Part of Alex Delaware, book 27
First published 2012
Psychologist Alex Delaware stares at a crime scene unlike any he has encountered. Vita Berlin lies dead in her apartment, arranged in a grotesque display that recalls Jack the Ripper's London murders. LAPD detective Milo Sturgis calls Delaware to help solve what appears to be the work of a homicidal maniac. Berlin had no friends and countless enemies, but the killer's motive remains unclear. More bodies appear in the same ghastly fashion, yet the victims share no obvious connections. Each crime scene contains a single clue: a blank page with a question mark. The symbol seems both a taunt and a plea for help from a killer confused by his own deadly impulses. Pressure mounts to stop the murders before panic grips Los Angeles. Delaware investigates the city's mental health network, from Beverly Hills therapy offices to abandoned psychiatric facilities where he once worked. In these shadowy places, dangerous alliances between patients and staff may have formed. As Delaware and Sturgis piece together the puzzle, they uncover a twisted mind capable of unimaginable evil.
Genres: mystery, crime, detective, psychological-thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: investigation, serial-killer, twisted-killer
Setting: Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, LAPD
Period: Contemporary
338 pages · Hardcover · Ballantine Books
Content warnings: graphic-violence, murder, violence