Rating: 
Summary: Faye Kellerman reader have a new book to consume
Review: I read this book in one night. I was so excited to see charaters from previous books come back to life. I enjoyed that some of the charaters were not written black or white, but sometime a dark gray. Im so tired of reading books where there is the good and the evil. Life doesnt work like that and neither does this book. Must read previous Kellerman books to understand the depth of the characters but its a must read.
Rating: 
Summary: What?
Review: I've enjoyed both Kellermans. Incorporating Jewish culture into the Decker books has always been a sweet spice; however, like a person who uses to much, the use of Jewish culture is overpowering the story. An additional problem in this book is that after about 4-5 pages you can't keep track of the players. Faye's books have begun to move into the area of political advocacy without the skills to do so effectively.
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Summary: exciting entry in a warm series
Review: New York Conservative Rabbi Jonathan Levine calls his half-brother Los Angeles Police Lieutenant Peter Decker for help. Jon explains that someone executed his Orthodox brother-in-law Ephraim Leiber in a run down New York hotel room. However, the reason Jon wants Peter to come to the Big Apple is to find his teenage niece Shaynda a probable witness to the murder whom has vanished. Though not eager to cross into someone else's jurisdiction, Peter comes to New York. Neither NYPD, nor Shaynda's parents, nor the townsfolk where the Leibers live welcome Peter on the scene. Still Peter makes in roads and finds Shaynda in the Manhattan apartment of a Mob-connected criminal. However, Peter's inquiries are not finished as Shaynda's story is just beginning and that tale will not end happily. Peter's normal co-star in this wonderful series, his wife Rina Lazarus, hardly appears in STONE KISS. However, though Rina makes only a cameo appearance, the novel remains an exciting entry as one of the better ones in several years. The investigation is handled quite smoothly especially when Peter is struggling to overcome the objections of NYPD, a small town police chief, and an Orthodox congregation that borders on the Hasidic. Though similar in plot to previous books as family troubles start the latest tzuros for Rina and Peter, series fans will enjoy this look at the East Coast side of the extended brood. Harriet Klausner
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Summary: Stone Kiss?
Review: I finished Stone Kiss several hours ago and just realized I have no idea what the title has to do with. Is it something relating to the overuse of Hebrew/Yiddish words which pepper the entire book with no definition for most of them (not even context clues)? I enjoy Ms. Kellerman's books, but this one seems to have even more unknown words and phrases than most of her books. Maybe there should be a glossary at the end of the story so we who are not Jewish can read the book and understand it. Or maybe we aren't meant to?
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Summary: Don't start reading this late at night
Review: It's a very violent book in many ways, but I was unable to put it down. IMHO, this is the best of her long, distinguished Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus series, except perhaps for "Prayers for the Dead." With constant twists and turns and interesting touches concerning Jewish religious practices and differences, it's certainly an attention holder. When I'm still up at 1 am saying to myself though bleary eyes, "just one more chapter;" I consider it a book that should receive 5 stars!
Rating: 
Summary: "Riveting"???..............
Review: Publisher's Weekly calls this book "riveting." I made it 3/4 of the way through the book and QUIT. I have read all of Ms. Kellerman's previous novels, and believe that her last 3 books have been downhill all the way. She is capable of very good writing, but in this book is overly prone to exclamation points and plot confusion. At one point she refers to hair as "tresses"--ok, are we reading a romance novel here? Get real.
I totally agree with the reviews of Jerry Bull and Carolyn Lawrence, above, especially regarding the plodding and confusing plot and the switches in point of view. When the point of view switched to Terry halfway through the book it made absolutely no sense at all, not to mention that Terry is an extremely annoying character. I found the relationships between Decker and his relatives and Decker and Donatti to be a complete stretch.
I DID find the information about Jewish sects somewhat interesting.
Sorry, Ms. Kellerman. I may not even read your next book.
Rating:
Summary: I guess it's a matter of taste....
