduction of human character, which I enjoy. I’m just hoping to see more of Carmine and a more tightly woven plot next time.
http://samstillreading.wordpress.com
January 13, 2014
This was an “everything but the kitchen sink” book. McCullough’s Carmine Demonico series installments always seem to have a few plot lines that eventually intersect, and I’ve enjoyed them until now. This one had too many.
There were three sets of murders, meaning three serial killers, which is unlikely enough, but add to this, the killers themselves were also connected, but not working together in any way, unaware of each others’ proclivities in fact. That’s just too convenient for me. Throw in the fact that all of them were caught within days of each other and suspension of disbelief goes out the window!
One of the things I’ve always enjoyed most about McCullough’s writing is how her stories begin as loose strings (sometimes many, many loose strings) but end part of the same knot by the final page. In a believable way. Not so here. There were just too many story lines, too conveniently meshed together. There was enough plot in this novel for 3 separate novels, which worries me. I know she’s been ill. Does she think this may be her last hurrah?
Any novel that begins with the removal of a pair of testicles seems a surefire bet for excitement, right? Not since Anne Rice’s “Cry to Heaven” has the process been described so nonchalantly. In Rice’s story though, there was a reason. In McCullough’s it’s never really explained. When that particular murderer (remember, there are THREE) is caught there is a very brief, unsatisfying justification given for that particular method of torture. The explanation just wasn’t enough for me. I wanted/needed more. There were still two murderers on the loose so I had hope. Eventually unrewarded hope.
The other two murderers are caught within pages and again no good explanation is provided. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the fact that one of the murders felt they needed no justification didn’t mean that I as the reader didn’t want at least a flimsy excuse. Why were these women murdered? To what purpose? One set was explained by insanity, but you can’t chalk up three sets of murders to insanity. Not all happening over a course of years, in one small town, by connected characters. That just doesn’t fly.
Carmine Delmonico doesn’t show up until about halfway through the novel. This is a testament to how well written his supporting cast of characters are, but it feels a bit of a cheat as well. These are the “Carmine Delmonico Series”! I missed him. I like Delia Carstairs as much as the next reader, but this is not her series.
I will always read everything McCullough writes but I will be hoping for much, much more in the future.
There were three sets of murders, meaning three serial killers, which is unlikely enough, but add to this, the killers themselves were also connected, but not working together in any way, unaware of each others’ proclivities in fact. That’s just too convenient for me. Throw in the fact that all of them were caught within days of each other and suspension of disbelief goes out the window!
One of the things I’ve always enjoyed most about McCullough’s writing is how her stories begin as loose strings (sometimes many, many loose strings) but end part of the same knot by the final page. In a believable way. Not so here. There were just too many story lines, too conveniently meshed together. There was enough plot in this novel for 3 separate novels, which worries me. I know she’s been ill. Does she think this may be her last hurrah?
Any novel that begins with the removal of a pair of testicles seems a surefire bet for excitement, right? Not since Anne Rice’s “Cry to Heaven” has the process been described so nonchalantly. In Rice’s story though, there was a reason. In McCullough’s it’s never really explained. When that particular murderer (remember, there are THREE) is caught there is a very brief, unsatisfying justification given for that particular method of torture. The explanation just wasn’t enough for me. I wanted/needed more. There were still two murderers on the loose so I had hope. Eventually unrewarded hope.
The other two murderers are caught within pages and again no good explanation is provided. I don’t want to spoil anything, but the fact that one of the murders felt they needed no justification didn’t mean that I as the reader didn’t want at least a flimsy excuse. Why were these women murdered? To what purpose? One set was explained by insanity, but you can’t chalk up three sets of murders to insanity. Not all happening over a course of years, in one small town, by connected characters. That just doesn’t fly.
Carmine Delmonico doesn’t show up until about halfway through the novel. This is a testament to how well written his supporting cast of characters are, but it feels a bit of a cheat as well. These are the “Carmine Delmonico Series”! I missed him. I like Delia Carstairs as much as the next reader, but this is not her series.
I will always read everything McCullough writes but I will be hoping for much, much more in the future.
March 11, 2015
I don't usually write reviews, but I thought that this book merited one as it is a bad book by a good author, and bad in some unusual ways. I will skip the plot synopsis since that's been done so many times. The setting of this book was strangely nebulous--I knew it was supposed to be Connecticut in 1969, but that was not clear in the descriptions, text, attitudes, names, or situations. I had to keep reminding myself of where and when it was supposed to be, as the overall descriptions were not only unclear, but sometimes exotically non-eastern United States. Also, the characters' names were the kind that young, inexperienced authors tend to choose--again, exotic and out of place, often breaking my concentration on the book to think "another unusual name? What kind of town is this supposed to be?". There were very few characters with commonplace names. Vocabulary and situations were anachronistic: Delia lived in a "condo" (word not commonly known or used in 1969), homosexuality was accepted and embraced, female police officers were not commented upon, nor was a female psychiatrist/neurosurgeon, and so on.
