Book Review of Jigsaw by Jonathan Kellerman

Jonathan Kellerman, author of the popular Alex Delaware series, returns with the just published (February, 2026) 41st novel in the series. Jigsaw brings back the well-loved duo in American crime fiction, psychologist Alex Delaware and his best friend, LAPD Detective Milo Sturgis. 

Synopsis 

Jigsaw: An Alex Delaware NovelCheck PriceLieutenant Detective Sturgis’ most recent case appears to be an easy one; a young woman found dead in her home with evidence which quickly points to an ex-boyfriend with a criminal record. He arrests the boyfriend and figures the case had a quick close. 

Then another murder is discovered; that of an old woman whose body was stashed in a deep freeze with the arms cut off. Turns out her identity is shocking as Milo remembers her as a one-time member of the LA police force. Complicating things, her home is that of an extreme hoarder, which shockingly contains envelopes of cash stashed among the mess.

Suddenly, it becomes apparent that the ex-boyfriend had an alibi for the murder of the young woman. Also, Milo discovers that these two seemingly unrelated crimes are linked, presenting a deadly puzzle to solve.

Milo Sturgus calls in his best friend, psychologist Alex Delaware, who frequently consults on ‘those cases’, the ones that are different! 

Summary

As the investigation continues, Alex and Milo discover a missing mentally disabled daughter of the old woman and a renewed connection between the young woman’s ex-boyfriend, his lady lawyer who continues to complicate things, and an earlier fraud case involving both the boyfriend and the lawyer.

Jigsaw is classic Delaware at his best, along with the always entertaining interplay between Alex and Milo Sturgis. Another favorite in a long line of enjoyable novels in the Alex Delaware series I have followed for many years. Highly recommended reading for fans of Jonathan Kellerman. 

For more Alex Delaware Series book reviews, click on 
ReviewThisReviews: Alex Delaware

For more Book Reviews, click on
ReviewThisBooks.com 

*Jigsaw book review written by Wednesday Elf for Review This!

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

FOLLOW US ON:

Book Review of Victims by Jonathan Kellerman

An Alex Delaware Novel

To date, there are 39 books in the Alex Delaware series by author Jonathan Kellerman. Victims is book #27 in the series, published in 2012. It features child psychologist Alex Delaware who, in his spare time, acts as a consultant to the Los Angeles Police Department on difficult murder cases his best friend, homicide detective Milo Sturgis, investigates.  Victims, as well as the entire Alex Delaware series of books, takes place in Los Angeles.

Synopsis of Victims

A woman is found murdered in what becomes the first in a gruesome crime spree. The first victim, Vita Berlin, was not a very nice woman, mean and rude to everyone she met, but still…..she didn’t deserve to be murdered.

The third victim in the bloody spree was also not a very pleasant individual; yet, the second victim was considered kind, well liked and loved by all. 

With no apparent connection among the victims, Detective Sturgis is baffled with practically no clues except for a blank page bearing a question mark left at each scene. 

Milo calls in his go-to expert in hunting homicidal maniacs. But despite his finely honed skills, even Alex is baffled as each slaying occurs and a direction cannot be found toward solving these crimes.

Finally, as pieces of the puzzle begin to fit together, and a horrible portrait of a sinister mind emerges, Milo and Alex begin to see the pattern leading them to a solution found within a shuttered mental institution. 

Summary

A murder mystery not for the faint of heart, but an exciting read for long-time fans of Alex Delaware and his detective friend, Milo Sturgis. You might want to keep the lights on while you read. 

More Jonathan Kellerman Book Reviews:

• The Wedding Guest
• The Burning

For more book reviews, check out ReviewThisBooks.com

Victims: An Alex Delaware NovelCheck Price

 

*Book Review of Victims written by Wednesday Elf

 

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

FOLLOW US ON:

The Wedding Guest by Jonathan Kellerman – Book Review

An Alex Delaware Novel

Jonathan Kellerman has written 37 Alex Delaware novels. The Wedding Guest is #34. The series is set in Los Angeles.

Main Characters in The Wedding Guest

• Alex Delaware, a child psychologist in Los Angeles, California
• Milo Sturgis, a career policeman in the Homicide Division of the LAPD

Regular Minor Characters in the Alex Delaware Series of Books

• Detectives Binchy, Bogomil and Reed who Milo refers to as the “Baby Ds”. 
• Robin Castagna, who repairs and builds expensive guitars for musicians around the country. She has been in a long-term relationship with Delaware for many years.
• Alex and Robin's French Bulldog, Blanche

Character Assessment

Delaware and Sturgis form a formidable team. Sturgis has a knack for piecing together the details of a crime. Delaware's expertise is his psychology background aiding him in deciphering the darkest intents driving vicious perpetrators.

 

Plot of The Wedding Guest

*Available on Amazon

In The Wedding Guest, Alex and Milo team up once again to solve a homicide and the crime that led to it. 

At a wedding reception, a horrified bridesmaid discovers the body of a young woman who has been strangled. Not a single partygoer recognizes the victim and there is not a single means to identify her. The bride is convinced the stranger snuck in to sabotage her big day, and the groom is sure it is all a dreadful mistake. 

