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Detective Jacob Lev #2
The Golem of Paris
The Golem of Paris (Thorndike Press Large Print Basic Series) by Jonathan Kellerman (2015-11-04) [hardcover] [Jan 01, 1804]
497 pages, Hardcover
First published November 3, 2015
583 people are currently reading
2398 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Kellerman
199 books5,797 followersJonathan Kellerman was born in New York City in 1949 and grew up in Los Angeles. He helped work his way through UCLA as an editorial cartoonist, columnist, editor and freelance musician. As a senior, at the age of 22, he won a Samuel Goldwyn Writing Award for fiction.
Like his fictional protagonist, Alex Delaware, Jonathan received at Ph.D. in psychology at the age of 24, with a specialty in the treatment of children. He served internships in clinical psychology and pediatric psychology at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles and was a post-doctoral HEW Fellow in Psychology and Human Development at CHLA.
IN 1975, Jonathan was asked by the hospital to conduct research into the psychological effects of extreme isolation (plastic bubble units) on children with cancer, and to coordinate care for these kids and their families. The success of that venture led to the establishment, in 1977 of the Psychosocial Program, Division of Oncology, the first comprehensive approach to the emotional aspects of pediatric cancer anywhere in the world. Jonathan was asked to be founding director and, along with his team, published extensively in the area of behavioral medicine. Decades later, the program, under the tutelage of one of Jonathan's former students, continues to break ground.
Jonathan's first published book was a medical text, PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF CHILDHOOD CANCER, 1980. One year later, came a book for parents, HELPING THE FEARFUL CHILD.
In 1985, Jonathan's first novel, WHEN THE BOUGH BREAKS, was published to enormous critical and commercial success and became a New York Times bestseller. BOUGH was also produced as a t.v. movie and won the Edgar Allan Poe and Anthony Boucher Awards for Best First Novel. Since then, Jonathan has published a best-selling crime novel every year, and occasionally, two a year. In addition, he has written and illustrated two books for children and a nonfiction volume on childhood violence, SAVAGE SPAWN (1999.) Though no longer active as a psychotherapist, he is a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics and Psychology at University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine.
Jonathan is married to bestselling novelist Faye Kellerman and they have four children.
Like his fictional protagonist, Alex Delaware, Jonathan received at Ph.D. in psychology at the age of 24, with a specialty in the treatment of children. He served internships in clinical psychology and pediatric psychology at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles and was a post-doctoral HEW Fellow in Psychology and Human Development at CHLA.
IN 1975, Jonathan was asked by the hospital to conduct research into the psychological effects of extreme isolation (plastic bubble units) on children with cancer, and to coordinate care for these kids and their families. The success of that venture led to the establishment, in 1977 of the Psychosocial Program, Division of Oncology, the first comprehensive approach to the emotional aspects of pediatric cancer anywhere in the world. Jonathan was asked to be founding director and, along with his team, published extensively in the area of behavioral medicine. Decades later, the program, under the tutelage of one of Jonathan's former students, continues to break ground.
Jonathan's first published book was a medical text, PSYCHOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF CHILDHOOD CANCER, 1980. One year later, came a book for parents, HELPING THE FEARFUL CHILD.
In 1985, Jonathan's first novel, WHEN THE BOUGH BREAKS, was published to enormous critical and commercial success and became a New York Times bestseller. BOUGH was also produced as a t.v. movie and won the Edgar Allan Poe and Anthony Boucher Awards for Best First Novel. Since then, Jonathan has published a best-selling crime novel every year, and occasionally, two a year. In addition, he has written and illustrated two books for children and a nonfiction volume on childhood violence, SAVAGE SPAWN (1999.) Though no longer active as a psychotherapist, he is a Clinical Professor of Pediatrics and Psychology at University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine.
Jonathan is married to bestselling novelist Faye Kellerman and they have four children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 296 reviews
November 1, 2015
LAPD Detective Jacob Lev was in a bad place – his mother was in a nursing home and unable or unwilling to speak. His father he could not forgive. And to top that off, the LAPD Special Projects Department wouldn’t leave him alone. No wonder he had taken to drinking… But it was the presence in Jacob’s dreams of a woman he knew as Mai which disturbed him on a regular basis.