In addition, the grammar and language were awkward and often incorrect, again causing the reader to hesitate and draw back from the story; this is not even to mention the many "British-isms" that were sprinkled throughout--since, I believe, the book was originally intended for a British public, this is understandable, but didn't help.
The plot itself was slow getting started; the first 100-150 pages was spent mainly setting the stage, and it only really picked up speed in the last third of the book. I found the actual story compelling enough to finish the book, but not by much--if I'd had something better on hand, I probably wouldn't have finished this.
In addition, the grammar and language were awkward and often incorrect, again causing the reader to hesitate and draw back from the story; this is not even to mention the many "British-isms" that were sprinkled throughout--since, I believe, the book was originally intended for a British public, this is understandable, but didn't help.
The plot itself was slow getting started; the first 100-150 pages was spent mainly setting the stage, and it only really picked up speed in the last third of the book. I found the actual story compelling enough to finish the book, but not by much--if I'd had something better on hand, I probably wouldn't have finished this.
April 4, 2014
The best word to describe this book is MARGINAL! The book cover photo of a bloody scalpel was the most exciting and appealing part of this work - the written word inside paled in comparison to the ominous cover photo. In fact the menacing cover photo certainly set some very high expectations for me.
It took me the first 60-75 pages to fully understand the Australian English dialect, slang, lingo and jargon and the next 25 pages to fully comprehend the complex and extensive family tree of all the different characters involved in this story. So many relatives involved, even in the Holloman, CT police department!
The balance of the book read like a Sunday newspaper magazine article or maybe an elaborate, in depth daily newspaper expose - straight forward reporting of events - no twists, no turns, no surprises.
The truly sad fact about this read is the basic premise is wonderful and the story line could have been a deliciously chilling, creepy psychological thriller about a maniacal, psychotic, murderous asylum patient, his megalomaniacal neurosurgeon, psychiatrist and keeper and a torturous killer extracting revenge for her violent and relentless sexual abuse ever since she reached puberty.
Don't be fooled by the sinister book cover or the flashy prose on the inside book flap describing this story. Stay away from this one.
It took me the first 60-75 pages to fully understand the Australian English dialect, slang, lingo and jargon and the next 25 pages to fully comprehend the complex and extensive family tree of all the different characters involved in this story. So many relatives involved, even in the Holloman, CT police department!
The balance of the book read like a Sunday newspaper magazine article or maybe an elaborate, in depth daily newspaper expose - straight forward reporting of events - no twists, no turns, no surprises.
The truly sad fact about this read is the basic premise is wonderful and the story line could have been a deliciously chilling, creepy psychological thriller about a maniacal, psychotic, murderous asylum patient, his megalomaniacal neurosurgeon, psychiatrist and keeper and a torturous killer extracting revenge for her violent and relentless sexual abuse ever since she reached puberty.
Don't be fooled by the sinister book cover or the flashy prose on the inside book flap describing this story. Stay away from this one.
March 20, 2015
First of all, I didn't know that Collen McCullough had written many books. I read the Thorn Birds when it was so popular so many years ago and it wasn't until I saw her obituary that I realized she'd been a pretty prolific writer. So I was glad when I had an opportunity (through a Goodreads "challenge") to read more.
I must have picked up the wrong one. And I think it's because it's set in the US. I got the giggles often when American characters spoke Aussie/British. One of the characters IS British, but our hookers don't wear "knickers" when they wear underwear. Nor do we have the dry humor and sophisticated vocabulary these police do.
Now, that's not to say I'm making fun of her. If I tried to write a novel set in England or Australia, I'd be laughed out of the country. It's like a foreign language: when you are first learning you'll make a lot of mistakes that are laughable to native speakers.
But I also found that the plot moved too quickly and the mysteries were solved with a minimum of effort. Solutions seemed to wham, bam arrive and arrests were made MUCH too quickly for the American style (remember, we're litigious - it takes a heap of evidence for the police to make a move).
I think it's just that the police mystery thriller just isn't her style. So I'll definitely try another of her works. There's plenty of them!
I must have picked up the wrong one. And I think it's because it's set in the US. I got the giggles often when American characters spoke Aussie/British. One of the characters IS British, but our hookers don't wear "knickers" when they wear underwear. Nor do we have the dry humor and sophisticated vocabulary these police do.
Now, that's not to say I'm making fun of her. If I tried to write a novel set in England or Australia, I'd be laughed out of the country. It's like a foreign language: when you are first learning you'll make a lot of mistakes that are laughable to native speakers.
But I also found that the plot moved too quickly and the mysteries were solved with a minimum of effort. Solutions seemed to wham, bam arrive and arrests were made MUCH too quickly for the American style (remember, we're litigious - it takes a heap of evidence for the police to make a move).
I think it's just that the police mystery thriller just isn't her style. So I'll definitely try another of her works. There's plenty of them!
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