- Hardcover
- Publisher: Dark Harvest Books; Reissue edition (January 1994)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0913165743
- ISBN-13: 978-0913165744
- Product Dimensions: 22.6 x 15 x 2.8 cm
- Shipping Weight: 408 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Dr. Alexander Davenport, a child psychologist in Los Angeles, is called in to evaluate the case of a leukemia patient whose parents want to discontinue chemotherapy. When the boy disappears from the hospital and his parents are found dead, the only leads are the boy's sensual older sister and a holistic-meditative cult called The Touch. Davenport's search for the child takes him to a small town near the Mexican border where he finally unearths the dark secrets kept by the boy's family and the townspeople. He also uncovers drugs and group sex in the commune and survives a few harrowing attempts on his life. (Particularly well-drawn is a failed assassination at the tale's end, which has intriguing mythic echoes.) As in his praised first novel, When the Bough Breaks, Kellerman draws on his experience as a clinical psychologist to enrich and broaden his considerable storytelling talents. Imbued with a vivid sense of place and featuring a strong supporting cast, including Milo Sturgis, Davenport's burly gay detective friend, this second adventure points happily toward an Alex Davenport series. Paperback rights to NAL.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
"A suspenseful thriller whose solution lies in the darker recesses of the human soul." -- The Wall Street Journal
--This text refers to the
Mass Market Paperback
edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
FRUITFUL VENTURE,
By
This review is from: Blood Test (Mass Market Paperback)
Dr. Alex Delaware is still on a high from having successfully solved a series of interlocking mysteries from "As The Bough Breaks." In this installment, set in 1986, Alex must beat the clock to save a 5-year-old boy with treatable cancer.The boy, Heywood "Woody" Swope appears to be the one normal foil for his reclusive, fruit obsessed parents and hostile 20-year-old sister, Nona. Named for an apple, Annona Blossom Swope is described in almost feral terms. Matters come to a painful head when Woody is kidnapped from the hospital. The boy's parents and sister also disappear, and Dr. Alex Delaware is immediately in pursuit of this mysterious family. Dr. Delaware and his long time friend, Officer Milo Sturgis travel down some very seedy and unsavory roads in Southern California. A cult called the Touch is high on the list of suspects. Members of the cult would visit Woody's family in the hospital and were bringing fresh, organic fruits. A doctor who sympathized with the Touch was high on the list of suspects as were a disgruntled male model/escort who worked with Nona at a messenger/escort service. The clever detective work and the chapters detailing Dr. Delaware's expose of the Touch and their compound, a converted monastery in the fictitious border town of La Vista make for very compelling reading. The theme of bearing fruit is rampant throughout the book and is very effectively used. Dr. Delaware's live in girlfriend, the selfish and tiresome Robin is barely mentioned in this story, which is also good. I never cared for her. Questions still abound. Where are the Swopes? And what of Woody? How was the Touch involved? And what of the doctors who worked at the hospital where Woody was being treated? A well crafted mystery that will certainly leave a lasting impression.
3.0 out of 5 stars
ALEX DELAWARE DOES CHINATOWN,
By Brooser Bear (City of New York) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Blood Test (Mass Market Paperback)
This is Kellerman's interpretation of the California Hardboiled Detective novel as pioneered by Dashiell Hammett. All of the usual elements from that style ranging from a MESSED UP CHICK to a DARK FAMILY SECRET to GANDIOSE DESIGNS are dutifully included in this episode, plus the usual elements of Kellerman's writings. Kellerman's ghoulies aside, he fails to offer any fresh insights or do anything interesting with the new types of charcaters that this genre brings. This would have been more enjoyable if he made major events less dramatic and more probable.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Still practicing,
By
This review is from: Blood Test (Mass Market Paperback)
You immediately realize that this is an early Delaware novel. It seems as if Kellerman was still practicing then. He did not create the convincing characters we can find in his later novels when he wrote this book. And the plot is a little heavy, too. The climax is somewhat forced and improbable and comes before the actual ending, which is too transparent and obvious. We know exactly what is coming. Nevertheless, the book is quite a good read, a simple thriller, not too demanding, and it cannot cope with later novels by Kellerman.
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