Whilst doing menial paperwork for the department, he came across a file of an unsolved and gruesome double murder. With no support, he decided he would find answers in his own time. But the mystery was a strange one; one that didn’t seem to have any answers. Or was it just that the secrets had been buried so deeply no-one could find them?
Jacob was desperate to find a solution in his search – it seemed as if his past was about to collide with the horrors of the present. And when Paris suddenly threw more danger at him than he had ever known, he wasn’t sure he would survive. Was the golem a fantasy? His fear was overwhelming…
The synopsis for The Golem of Paris intrigued me as I usually enjoy Jonathan Kellerman’s work. I have read son Jesse Kellerman’s work once before and didn’t enjoy it. Touted as a thriller The Golem of Paris seems to me it should be labelled paranormal as well, therefore the blurb is misleading; I’m afraid I had trouble keeping up with the characters and found the book to be a very strange mix of genres. Parts of the plot I enjoyed immensely; but as a whole I didn’t particularly like it.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy to read and review.
Whilst doing menial paperwork for the department, he came across a file of an unsolved and gruesome double murder. With no support, he decided he would find answers in his own time. But the mystery was a strange one; one that didn’t seem to have any answers. Or was it just that the secrets had been buried so deeply no-one could find them?
Jacob was desperate to find a solution in his search – it seemed as if his past was about to collide with the horrors of the present. And when Paris suddenly threw more danger at him than he had ever known, he wasn’t sure he would survive. Was the golem a fantasy? His fear was overwhelming…
The synopsis for The Golem of Paris intrigued me as I usually enjoy Jonathan Kellerman’s work. I have read son Jesse Kellerman’s work once before and didn’t enjoy it. Touted as a thriller The Golem of Paris seems to me it should be labelled paranormal as well, therefore the blurb is misleading; I’m afraid I had trouble keeping up with the characters and found the book to be a very strange mix of genres. Parts of the plot I enjoyed immensely; but as a whole I didn’t particularly like it.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy to read and review.
October 18, 2015
“The Golem of Paris” is a much, much darker tale than its predecessor, “The Golem of Hollywood”. At the end of that story, protagonist Jacob Lev found out that his mother, Bina, who he thought had died when he was a child, was alive, catatonic, and locked up in a mental institution. This book is in large part her story, of what she went through that drove her mad – and how it ties into the mystical Golem storyline.
The other main storyline is the police case that Lev is on. Assigned to scanning and digitizing cold cases in an old warehouse, he finds himself intrigued by a gruesome ten year old case of the murder of a mother and son. It’s a very unique MO, and Special Projects (the division of LAPD that Lev became of part of in TGOH, which seems to be staffed mainly people who may not be quite human) okays him to go to Paris to investigate.
Like TGOH, TGOP is all over the map. Millionaire Russians, a really intense fight scene that seems unwinnable, Czech black ops, the supernatural; it’s all in there. Like TGOH, TGOP does not resolve all the issues by the end, but Lev (and us readers) have learned enough to make us even more avid to find out how it all resolves. What exactly are the Special Projects people? Why is the spirit of the Golem so dangerous? And what else is Lev’s father, a rabbinical scholar, hiding? He hid that Bina was alive and that he and Jacob are direct descendants of the Rabbi of Prague; there has to be more. He’s in the story too much *not* to be more than he appears.
The story can be hard to follow at times. I found myself having to go back to the start of chapters frequently to figure out exactly who and when the scene is about. But I found it worth the effort. Looking forward to seeing where this series takes us.
The other main storyline is the police case that Lev is on. Assigned to scanning and digitizing cold cases in an old warehouse, he finds himself intrigued by a gruesome ten year old case of the murder of a mother and son. It’s a very unique MO, and Special Projects (the division of LAPD that Lev became of part of in TGOH, which seems to be staffed mainly people who may not be quite human) okays him to go to Paris to investigate.
