Tag: Jonathan Kellerman

Malice by Jonathan Kellerman (Mystery)

Number 42 in what has quickly become my favorite police procedural series, starring a gruff, inexorable, gay LA homicide detective and his best friend Alex Delaware, a psychologist who has a real talent for consulting on extra twisted murder cases. In this case, they track down the psychopath who has attached his own particular twist to the killing of three apparently unrelated victims.

AI suggests that this series is also a psychological thriller series — I agree with the psychological part, but I’m happy to say that while I’m on the edge of my seat during the entire trip, I’m never anxious (which is what often happens in books I label thrillers). Perfect for me.

I started reading this series a couple of years ago and have read them completely out of order with no problems. Kellerman is quite good at recapping any bit of history necessary to understand the narrative in a short set of aptly placed sentences. And while I usually read (as opposed to listen to) books, this is one series that I prefer opting for audio — John Rubinstein — the reader for most of the series — is fantastic and I’ve become accustomed to the personalities he imbues in the characters via their voices.

Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on February 2nd, 2026.

When the Bough Breaks by Jonathan Kellerman (Mystery — Audio book)

I’ve been reading Kellerman’s Alex Delaware series (up to 41 books!) which teams a psychologist (Delaware) with the hard boiled, gay LAPD detective with a high enough homicide case solve rate to “encourage” his superiors to overlook his unorthodox approaches (Milo Sturgis). I started with random audio books towards the end of the series, numbering 30 and above and now have gone back to read this one — the first.

I like this series a lot (obviously), though I do prefer the later ones. The characters — Delaware and Sturgis, their domestic partners, supporting LAPD members and even the perps, victims, and witnesses, are all pretty relatable and interesting. The writing is easy — full of interesting factoids but clean, clear, and never wandering through tangential detail. No long descriptions of nature or furniture or clothing, unless relevant to the case. I tend to read mysteries written by women and I am enjoying reading this series which is written by a man — there is a pointed distinction between reading strong men from a man’s perspective versus from a woman’s. I like it and have fun noticing how it might have been different had a woman written it (obviously not all men or all women write the same way — what I noticed was subtle but I found it fun).

This first book had a few too many scenes where Alex Delaware manages to get himself out of very dangerous situations through some clever hero machinations — that kind of thing just bores me as I prefer the brain stuff. But as the series evolves, Milo takes on more of the work and their partnership replaces the lone hero psychologist nicely.

Great series!