With over a hundred guests to question, Delaware and Sturgis soon decide that the motive for murder is personal.

Now the party's over and the hunt for the killer begins.

Summary

An uninvited guest. A missing identity. A trail of deadly secrets. 

Once again, Sturgis and Delaware team up to solve a murder in this psychological thriller. As an amateur armchair detective, the needed clues for solving while reading are not uncovered until the very end, but it was an interesting mystery nonetheless.  If you are a fan of Jonathan Kellerman, and especially his Alex Delaware novels, as I am, you will enjoy this one as much as others in the series. 

Related Reviews of Books by the Kellerman Family: 

 

• The Burning by Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman
• The Killing Season by Faye Kellerman
• Bone Box by Faye Kellerman

*Book Review of "The Wedding Guest" written by

    ~Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

FOLLOW US ON:

The Burning by Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman – Book Review

A raging wildfire. A massive blackout. A wealthy man shot to death in his palatial hilltop home 

Synopsis

Available on
Amazon

The protagonist of this story, Clay Edison, is a deputy coroner.  Caring for the dead, he speaks for those who cannot speak for themselves. He prides himself on an unflinching commitment to the truth. Even when it gets him into trouble. 

The Burning, set in the San Francisco Bay Area during one of the state’s terrible wildfires, is Book #4 in the Clay Edison series by Jonathan & Jesse Kellerman. 

A murder scene becomes personal for this deputy coroner when he discovers a link to his brother, Luke, while investigating the crime scene.

Luke is fresh out of prison and struggling to stay on the straight and narrow. But when Clay calls Luke to find out why his lovingly restored vintage Camaro is in the murdered man's garage, he discovers his brother is missing. 

While trying to find his brother before anyone else can, Clay is forced to do his job, as well as cope with a wildfire and a massive blackout occurring in his northern California area. Is his brother a killer or a victim? And, where is he?

Image Source: Pixabay

The Kellerman Authors, Father & Son

Jonathan Kellerman is the well-known author of the Alex Delaware Series (36 books to date) and is married to author Faye Kellerman (known in particular for her 29 mystery novels in her "Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus" series. Now, Jonathan is joined by their son, Jesse, a writer in his own right. To date, Jonathan & Jesse have co-authored 5 books, including four in the Clay Edison series. 

The Kellermans are an amazing family of writers of mystery thrillers. 

Summary

The Burning is a real page-turner – a harrowing collision of family, revenge, and murder. 

For more book reviews on ReviewThisReviews, check out ReviewThisBooks.com 

Related Link:

The Bone Box by Faye Kellerman – a Decker//Lazarus Novel

*The Burning – a book review written by Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

FOLLOW US ON:

Bone Box by Faye Kellerman – A Book Review

Latest Decker/Lazarus Novel
by Faye Kellerman

 A Decker/Lazarus Novel

I just finished reading the latest Faye Kellerman novel starring the team of Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus.  Bone Box is the 24th book in the series which Kellerman began in 1986. 

Peter Decker, an LAPD homicide detective and his keen-witted beautiful wife, Rina Lazarus, have dazzled mystery fans as a riveting investigative duo for over 30 years. Through most of the series the action takes place in Los Angeles.  By the last 3 or 4 books, Peter has semi-retired and taken a job as a detective in a small Upstate New York area.  The town may be small, but it has its share of crimes to solve and keeps Peter and his partner, Tyler McAdams busy enough. 

Synopsis of Bone Box

One September morning, Rina takes a walk in the nearby woods and stumbles upon human remains once buried deep in the forest. Naturally, she immediately calls her husband, Peter, at  the local Greenbury Police Department. They discover that the skeleton is that of a young man who has been buried for at least ten years, thus there is almost no  physical evidence at the gravesite.  With further investigation, Decker and his partner, Tyler McAdams soon realize they are probably dealing with a missing student from the nearby Five Colleges of Upstate.

It's not long before more human remains are found in the same area.  The rest of the bodies all appear to be college age women and the investigators suspect they will match up with some missing women from the colleges.  Decker and McAdams, along with Rina’s help, find a number of suspects among the academics at the colleges and it becomes increasingly apparent that the killer is still around.

This police mystery fiction story starring Peter and Rina, with a few side stories of their family and friends from earlier books, will thrill all Decker/Lazarus fans. 

Author Faye Kellerman

Faye Kellerman

Born in St. Louis in 1952, Faye is a mystery novel writer married to Jonathan Kellerman, also a fiction writer well known for his Alex Delaware novels. They have four children and oldest son, Jesse, is now a published author in his own right.

Faye Kellerman and her family are practicing Orthodox Jews and Faye's writing often deals with Jewish themes and characters, incorporating them into the framework of the traditional mystery.  I have found this fascinating. 

Enjoy Faye Kellerman's latest offering in Bone Box!

Read More Book Reviews at

ReviewThisBooks.com

Bone Box: A Decker/Lazarus Novel (Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus Book 24)Check Price

 

Book review of Bone Box by:

Wednesday Elf

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN), Esty (Awin), and/or Zazzle Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

FOLLOW US ON: