New Releases by Jonathan Kellerman

Not all that glitters is gold... When the Bough Breaks is the outstandingly original first novel in Jonathan Kellerman''s bestselling Alex Delaware series. From the New York Times No. 1 author, this gripping thriller is perfect for fans of Patricia Cornwell and Michael Connelly. ''An engrossing thriller... This knockout of an entertainment is the kind of book which establishes a career in one stroke'' - Newsday Seven-year-old Melody Quinn is the only witness of a horrific double murder but she can''t or won''t talk about what she saw. Child psychologist Alex Delaware is brought in to try and get through to her and to the truth of what happened that night. But it soon becomes clear that Melody isn''t just traumatised by the murders. Alex is only too aware that LA is a city which spawns ugliness. But is he prepared for the seemingly bottomless pit of perversion and violence that he''s about to uncover? What readers are saying about When the Bough Breaks: ''A well written book, and the plot is thrilling and sickening in equal measure'' ''The plot is intricate, interesting and well put together'' ''Came up to all expectations. A very good read and [excellent] characterisation''

Internationally bestselling husband and wife Jonathan and Faye Kellerman team up for a powerful one-two punch with Capital Crimes, a gripping pair of original crime thrillers. MY SISTER’S KEEPER: BERKELEY Some of progressive state representative Davida Grayson’s views have made her unpopular. Although her foes are numerous no one suspects that any buttons Davida might push could evoke deadly force. But now Davida lies brutally murdered in her office, and Berkeley homicide detectives Will Barnes and Amanda Isis must unravel Davida’s complex, before the killer pulls off a repeat performance. MUSIC CITY BREAKDOWN: NASHVILLE Baker Southerby was a child prodigy performer. But something leads him to become a Nashville cop. His partner, Lamar Van Gundy, is a would-be studio bassist who earned himself a detective’s badge. As part of Nashville PD''s elite Murder Squad, they catch a homicide that’s high-profile even for a city where musical celebrity is routine. Capital Crimes is page-turning, psychologically resonant suspense–just what we’ve come to expect from two of the world’s most successful crime writers.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER With her energies focused on a baffling, vicious gang slaying and her personal life in shambles, Hollywood homicide detective Petra Connor has a full plate. The last thing she needs is a whiz-kid grad student claiming to have stumbled upon a bizarre connection between several unsolved murders. “An elaborate, tangled web . . . With unsuspected turns at every chapter break . . . this addictive tale . . . is as intricately detailed as it is tantalizingly page-turning.”—Entertainment Weekly The victims had nothing in common, yet each died by the same method, on the same date—a date that’s rapidly approaching again. And that leaves Petra with little time to unravel the twisted logic of a cunning predator who’s evaded detection for years—and whose terrible hour is once more at hand. BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Jonathan Kellerman''s Guilt.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER By the time psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware reached the school the damage was done: A sniper had opened fire on a crowded playground, but was gunned down before any children were hurt. “Virtually impossible to put aside until the final horrifying showdown.”—People While the TV news crews feasted on the scene and Alex began his therapy sessions with the traumatized children, he couldn’t escape the image of a slight teenager clutching an oversized rifle. What was the identity behind the name and face: a would-be assassin, or just another victim beneath an indifferent California sky? Intrigued by a request from the sniper’s father to conduct a “psychological autopsy” of his child, Alex begins to uncover a strange pattern—it is a trail of blood. In the dead sniper’s past was a dark and vicious plot. And in Alex Delaware’s future is the stuff of grown-up nightmares: the face of real human evil. BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Jonathan Kellerman''s Guilt.

BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Jonathan Kellerman''s Victims. Perennial bestseller and acknowledged master of the psychological thriller, Jonathan Kellerman has created a riveting and memorable Alex Delaware novel about a troubled and elusive young woman whose brutal murder forces the brilliant psychologist-detective to confront his own fallibility. Lauren Teague is a beautiful, defiant, borderline-delinquent teenager when her parents bring her to Alex Delaware''s office. But for all Alex''s skill and effort, Lauren resists—angrily, provocatively. Reluctantly, the psychologist chalks Lauren up as one of the inevitable failures of a challenging profession. But years later, when Alex encounters Lauren as a stag party''s featured entertainment, both doctor and patient are sticken with shame. And the ultimate horror takes place when, soon after, Lauren''s brutalized corpse is found dumped in an alley. Alex disregards the advice of his trusted friend, LAPD detective Milo Sturgis, and jeopardizes his relationship with longtime lover, Robin Castagna, in order to pursue Lauren''s murderer. As he investigates his young patient''s troubled past, Alex enters the shadowy worlds of fringe psychological experimentation and the sex industry, and then into mortal danger when lust and big money collide in Southern California. Jonathan Kellerman''s L.A. is evil, seductive, and unforgiving, and Flesh and Blood is mind-opening in its drama of a driven man''s personal quest, breathtaking in its ingenious plot, filled with unforgettable characters, and topped off by a terrifying climax. This is suspense fiction at its finest.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER Dr. Alex Delaware doesn’t see many private patients anymore, but the young woman called Lucy is an exception. So is her dream. Lucy Lowell is referred to Alex by Los Angeles police detective Milo Sturgis. A juror at the agonizing trial of a serial killer, Lucy survived the trauma only to be tormented by a recurring nightmare: a young child in the forest at night, watching a strange and furtive act. “Exciting . . . loaded with tension and packed with titillating insights.”—The New York Times Book Review Now Lucy’s dream is starting to disrupt her waking life, and Alex is concerned. The power of the dream, its grip on Lucy’s emotions, suggests to him that it may be more than a nightmare. It may be the repressed childhood memory of something very real. Something like murder.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A resourceful runaway alone in the wilds of Los Angeles, twelve-year-old Billy Straight suddenly witnesses a brutal stabbing in Griffith Park. Fleeing into the night, Billy cannot shake the horrific memory of the savage violence, nor the pursuit of a cold-blooded killer. For wherever Billy turns—from Hollywood Boulevard to the boardwalks of Venice—he is haunted by the chuck, chuck sound of a knife sinking into flesh. “Taut, compelling . . . Everything a thriller ought to be. The writing is excellent. The plotting is superior. The characters ring true.”—USA Today As LAPD homicide detective Petra Connor desperately searches for the murderer, as the media swarms mercilessly around the story, the vicious madman stalks closer to his prey. Only Petra can save Billy. But it will take all her cunning to uncover a child lost in a fierce urban labyrinth—where a killer seems right at home. BONUS: This edition includes an excerpt from Jonathan Kellerman''s Guilt.

Devastated and suspected by the police after the brutal murder of his girlfriend, hospital psychologist Jeremy Carrier finds himself unwittingly engaged in a game of cat and mouse when additional murders take place and clues begin appearing in his mail. 400,000 first printing.

Jerusalem Police Inspector David Sharavi and his hand-picked team search for a psychopathic serial killer amidst the sacred precincts, ancient monasteries, and alley ways of the Holy City. Reprint.

This thought-provoking and timely book from a #1 New York Times bestselling novelist and noted child psychologist reveals the factors that often lead to explosive and shocking juvenile violence. “Ethically and morally, kids are works in progress. Throw in psychopathy and you’ve got a soul that will never be complete.” In this powerful, disturbing book, bestselling author and noted child psychologist Jonathan Kellerman shines a penetrating light on antisocial youth—kids who kill without remorse—asserting that “psychopathic tendencies begin very early in life, as young as three, and they endure.” Criticizing our quick impulse to blame violent movies or a “morally bankrupt” society, Kellerman convinces us that it is the kids themselves who need to be examined. Carefully. How do children become cold-blooded killers? Kellerman warns that today’s aggressive bully is tomorrow’s Mafia don, cult leader, or genocidal dictator. Violently psychopathic youths possess an overriding need for power, control, and stimulation, and all display a complete lack of regard for the humanity of others. He examines the origins of psychopathy and the ever-shifting debate between nurture and nature, offering some controversial solutions to dealing with homicidal tendencies in children. As timely as today’s headlines, more gripping than fiction, Savage Spawn is a provocative look at the links between society and biology, children and violence. Kellerman’s sobering message will remain with you long after the last page is turned.