The Prodigal Son

By Colleen McCullough

The fourth entry in this “compelling, passionate, and gritty” (Daily Mail, UK) series by internationally acclaimed bestselling author Colleen McCullough sends Carmine Delmonico on a heart-pounding ride through the world of toxic substances and brilliant biochemists to pursue a mysterious killer on the loose.

When Chubb University biochemist Millie Hunter notices that a deadly neurotoxin is missing from her laboratory refrigerator, she knows the situation is grave: the poison, extracted from a blowfish, shuts down the nervous system, leading to a slow, gruesome, and virtually unstoppable death.

The very next night, Millie and her husband, another exceptional biochemist, attend a black tie dinner for an old friend, John Hall. John’s stepmother, an exotic former Yugoslavian model, has assembled some of the most important—and eccentric—people from Chubb University for a lavish dinner. Notably missing is John’s Aunt Emily, who holds an old family grudge. After dinner, the men retire for cigars and whiskey, and John suddenly falls to the floor and dies a horrible death. The cause: a dose of the missing neurotoxin, administered through a tiny puncture wound in his neck.

As the bodies pile up and the coroner keeps pointing to the neurotoxin, Captain Carmine Delmonico must find the killer fast. Assisted by his brilliant colleague Delia and his constant wife Desdemona (an excellent cook), Delmonico follows the trail—no matter how close to home it may lead.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Release date: Dec 3, 2013
• ISBN: 9781476767574

Colleen McCullough

Colleen McCullough is the author of The Thorn Birds, Tim, An Indecent Obsession, A Creed for the Third Millennium, The Ladies of Missalonghi, The First Man in Rome, The Grass Crown, Fortune's Favorites, Caesar's Women, Caesar, and other novels. She lives with her husband on Norfolk Island in the South Pacific.

Reviews for The Prodigal Son

[jsamaha-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When I hear the name Colleen McCullough, I automatically think of The Thorn Birds. I read it when I was a teenager and it is still one of my favorite novels. When the publisher suggested that I read her new novel, The Prodigal Son, I was surprised. I had no idea that she had written a mystery series. For me, Colleen McCullough began and ended with The Thorn Birds. Well, no more…I have become a fan of her Carmine Delmonico mysteries.

The Prodigal Son is the fourth in the Carmine Delmonico series. I haven’t read the first three installations which may explain why I did find it difficult to keep track of the large cast of characters. The first of the novel dragged a bit for me but the second half really took off and I had a hard time putting the book down before I had finished it.

My daughter has started making friendship bracelets. You know the kind where you have a number of thin threads that you interweave together to form designs. The threads get tangled up and you have to spend time constantly separating them (at least we do!). Well, that is exactly what the second half of this book felt like to me. McCullough built so many layers to this mystery that I was intrigued to the very end. I have virtual whiplash from bouncing back and forth between my own accusations of characters. Even now, having finished the book, I still have my doubts about a few of them.

This was a hard one for me to get into but I ended up thoroughly enjoying it. I could recommend it as a stand alone novel to any mystery fans but think it might be even more enjoyable when read as part of the entire series.

*I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.