Review: I read one or two books a week. I've never felt compelled to write a review before, but even prior to finishing this book I knew I'd write this one. To my mind, this book was *the* best in the series! Imagine my surprise to come online and discover the negative reviews. I have to disagree with several of the previous reviewers. I thought this book was fabulous. Yes, it was dark. Yes, it was complex. Yes, it was filled with subtext about the Hassidic community. Yes, there were many intertwining subplots. These are the things I loved about it. I can't remember the last time I finished a book feeling so totally sated. I tend to choose authors who write series with specific protagonists. Too often, I feel that the first book or two, the author feels they have said all they can say about the character(s) and their enviroment, and the books are reduced to simply action plots. "Stone Kiss" not only gives us plot, but a richer understanding of the main characters. The story isn't simply placed in an unusual community; it is exciting to watch the characters interact with the community, to assimilate this information into our understanding of who Decker and Lazurus are. The writing was tight, and perfect. I haven't enjoyed a book this much in a long, long time.
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Summary: A CONVINCING, SUBTLY PACED READING
Review: Fans of Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus mysteries will welcome the return of this popular pair. All will welcome a convincing, subtly paced reading by stage, film and television actor Dennis Boutsikaris. Things were abnormally serene in the Decker/Lazarus household until LAPD Lt. Decker receives a cry for help. Rabbi Jonathan Levine, his half-brother phones with the horrible news that the Rabbi's brother-in-law has been murdered. The man's naked body was discovered in one of Manhattan's flea bag hotels. Perhaps worse the slain man's 15-year-old niece is missing. She may have a clue to the man's death; more importantly, she is a young girl who has evidently disappeared. Peter and Rina fly to New York, where he knows he will be seen as an interloper by the local police, but he did not expect the antipathy he received from the missing girl's relatives. Things get really hot when Peter is forced to search the dark streets of Manhattan alone. It is not long before he becomes a target. But, why? The plot and dialogue are typical Kellerman - for her fans that is more than enough. - Gail Cooke
Rating: 
Summary: One of Faye's weaker (confusing) plots, heavy on Judaism
Review: With more than a dozen entries in the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus series, certainly each new book by Faye Kellerman is anxiously awaited by her fans. We have learned to tolerate a good deal of "discussion" (promotion?) of the Jewish faith as part of her stories because we love her characters, especially the lead couple, and the suspenseful mysteries which normally surround them. However, "Stone Kiss" left us a little cold on two fronts. First, the illumination of Orthodox Judaism, this time especially the very strict Chasidic practices, is so dominant in this story it gets tiresome and annoying. The mystery involves a number of relatives and half-brothers and so on, but at times we began wondering if Kellerman was taking up for, or trying to demean, the lives and mores of this group. Before it's all over, various of the Chasidic men turn out to be smugglers, dopers, customers of prostitution, etc. If this was meant to suggest "we're all human", it was lost on us. Secondly, the story is dark and confusing. Rina has such a small part she might as well have just been on vacation -- we could have saved several pages of her shopping and mixing with the family and so forth while she visits the old homesteads in NYC. The co-star (with Decker) is really a porno-king criminal named Chis Donatti, whose role and relationships with Decker are reprised from Kellerman's earlier book "Justice" (and we suggest you read that story first if you missed it). While Decker is trying to help the family find a missing teenager and niece of the murdered brother, Donatti keeps showing up at one location after another throughout every section of the book. Eventually one thinks he must be superman to get around as fast as he does, and to just conveniently know where everybody's going to be about five minutes after they themselves decide. The tension between Decker and Donatti is probably about the only thing that saves an otherwise plodding and confusing plot, with which we found ourselves caring little about the outcome. Kellerman is a good writer and seems to publish at a pace adequate to maintain quality. But to us, she needs to temper her proselytizing a little and draw a clearer and more compelling mystery line to preserve or improve her reputation.
Rating:
Summary: stone kiss
Review: This is my least favorite in the Decker/Lazarus series. The mystery is lost somewhere in all the information about different Jewish sects. Where are the clues? The suspense? The only reason I gave the book a two is because I did plow through it to find out whodunit. Otherwise, it would have been a one or a zero if the option was available. Faye Kellerman is reminding me of Patricia Cornwell. Cornwell's early works were riveting and then suddenly, without explanation, they took a turn for the worse. In my opinion Faye Kellerman has taken that same corner. I still love the series, but will definitely wait to get the next one in paperback.
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