Like TGOH, TGOP is all over the map. Millionaire Russians, a really intense fight scene that seems unwinnable, Czech black ops, the supernatural; it’s all in there. Like TGOH, TGOP does not resolve all the issues by the end, but Lev (and us readers) have learned enough to make us even more avid to find out how it all resolves. What exactly are the Special Projects people? Why is the spirit of the Golem so dangerous? And what else is Lev’s father, a rabbinical scholar, hiding? He hid that Bina was alive and that he and Jacob are direct descendants of the Rabbi of Prague; there has to be more. He’s in the story too much *not* to be more than he appears.
The story can be hard to follow at times. I found myself having to go back to the start of chapters frequently to figure out exactly who and when the scene is about. But I found it worth the effort. Looking forward to seeing where this series takes us.
October 27, 2015
Frankly, I really like Jonathan Kellerman books. This one uses his name but I think was more written by his son Jesse, whose writing style is not so much to my liking. Frankly, I finished listening to the book because it was in audio version, and my loyalty to the senior Kellerman. I would have stopped reading a third of the way in... It is a mystery, but the reality of this Jewish Golem legend just do not hold brought to the 21st Century.
February 18, 2021
The second book I finished during the 02/21 failure of the Texas power grid. Every time the power cycled on for our 30 to 40 minute turn the first thing I did was charge up my Kindle. I have my priorities.
This is the second Jacob Lev novel by the writing team of Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman. Mai, the golem does not have as big of a role in this book as she did in the first, but we learn more about Jacob's background and the traumatic experiences that his mother went through when he was a child.
It helps if you have a basic understanding of Jewish mysticism, but it is not necessary. I was very pleased that the golem in these books is female, as I was always taught they were.
Discuss among yourselves.
This is the second Jacob Lev novel by the writing team of Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman. Mai, the golem does not have as big of a role in this book as she did in the first, but we learn more about Jacob's background and the traumatic experiences that his mother went through when he was a child.
It helps if you have a basic understanding of Jewish mysticism, but it is not necessary. I was very pleased that the golem in these books is female, as I was always taught they were.
Discuss among yourselves.
November 20, 2015
I have always loved books by Jonathan Kellerman, especially the ones he wrote with his wife, Faye Kellerman so I am very surprised to give this book such a low rating. I did not enjoy it.
There is currently quite a few books that use magical realism, my favorite is The Life of Pi. I have read and reviewed some and liked them but this one really disappoints me. It is so dark and I have trouble reading a story about an LA policeman and a shape shifter. I accept some of the fault myself because I did not read The Golem of Hollywood, the preceding book in this series. Even though the authors did fill the readers in with the back
story, I felt lost and in a strange word with the Mai, the golem and the one that he fell so hard for.
I took notes on the beginning of the book and still was lost and confused about what was going on except the Bina, Jacob Lev’s mother. It was much easier for me to follow her story and I felt sad for her, a young idealistic girl who was arrested and taken as a political prisoner.
I pushed myself to the end of the story partly because I remember the Jonathan Kellerman’s books. This book is written for a different audience, it is meant for people who love the paranormal and dark stories not for mystery readers. This book headed in a direction that I did not want to go.
I received this Advance Reading Copy from the publisher as a win from FirstReads but that in no way influenced my thoughts or feelings in this review.
There is currently quite a few books that use magical realism, my favorite is The Life of Pi. I have read and reviewed some and liked them but this one really disappoints me. It is so dark and I have trouble reading a story about an LA policeman and a shape shifter. I accept some of the fault myself because I did not read The Golem of Hollywood, the preceding book in this series. Even though the authors did fill the readers in with the back
story, I felt lost and in a strange word with the Mai, the golem and the one that he fell so hard for.
I took notes on the beginning of the book and still was lost and confused about what was going on except the Bina, Jacob Lev’s mother. It was much easier for me to follow her story and I felt sad for her, a young idealistic girl who was arrested and taken as a political prisoner.
I pushed myself to the end of the story partly because I remember the Jonathan Kellerman’s books. This book is written for a different audience, it is meant for people who love the paranormal and dark stories not for mystery readers. This book headed in a direction that I did not want to go.
I received this Advance Reading Copy from the publisher as a win from FirstReads but that in no way influenced my thoughts or feelings in this review.
