Stone Kiss/Abridged

Rating:
Summary: I'm a Fan. . .
Review: ...of the Decker/Lazarus series and I started at the beginning. However, I don't think you'd want to read the series in succession. I now mix it up and when I returned to Stone Kiss it was like visiting with old friends. I enjoyed the story and always enjoy learning more about the Jewish faith. This is light, fast moving and easy reading. Christopher Donatti is a daunting character with good interaction between the characters. I, too, am sure he will turn up again as have a few others.

Rating:
Summary: Another Winner from Faye
Review: All of the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus novels by Faye Kellerman are fast reads, and "Stone Kiss" is no exception.

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.

Rating:
Summary: Another Winner from Faye
Review: All of the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus novels by Faye Kellerman are fast reads, and "Stone Kiss" is no exception.

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.

Rating:
Summary: Tightly Plotted Mystery with Familiar Characters
Review: Authors have to perform a unique balancing act when writing a series of novels. On the one side, they need to create new stories that keep previous readers coming back for more. On the other side, they need to write the stories in such a way that new readers will not be lost not knowing what has gone before.

Old readers need fresh tales and will not have the patience to sit through a rehashing of background material covered in previous books. Faye Kellerman, after writing more than a dozen books in the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus series still manages to keep that delicate balance in her latest, Stone Kiss.

Peter Decker is asked to return to New York to investigate the murder of Ephraim Lieber, his half-brother's brother-in-law and the disappearance of Ephraim's niece. Even before he goes, Peter questions the wisdom of getting involved in a case in now unfamiliar territory for relatives that have only recently learned of his existence.

Despite strong reservations, Peter and his family trek to New York to offer their condolences and assist in both finding the missing girl and the murderer. As soon as they arrive in New York, the people who asked Peter to help do everything possible to thwart his efforts.

If there is any flaw in this novel, it is the lack of motivation for Peter Decker. Much of the opening is spent trying to rationalize Peter's decision to take on this case. He finally flies out to New York simply because he does not want to risk damaging his fragile relationship with his biological family. However, once these same relatives become antagonistic toward Peter because of his investigation, Peter for some inexplicable reason perseveres, continuing to work the case despite the hostility he is fostering. This lack of clear, comprehensible motivation is a source of confusion.

Another source of confusion came with the inexplicable use of the first person when writing from one particular character's point of view. This shift in perspective brought the story to a halt until it could be determined just whose point of view was being related during the course of the narrative. Perhaps it was an attempt at artistic flair. In any event, this shift in point of view and person did not serve the story.

However, once past these obstacles, Stone Kiss is a tightly plotted mystery. Every peculiar detail is explained, and all the loose ends are neatly tied. It is, in fact, in the denouement that it becomes apparent just how neatly everything is resolved. It's as if the events of this story have had no lasting effect on the characters. Despite the traumatic nature of these experiences, everything goes back to normal for Peter Decker and his family. They all live happily ever after.

In the end, Stone Kiss is an enjoyable mystery. What it lacks in terms of complex characters, it makes up for with a complex plot.

Rating:
Summary: A disappointment for Faye Kellerman fans
Review: Faye Kellerman has been writing these stories for about a decade and a half now, since just a few years after her husband started. I think he was first, but I'm not sure. Anyway, her stories have gotten more character and atmosphere-driven, compared with his, because she chose to make her character an Orthodox Jew (both of the Kellermans are, to my understanding, also Orthodox Jews). This gives her something to work with other than the mystery/suspense plot, and serves her well (husband Jonathan has been concentrating on his main character's sidekick, the gay detective Milo Sturgis, in recent books, perhaps because of this). I should explain that the main character, Peter Decker, is an LAPD Homicide cop. He grew up knowing he was adopted, but it wasn't til adulthood that he discovered that his birth mother was Jewish. Coincidentally he met a beautiful woman who was an Orthodox Jew, and wound up converting to that faith and marrying her. This makes for a complicated plot, as Decker has both a birth family (Jewish, and living in New York) and an adoptive family (Gentile, living in Florida). Members of both families appear in the book, and make things complicated.

Decker's birth half-brother calls him in the dead of night to inform him that his (the half-brother's) wife's brother has been murdered in a seedy hotel room in New York City. He was supposedly with his niece (though he shouldn't have been in a hotel room with her, seedy or not). Instead, there are drugs in the room, and no sign of the fifteen year old niece. The brother-in-law asks Decker (in a bit of a stretch) to come to New York City from LA and try and help straighten things out. Decker agrees.

Ultimately, Decker's whole family travels to New York to visit and shop (his wife) and do detective work (Decker). I won't go into any of the details of the plot, other than to tell you that it's interesting, if a bit slow. There are characters from previous books, and various plot devices, that are all fun, in my opinion. I enjoyed reading about the neighborhoods in the city, the Jews (and others) that inhabit them, and so forth. There's much about Orthodox Jews and their thinking and attitudes, and it's fascinating.

I would say that if you want a fast-paced mystery you should probably look elsewhere, though this one does end in an interesting gunfight that concludes rather differently from most. I enjoyed the book, because

Rating:
Summary: Well-Plotted, Fast-Moving Thriller
Review: L.A. Police Lieutenant Pete Decker gets a call from his half-brother, Rabbi Jonathan Levine. The Levines live in New York and Jonathan is seeking Decker's help. His brother-in-law has been found murdered in a seedy hotel room and his fifteen year-old niece, who he had supposedly been watching that day, had disappeared. Jonathan wants Decker to fly to New York to help the family.

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.

Rating:
Summary: Too much translation
Review: Peter Decker, detective supremo,from LA meets his match in the big city, New York. Lt. Decker is asked by his brother come lately,Jonathan, an Orthodox Jewish Rabbi, to come to New York to help find the murderer of his brother-in-law. Decker and his wife Rina Lazarus had planned a vacation, but they take this side trip to help family. The plot becomes quite complicated, but easily understood by Faye Kellerman's exquisite writing. She has found a true fan in me with this book. She explains the Orthodox Jewish faith through Rabbi Jonathan and stories of his family. The New York crime family comes to life with the re-introduction of Chris Donatti. Decker saved Donatti's girlfriend in a previvous story and helped her back on her feet. Donatti does not forget this, and even though Decker helps to make his shoddy life much more difficult, he sees Decker through some dangerous times. Lots of gore, mystery and surprises- so well written that I started to think of Rina as a friend that I wanted to warn of the dangers ahead. Decker and Rina extricate themselves and their family from this situation as Decker solves the murder and is looked at as the hero of the day. Off they go to Florida for a fun vacation with family where a letter arrives for Rina and the next mystery is born.

Rating:
Summary: GRITTY SMOOCH
Review: Uh-oh, looks like I'm in the minority, but the return of Christopher Donatti, to me, is the real spark in this well-written, dark, brodding novel. Oh, yes Chris is definitely sadistic, egocentric, psychopathic, childish, brutal and conscienceless. However, Kellerman has been smart enough to show his "good" side. Maybe he obssesses and uses Terry and others to achieve his own goals, but somewhere in all the brooding good lucks, his buff body, there is a soul of a man abused as a child, reaching out to find someone to love. His cruelty to Decker only masks his intense hate/love relationship. The ending is quite unexpected, and obviously leaves room for Donatti's return.
Elsewhere, Kellerman has fleshed out Jonathan Levine more, and his relationship with Decker grows in admiration and respect. The mystery actually gets overshadowed by the complexity of the relationships and the fiery Donatti. Suffice to say, it's easy to see who the real culprits are...it's just a lot of fun getting there.
ONE OF THE BEST IN THE SERIES.

Rating:
Summary: Huh ?
Review: Yes, this is what I kept saying throughout what I've read so far...I have been working on this book for a month. I am a Nora Roberts/J.D. Robb fan. I thought this book would match those of Roberts. Boy was I wrong. I have to agree with other reviewers, this book was confusing. No, I did not start at the beginning of the series. Readers shouldn't have to. We should be able to pick right up on the characters and plot. The next time I see a cheap hardcover at the checkout in Walmart I will leave it there.