Rating: 
Summary: Powerful Suspense
Review: John Katzenbach takes us on a twisting roller coaster of a read in his novel "The Analyst." The plot is filled with mind-boggling intrigue, true to life characters and nail-bitting suspense. Curve after curve the author gives you insight as to the villian only to discover a villian you don't expect. Great page-turning read.
Beverly J Scott author of Righteous Revenge
Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: One of the best plots I've read in quite awhile. Well-written, captured my attention from start to finish.
Rating:
Summary: Chilling, suspenseful, tour-de-force
Review: A psychoanalyst, very set in his ways, gets his life turned upside down when he receives a letter that tells him he has committed a wrong and has only 15 days to live. This is a whirlwind story where nothing is as it seems and the deck seems stacked against Dr. Frederick Starks getting the information to be able to provide the real name of the villain "Rumplestiltskin" to call off the death threat. Rumplestiltskin sends clues and messengers to help Starks but this help is more than offset by the destruction and false clues he also sends. As the time ticks down and Starks gets more and more desperate, you feel frightened for him. The character development of Starks is extremely well done. He is entirely believable as a plain vanilla, run of the mill psychoanalyst who is not overly concerned about his patients, or his fellow man. When his life gets turned upside down, he is forced to dramatically change and he surprises himself (and us) with the new man he is becoming. There are a lot of similarities in the first part of the book with the movie "The Game" where a man has his pampered life turned inside out and has to go on the run to stay alive. The second half of the book is not as frightening but just as intriguing as Starks tries to find out the identity of Rumplestiltskin and why this is happening to him. There are many twists and turns that make this a not-to-be missed thriller!!!! Highly recommended; sit back and enjoy the wild ride.
Rating:
Summary: What a wild ride!!
Review: Don't start this book until you have some time. The first chapter will grab you....you may slow down for a while and then..watch out.....unsuspected twists and turns..yet believable. Very frightening to think how one's whole life can be stripped away in just a few strokes of a computer or with a letter or a phone call...so many ways. Don't scan because something will happen in the very next sentence that you had no way of anticipating. If Katzenbach's other books are this good, I've found a new favorite.
Rating:
Summary: revenge is sweet!
Review: If I had only read half of the book, I would have given
a one star review. Psychiatrist Dr. Frederick Starks literally has his life destroyed by a person who hated him for the way he
treated a former patient. He takes everything away from Starks.
However, the last half of the book redeems itself. I went from depression to cheers. Katzenbach is an author who defies a one-theme series of novels. I have been reading him for what seems like 20 years. Could that be possible? He never fails to
intrigue and entertain me.
Rating: 
Summary: The renaissance of a "dead" shrink
Review: Widowed and affluent New York psychoanalyst Dr. Frederick Starks, spends his professional life listening to the morass of problems confronted by his well to do patients. On his 53rd birthday he receives a puzzling letter inviting him to partake in a game. The stakes are his life. The letter, penned by someone called Rumplestiltskin, threatens to bring harm to one of Starks' innocent relatives if Starks doesn't end his life in 15 days. Starks at first dismisses the letter but upon investigation discovers that a young relative of his has already been menaced. Starks eventually is confronted by cohorts of Rumplestiltskin, known as the seductive Virgil and the lawyerly Merlin. They goad him and invoke terror in him through their actions. A diabolical plot is hatched which eventually ruins Starks professionally, financially and mentally. He is on the verge of committing suicide when he courageously decides to fake his own death. He proceeds to establish a new life and identity with the single purpose of exacting revenge against Rumplestiltskin and his cronies. In psychologically insightful plan Starks tries to turn the tables on his tormentors, becoming the hunter rather than the prey. The book proceeds interestingly at a rapid pace despite one very bothersome coincidence that too conveniently ties many loose ends into a tidy package.
Rating:
Summary: YOU CAN'T PUT THIS DOWN
Review: ONE OF THE TEN BEST BOOKS I'VE EVER READ. YOU CAN'T PUT THIS DOWN. IF YOU LOVED HART'S WAR YOU WILL LOVE THIS BOOK. THIS IS SKILLED WRITING YOU DON'T FIND TOO MANY PLACES. THIS BOOK MAKES YOU THINK AND ENTERTAINS.
Rating:
Summary: A SUPERB PAGE TURNER
Review: An excellent read! I could not put the book down!! I recommend this book toanyone and everyone who loves psychological suspense books. They are the best!
Rating:
Summary: THE ANALYST
Review: T rouble is visited upon psychoanalyst Ricky Starks
H e receives a letter proposing a deadly game from someone he has angered
E very move has been plotted by the mystery man known as Rumplestiltskin A s the game progresses, it becomes clear that Ricky is being manipulated
N othing can be taken for granted, nor is anything as it seems.
A s the game goes on we watch Ricky adapt, both for better and worse.
L ife-changing decisions must be planned and, more importantly, acted upon.
Y ear's best book for me so far, nothing comes close.
S ensational idea with a thought-provoking opening,
T hrough to a very enjoyable game of cat and mouse.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating page-turner (4.5 stars)
Review: I finished THE ANALYST over a week ago, and still can't get it out of my mind. In part, it's a seductive look into the meaning of identity. If you peel off the top layers of how we define ourselves -- the ones most prized by society -- what's left? There's also room for rumination on loyalty and responsibility. It's not as obvious as it might seem! A game of riddles keeps you guessing, waiting to see what the next development will be. So there's welcome interaction between the characters and the reader. (Writing about this just now, I wonder if the title could refer to the reader in addition to the protagonist.) The dialogue is very nicely done, and is a vast improvement over Mr. Katzenbach's earlier books. It seems a lot of research and thought went into how the characters express themselves. And the ending's a real kicker! I have a couple of minor reservations. Why didn't Ricky look up the fairy tale of Rumplestiltskin for more clues (even if only for the reader's sake)? Surely his tormentor put a lot of thought into his alias. Contemplation on the fairy tale character would seem in order. Occasionally, the story goes a little over-the-top; at times, the events seem surreal. Didn't bother me, but it's worth mentioning. Overall, THE ANALYST is a fascinating suspense story with plenty of food for philosophical thought (if you swing that way).
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