February 14, 2016
I couldn't keep up with this book. Kept missing things in the middle. A waste of 500 pages. Bring back Alex Delaware!
November 26, 2015
Flashes of excellence, but overall I couldn't wait for it to end. The reader can tell that two people wrote it.
January 22, 2016
I believed this would be a much more coherent novel than it is. 1 of 10 stars
July 31, 2016
While THE GOLEM OF HOLLYWOOD was a masterpiece, its sequel, THE GOLEM OF PARIS, does not disappoint.
Missing are the flashbacks to prehistoric mythology from the time of Kane and Abel, but the dynamic father-and-son writing duo is as eloquent and masterful as ever as they breathe life and intrigue in every character in this novel.
With elements of mystery, historical fiction, myth, and religion, the Golem takes on evil while the forces of good attempt to contain it. Detective Jacob Lev is nothing like Jonathan Kellerman’s Alex Delaware. He’s of a younger generation, less contained, less conservative in his inner dialogue, and therefore easier to identify with. I get the feeling that Jesse Kellerman played a role in constructing the protagonist for this two-book series.
A great novel, and a highly enjoyable read, THE GOLEM OF PARIS does suffer from mild sequelitis. If you loved THE GOLEM OF HOLLYWOOD, you’ll like THE GOLEM OF PARIS.
Missing are the flashbacks to prehistoric mythology from the time of Kane and Abel, but the dynamic father-and-son writing duo is as eloquent and masterful as ever as they breathe life and intrigue in every character in this novel.
With elements of mystery, historical fiction, myth, and religion, the Golem takes on evil while the forces of good attempt to contain it. Detective Jacob Lev is nothing like Jonathan Kellerman’s Alex Delaware. He’s of a younger generation, less contained, less conservative in his inner dialogue, and therefore easier to identify with. I get the feeling that Jesse Kellerman played a role in constructing the protagonist for this two-book series.
A great novel, and a highly enjoyable read, THE GOLEM OF PARIS does suffer from mild sequelitis. If you loved THE GOLEM OF HOLLYWOOD, you’ll like THE GOLEM OF PARIS.
December 15, 2015
The "Golem of Paris," by Jonathon Kellerman, is the second book in the Jacob Lev series, with the first being "The Golem of Hollywood." I was very impressed with the first novel in the series involving this LAPD detective. But The Golem of Paris takes the trophy home..
Kellerman masterfully weaves in and out of multiple genres as he further develops the character of Jacob Lev. This novel has it all.. mystery, history, suspense, action, and even a look at the magical side of the Jewish culture. Very well written, strong character development, and smooth movement and transition through time, even though it is not written in a progressing lateral timeline.
'
This series does need to be read in order.
I couldn't put this novel down. It's quite a ride.
Kellerman masterfully weaves in and out of multiple genres as he further develops the character of Jacob Lev. This novel has it all.. mystery, history, suspense, action, and even a look at the magical side of the Jewish culture. Very well written, strong character development, and smooth movement and transition through time, even though it is not written in a progressing lateral timeline.
'
This series does need to be read in order.
I couldn't put this novel down. It's quite a ride.
November 16, 2015
For some reason I missed the first book in this serie: The Golem of Hollywood. That is the reason that I was a bit disoriented in the beginning. At one point I even thought it was a book about zombies, which I hardly read. But I remembered an ancient story about the Golem of Prague (16th century) and then it began to make sense.
The concept of an Golem, made from clay like Adam, goes back to early Judaïsm. Perhaps that is why the story reminds me of Chaim Potok, strange as it may seem. At the end of the book I was rather spellbound, fascinated by the tale.
However, I plan to read the first book in the series so I can get some more context about it all and perhaps then I will read up what others say about it all.
The concept of an Golem, made from clay like Adam, goes back to early Judaïsm. Perhaps that is why the story reminds me of Chaim Potok, strange as it may seem. At the end of the book I was rather spellbound, fascinated by the tale.
However, I plan to read the first book in the series so I can get some more context about it all and perhaps then I will read up what others say about it all.
