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Killing Time
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
53 people want to read
About the author
Frank Tallis
46 books396 followersAka F.R. Tallis.
Dr. Frank Tallis is a writer and clinical psychologist. He has held lecturing posts in clinical psychology and neuroscience at the Institute of Psychiatry and King's College, London. He has written self help manuals (How to Stop Worrying, Understanding Obsessions and Compulsions) non-fiction for the general reader (Changing Minds, Hidden Minds, Love Sick), academic text books and over thirty academic papers in international journals. Frank Tallis' novels are: KILLING TIME (Penguin), SENSING OTHERS (Penguin), MORTAL MISCHIEF (Arrow), VIENNA BLOOD (Arrow), FATAL LIES (Arrow), and DARKNESS RISING (Arrow). The fifth volume of the Liebermann Papers, DEADLY COMMUNION, will be published in 2010. In 1999 he received a Writers' Award from the Arts Council of Great Britain and in 2000 he won the New London Writers' Award (London Arts Board). In 2005 MORTAL MISCHIEF was shortlisted for the Ellis Peters Historical Dagger Award.
Dr. Frank Tallis is a writer and clinical psychologist. He has held lecturing posts in clinical psychology and neuroscience at the Institute of Psychiatry and King's College, London. He has written self help manuals (How to Stop Worrying, Understanding Obsessions and Compulsions) non-fiction for the general reader (Changing Minds, Hidden Minds, Love Sick), academic text books and over thirty academic papers in international journals. Frank Tallis' novels are: KILLING TIME (Penguin), SENSING OTHERS (Penguin), MORTAL MISCHIEF (Arrow), VIENNA BLOOD (Arrow), FATAL LIES (Arrow), and DARKNESS RISING (Arrow). The fifth volume of the Liebermann Papers, DEADLY COMMUNION, will be published in 2010. In 1999 he received a Writers' Award from the Arts Council of Great Britain and in 2000 he won the New London Writers' Award (London Arts Board). In 2005 MORTAL MISCHIEF was shortlisted for the Ellis Peters Historical Dagger Award.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
January 21, 2025
I love Frank Tallis's Max Lieberman tales (made into a PBS television series), but I wasn't ready for 3/4 of this book to be a deeply psychological dip into the peculiar brain of Tom, a London university doctoral candidate in mathematics. However, as with all Tallis books, it is beautifully written and well-plotted. I couldn't resist reading every page despite becoming part of the main character's social misfit thinking, an experience I don't usually enjoy. Tallis knows this type of personality very well: he is a clinical psychologist specializing in obsessions. This book makes the most of his knowing his subject from the inside out. Main character Tom has layers of obsessions, particularly about his girlfriend Anna, and several major ones regarding his best friend Dave. The few characters populating this book are well-drawn and very memorable. Details of bars, alleys, streets, the university, London rain, and Tom's spare apartment feel real. Tom's proclivity for collecting old odd scientific paraphernalia makes him more intriguing and becomes part of the plot. He is brilliant, but...downright itchy. The unspoken subject is definitely the dark side of his intelligence. I found myself not wanting to know more about Tom, but I couldn't help reading more. This is Frank Tallis's first novel, published in 1999, and a good promise of more elegant writing to come.
January 19, 2012
Curious little book. A lad lit on the surface, but with psychological themes running underneath, with a little bit of Victoriana time-travel. I liked this a lot, and will happily read more of Tallis' work. Rated MA15+. Contains adult themes, moderate violence, moderate drug use, strong sex scenes and sexual references. 4.5/5
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews