Stone Kiss [Paperback]

Decker's investigations in New York and Quinton, the town where the victim lived as part of an Orthodox Jewish enclave, are unwelcome to just about everybody, from the police in both cities to the missing girl's parents. And when a hitman from Decker's past enters the picture, things quickly get worse. Brutal but thoughtful, Stone Kiss is well-plotted, fast-moving, well-told and I highly recommend it.

Peter and Rina find themselves in the ultra-orthodox Jewish enclave of Brooklyn, NY, where Peter has been summoned by his half brother, Jonathan, to investigate the murder of Jonathan's brother-in-law, Ephraim Lieber. Peter is reluctant to get involved. He has no police jurisdiction in New York, he is without his usual sources and backup, and the entire Lieber family, grieving for their lost relative--and, coincidentally, Ephraim's teenaged niece, Shayndie, is treating Peter like dirt.

Peter is all for turning right around and going home, but like always, becomes deeply entwined in the mystery, which involves more twists and turns, more mysteries, than anyone shoud have to face. In addition to the missing girl and the murdered uncle, something is very strange about the surviving brother, Chaim, father of the girl--who all but kicks Decker out with his boot while nevertheless garbed in the pious garb of the ultra-orthodox.

It's strange alright--and gets even stranger when the mystery drops Decker right in the lap of mobster Chris Donatti, with whom Decker has a long and complicated history.

The mystery continues almost right up to the last page, and as always, there is no ends-tightly-sewn-together, pat ending. This is a good read, another Faye Kellerman winner, and I highly recommend it.

The mystery in this book is relatively routine, but Kellerman does a good job at making it interesting. And the family drama which often dominates her stories takes a bit of a back seat this time. Instead, the best parts of the story involve the interaction between the Deckers and Donatti.

Except for some rather jarring moments later in the book when she switches to first person point-of-view, this is another good crime story from Kellerman, who has proven to be consistently good over the past few years (although I was not pleased with her non-Decker story, Moon Music). I also have my usual gripe that these stories should not be called "Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus" novels as Rina has had the Decker surname for over a decade in both real and book time; I suppose that is more the publisher than the author, however.

If you're a Faye Kellerman fan, you should enjoy this latest novel. If not, however, this is not the place to start as it refers a lot to older books.