April 8, 2016
I can't believe this but I just can't finish this book-- I am a huge fan of Jonathan Kellerman, having read and enjoyed just about everything he has written. ( I did not read the Golem of Hollywood book). My love of Kellerman is the only reason I stuck with this one so long but now that I have passed the half way mark, I decided that I truly dislike this book and it is not worth finishing. It is so slow moving and disjointed. The whole intertwining of mysticism and murder mystery is a real turn off for me as well. Time for me to move on....
April 29, 2018
This was so much darker than Bk 1 - the search for truth continues with more understanding
January 13, 2016
This book picks up two years after The Golem of Hollywood ends. Jacob is still estranged from his Father and Bina's condition is unchanged, when Jacob comes across a file (with Mai's help) in the archive Mallick has him working in. When Bina sees the file she tries to communicate with Jacob put he doesn't understand her agitation at first.
Jacob finally talks to Sam and learns about Bina's time in Prague (as much as Sam knows) and that her time in Prague working for Mallick's friends changed her. He also learns that Bina is descended from the MaHaRal and Perel, through her Father. Jacob is descended from the MaHaRal through both his parents, who were unaware of their "family connection" until after Jacob's birth.
Jacob's investigation leads him to the Russian Doctor Tremsin (who tortured Bina and ordered her death) and takes him to Paris with Schott as his bodyguard. While Schott sleeps Jacob sneaks out of their room at the hostel and is followed by Tremsin's head of security Molchanov (who is one of the angel people like Schott and Mallick but working for someone else), he escapes from Molchanov by entering an abandoned synagogue and winds up spending a romantic interlude with Mai. Detective Breton dies (under mysterious circumstances) before he can share what he knows with Jacob, but one of his men (Vallot) tells him what he knows, shares information with him and warns him against Detective Pelletier who seems to be working for/with Tremsin.
After Jacob and Schott visit the Russian Embassy, Detective Pelletier picks them up and takes them to Tremsin's compound. Molchanov separates Jacob and Schott and Schott is killed trying to get to Jacob. Jacob is taken to Tremsin, where he discovers that Molchanov was the one who killed the Single Mother's and their children. Detective Pelletier injects Tremsin with a solution that causes a heart attack, similar to what happened with Breton. When Jacob notes the similarity Detective Pelletier tries to kill him. Molchanov kills Pelletier and then uses Jacob as bait to get Mai to rescue him. Mai nearly dies saving Jacob, but Jacob manages to get away and kill Molchanov (who turns to blue dust as did Schott), and uses his own blood to heal Mai enough for her to fly away.
Jacob recovers in the hospital and once he returns home Jan (from Prague) reveals that their was a similar killing in Prague during the time Bina was there. He also reveals Bina's connection to Majka (the woman who was killed in Prague) and Petr Wichs (who was a young boy at the time of the murder). Jacob and Sam visit Bina together and he tells Bina that Tremsin and Molchanov are dead. This seems to bring Bina some peace.
Jacob finally talks to Sam and learns about Bina's time in Prague (as much as Sam knows) and that her time in Prague working for Mallick's friends changed her. He also learns that Bina is descended from the MaHaRal and Perel, through her Father. Jacob is descended from the MaHaRal through both his parents, who were unaware of their "family connection" until after Jacob's birth.
Jacob's investigation leads him to the Russian Doctor Tremsin (who tortured Bina and ordered her death) and takes him to Paris with Schott as his bodyguard. While Schott sleeps Jacob sneaks out of their room at the hostel and is followed by Tremsin's head of security Molchanov (who is one of the angel people like Schott and Mallick but working for someone else), he escapes from Molchanov by entering an abandoned synagogue and winds up spending a romantic interlude with Mai. Detective Breton dies (under mysterious circumstances) before he can share what he knows with Jacob, but one of his men (Vallot) tells him what he knows, shares information with him and warns him against Detective Pelletier who seems to be working for/with Tremsin.
After Jacob and Schott visit the Russian Embassy, Detective Pelletier picks them up and takes them to Tremsin's compound. Molchanov separates Jacob and Schott and Schott is killed trying to get to Jacob. Jacob is taken to Tremsin, where he discovers that Molchanov was the one who killed the Single Mother's and their children. Detective Pelletier injects Tremsin with a solution that causes a heart attack, similar to what happened with Breton. When Jacob notes the similarity Detective Pelletier tries to kill him. Molchanov kills Pelletier and then uses Jacob as bait to get Mai to rescue him. Mai nearly dies saving Jacob, but Jacob manages to get away and kill Molchanov (who turns to blue dust as did Schott), and uses his own blood to heal Mai enough for her to fly away.
