Monster: An Alex Delaware Novel

By Jonathan Kellerman

BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Jonathan Kellerman's Victims.

A second-rate actor is found mutilated in a car trunk. Then a psychologist at a Los Angeles hospital for the criminally insane is murdered in a similar grisly fashion. Suddenly the incoherent ramblings of an inmate at the presumably secure institution begin to make chilling sense—they are, in fact, horrifying predictions. Yet how can a barely functional psychotic locked behind asylum walls possibly know such vivid details of crimes committed in the outside world? Drawn into a labyrinth of secrets, revenge, sex, and manipulation, Dr. Alex Delaware and Detective Milo Sturgis set out to unlock this enigma and put an end to the brutal killings—before the madman predicts their own demise. . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Apr 1, 2003
• ISBN: 9780345463685

Jonathan Kellerman

Jonathan Kellerman is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty bestselling crime novels, including the Alex Delaware series, The Butcher’s Theater, Billy Straight, The Conspiracy Club, Twisted, and True Detectives. With his wife, bestselling novelist Faye Kellerman, he coauthored Double Homicide and Capital Crimes. He is also the author of two children’s books and numerous nonfiction works, including Savage Spawn: Reflections on Violent Children and With Strings Attached: The Art and Beauty of Vintage Guitars. He has won the Goldwyn, Edgar, and Anthony awards and has been nominated for a Shamus Award. 

Reviews for Monster

[darrol_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Good psychological content and no overly dramatic ending. A reputed monster who is not one meets the real monster.

[bedazzledeternally · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Monster is the third Kellerman novel I've read and with every book read,I like his writing even more. I picked up this book at a bargain at a second hand store as i don't normally buy my copies of thrillers and borrow them from libraries.Faintly reminiscent of The silence of the lambs and more of ,Hannibal Lecter, I found the book spine chilling and gripping.The pace is not really high-adrenaline inducing,but Alex Delaware and his LAPD buddy Milo chip away industriously at uncertainty to make sense of madness behind Monster's random babble. Narrated from Alex's point of view,Monster is 13th in the row of Alex Delaware books.I was surprised at Jonathan's style of writing -vivid descriptions and flowery words somehow don't normally get associated with crime writing,more so with a psychological thriller,but you'll find that in this book.What I find fascinating about books like these is the psychological profiling that unravels during the course of the investigations.The book gives you a sneak peak into the workings of an institution for mentally unstable criminal-Starkweather hospital in this case.It also made me wonder about the safety of the carers and the techs that man these facilities.Either they must be highly motivated or paid very well to take up a job that is fraught with so much risk.Character-wise I can't choose between Milo or Alex and say who I liked better.I also liked the way how Kellerman lets us see a bit of Alex's personal life in between the investigations.The murders that take place are slightly disturbing and not for the faint-hearted and in most cases Kellerman describes the crime scene almost clinically,going over details of the onslaught on the victim.Almost 200 pages into the book,we get to know who the possible murderer might be and its more a question of the duo locating him.Overall ,this might not be the best psychological thriller I've read till date, but it was good nevertheless.4/5 for this book. I recommend it to people who like reading psychological thrillers.

[bruderbane · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Good solid story. Quick read. Didn't have a cop-out ending. I just may pick up another one in the series.

[wingedpotato · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Although it was more straightforward than I expected, I enjoyed this book. More of a profiling study than a true thriller.

[emigre_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Thought-provoking thriller with surprising and unsettling ending. Kellerman always gives readers a good absorbing book, this one's no exception.

[whitewavedarling · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was everything I expect from a Jonathan Kellerman--fast-paced, plenty of twists and intrigue, and character and psychology to go around. It was a wonderful escape from the real world, with just enough plotting and complication to be a keep everything interesting while still being a pretty easy read to sink into.For lovers of suspense and thrillers, I'd absolutely recommend the Alex Delaware series, and this book among the group of them.

[rockhead515-580421 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great story.
This one was a little different compared to earlier novels in that as we followed along with Alex and Milo we could see the clues and there were really no surprises.
As a change of pace it was quite interesting, though not sure if I prefer knowing what's going on or being surprised.

[anniemod · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

First an actor/waiter gets killed and stashed in the trunk of his own car. Then a psychologist suffers the same fate - even though the two cases do not seem connected on the surface. And yet, Milo and Alex are convinced that they must be. The psychologist had worked in one of the mental institutions for the criminally insane - working with the worst of the worst day after day. As turned out, these are also the most harmless members of society - they are so overmedicated that most of them are not better than vegetables. And yet, if some of the clues are to be followed, one of them seems to be somehow involved. The book is aptly named - the mentally ill man who killed a family had won the name Monster but the real monsters turn out to look normal. As is often the case, the truth emerges from the past - while chasing down the two murders, Milo and Alex end up learning more than they wanted to know about a few old massacres. The end of the novel did not come as a surprise either - the suspicions are there from very early, even if Alex does not voice them until almost the end. And as is occasionally the case with Kellerman's novels, there is a not so subtle commentary on how the mentally ill are treated in the courts - complete with calling out the fakers and the changing laws. It is a sad book - while most of novels in the series are gory, this one is more sad than anything else. The goriness of the original murders gives way to medical insanity and its exploration - and it is even more unsettling. Good entry in the series - it was about time for an entry where Alex is the one leading the case (more or less).

[justininlondon · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Possibly the most disappointing Jonathan Kellerman book I've read to date and I've been working my way through them chronologically. As always, he writes well in describing the investigation and the developing story as more twists in the plot occur. And the interplay between Alex and Milo as they bounce various theories off one another is as readable as ever. However, ultimately, as with any thriller, it's the dénouement that really justifies the plot. This is always, for me, Kellerman's weak spot - normally the crime and perpretator makes sense, but the action at the end seems a little contrived. In this book, I simply didn't 'buy' the crime and perpetrator. it was plain too odd and unsatisfying, and the police etc. are themselves baffled by this guy and why he did what he did. True, I guess that he has to come up with something different each time, but this one was just too weird - and you could see most of it coming a mile off. There wasn't any great twist as we got towards the end - except one character, who weren't supposed to think was a goodie turned out to be a baddie, but I'd guessed that one from the start.... So.... Good writing for the most part, as always. but the thriller part of the plot sucked really. But I still love him!