Jacob recovers in the hospital and once he returns home Jan (from Prague) reveals that their was a similar killing in Prague during the time Bina was there. He also reveals Bina's connection to Majka (the woman who was killed in Prague) and Petr Wichs (who was a young boy at the time of the murder). Jacob and Sam visit Bina together and he tells Bina that Tremsin and Molchanov are dead. This seems to bring Bina some peace.
September 27, 2015
This is a followup novel to “The Golem of Hollywood”. I haven’t read that book, but I must say this one stands up very well on it’s own merit. LAPD Detective Jacob Lev is off the wagon again. Who wouldn’t be after what he has seen. I’m not talking about the day to day horrors of Los Angeles crime. Jacob has seen a dark legend come to life. The Jewish legend of the Golem is a reality. The supernatural being created to protect the Jews of Poland is loose and dangerous. Jacob is somehow tied to the creature he knows as Mia. Mysterious strangers are tailing Jacob hoping he will lead them to her. Jacob is hoping on one hand that he never sees Mia again, but on the other hand she has left him with a strange self destructive yearning to solve the mysterious tie between his mother and the Golem. While working, or is it hiding, in the LAPD Cold Case Unit buried within stacks of unsolved cases, Jacob finds one file that grabs his attention and won’t let go. A mother and her young son were found murdered in an alley. Both were shot once in the middle of the forehead. The bodies were posed sitting, facing each other. Their eyelids were cut so the bodies appeared to be gazing at each other even in death. Few clues were found at the scene. The case was reviewed by two different detectives, but nothing came of the investigations. There is something about this case that Jacob just can’t turn loose. The trail of these murders and his mother’s connection to the Golem will cross in unexpected and dangerous ways. Book provided for review by Amazon Vine.
September 17, 2018
The second book in which LA detective Jacob Lev finds himself in the archives of the LAPD transferring paper to a digital format. This is a year later after he discovered that his family comes form the Rabbis of Prague who were involved in the Golem and that his mother is still alive and in a care home.
Lev is still a drunk, under observation of the Special Projects unit, basically a Jewish Golem catching unit. He tries to connect with is mother which is not very successful, he is still haunted by Mai, the spirit if the Golem and has no contact with is father due to his anger for not knowing about his mother.
The story tells about his mothers part in the story of the Golem and is far darker than you might expect. While the Special Projects is aimed to catch the Golem there are other forces at work to obtain the Golem for their own uses. Lev finds this out when he finds himself caught up in a case from the archives that is about the killing of a mother and her son. He finds more about this and comes straight into contact with the Russian oligarchs and their darker side before he can solve this crime that has a copy in Paris and Prague.
This is a darker story than before and best not read as a point of beginning, best read in sequence with Prague first and Paris second.
A fascinating image of Jewish faith and suffering, also an interesting family saga undertaken by Jacob Lev who gets his faith and love tested dearly.
Great reading looking forward to the next installment.
Lev is still a drunk, under observation of the Special Projects unit, basically a Jewish Golem catching unit. He tries to connect with is mother which is not very successful, he is still haunted by Mai, the spirit if the Golem and has no contact with is father due to his anger for not knowing about his mother.
The story tells about his mothers part in the story of the Golem and is far darker than you might expect. While the Special Projects is aimed to catch the Golem there are other forces at work to obtain the Golem for their own uses. Lev finds this out when he finds himself caught up in a case from the archives that is about the killing of a mother and her son. He finds more about this and comes straight into contact with the Russian oligarchs and their darker side before he can solve this crime that has a copy in Paris and Prague.
This is a darker story than before and best not read as a point of beginning, best read in sequence with Prague first and Paris second.
A fascinating image of Jewish faith and suffering, also an interesting family saga undertaken by Jacob Lev who gets his faith and love tested dearly.
Great reading looking forward to the next installment.
November 2, 2015
In this the 2nd Jacob Lev book we discover more of Jacob's family's past. His golem, "Mai" is never far from him and especially when he is in danger. The Special Projects group is keeping a close eye on him even though Jacob is aware of this he resents that he has been exiled to an obscure warehouse doing basic clerical duties. He stumbles across a cold case with a little help from Mai where a young mother and son are murdered and posed. As he investigates this case it brings him to Paris where a similar case has happened also involving the murder and posing of another mother and child. There are clues that the person who committed these crimes is very wealthy and able to stay under the radar. As he draws closer and closer to the truth he is stopped at every turn by the Pars police. Can he solve these crimes and will it tell him more about his mother's past. It all seems to tie back into her trip in 1982. As always a great read by Jonathan Kellerman with his son Jesse. I would like to thank the publisher and Net Galley for the chance to read this ARC.
December 23, 2015
Perhaps if I had read The Golem of Hollywood I would have found The Golem of Paris a more interesting read. As it happened I found it difficult to connect with the characters and a little lost at times when it came to the story.
The Kellerman's (father and son) combine mystery and Jewish mysticism in this novel that sees LAPD detective Jacob Levy intrigued by a cold case double murder of a young mother and her son. And when Jacob's catatonic mother reacts violently to a glimpse of his case file, he is determined to investigate further, leading him to Paris, where his present and past collide.
Dark and twisty, The Golem of Paris is a complex read, and at over 500 pages I found it a little long but there were times when I was caught up in the mystery.
November 10, 2020
I was completely absorbed by this book. I expected to miss Alex and Milo and be disappointed by a completely new series. I haven't read the first in the series, but that did not detract from my enjoyment of this one. Its completely different from anything I've ever read. I truly enjoyed all the characters, the story line and the settings. I've never read any of Jesse's books, but intend yo remedy that later in the year. I listened to the audio version of the book and John Rubenstein's narration was masterful, maybe even better than the Delaware series, and those are pure enjoyment for me. I couldn't get the first in the series in audio, so I'm starting it in print tonight. I can't wait to get started.
January 21, 2016
Definitely not my favorite book by the Kellermans. Even though I wasn't enthralled with that first book, I thought I would take a chance on the second. While the back story to Bina's issues were explained in full detail and added to the family story, and while the murder mystery itself was interesting the way two separate cases were linked across continents, I did not find the golem thread at all to my liking. I enjoy historical fictions, I enjoy some mysticism, I enjoy mysteries, but I did not enjoy the coming together of all three.
July 9, 2016
I love this golem series for the dark fantasy elements, the sense of past and place, and the fruitful collaboration between the two Kellerman generations. Here protagonist Jacob Lev, assigned to cold cases by his mysterious special police unit, investigates a heinous crime that leads to Europe and to dark forces that threaten Lev and his supernatural companion Mai. Here we also learn the history of Lev's mother, master potter Bina, and what led her to a catatonic state. Heavy but intriguing with lots of action.
December 26, 2015
Thanks to GoodReads, I was able to win a copy of this book. It was quite dark in places, but overall it was a great, page-turning thriller. I have not read the first book in the series, and I want to go back and read it now.
January 9, 2016
This novel was quite a ride. There were so many twists and turns as well as changes in time periods and seemingly unrelated incidents that I wondered how everything would be tied together. Well, all the loose threads were woven by the end, and there was even a happy ending.
February 20, 2016
This was really slow going, and I think I would not read #3 if there is one. Too much mysticism and gibberish, not to mention torture in the name of "science"... Blech.
March 24, 2018
Just couldn't get into this one.
December 11, 2018
Very confusing, especially if not having read the first book. This is all over the place and does not flow. Disappointed.
May 12, 2020
I am very tired of books that jump around in time and don't involve time travel. I am also tired of books that mix legend and facts that really don't make any sense.
Don't bother.
Don't bother.
September 3, 2018
People contradict themselves....
September 23, 2025
Very interesting second book. I feel like it made the first book make a little more sense.
August 18, 2025
descent but it drug a bit, didn't really enjoy it
Displaying 1 - 30 of 296 reviews