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Fiction. Mystery. Suspense. Thriller. HTML: It is a case unlike any psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware has ever encountered. Five-year-old Woody Swope is ill, but the real problem is his parents. They refuse to agree to the one treatment that could save this boy's life. Alex sets out to convince Mr. and Mrs. Swope--only to find that the parents have left the hospital and taken their son with them. Worse, the sleazy motel room where the Swopes were staying is empty--except for the ominous bloodstain. The Swopes and their son have vanished into the sordid shadows of the city. Now Alex and his friend, homocide detective Milo Sturgis, have no choice but to push the law to the breaking point. They've entered an amoral underworld where drugs, dreams, and sex are all for sale...where fantasies are fulfilled at any price--even at the cost of a young boy's life..… (more)
User reviews
Alex delves deeper into the mystery, taking a lot of the investigating upon himself, (which I still find unlikely) and putting himself in direct danger again. I've been reminded that this is fiction, and that it's a mystery/thriller, and that I shouldn't expect characters in books to just do their jobs and leave the police work to the actual police. I still have a hard time with it, and it lessens my enjoyment with what is actually a very well-plotted and intriguing mystery. I agree with Alex's take on psychology and I like how he pays attention to people's body language and couches his own reactions to the situation based on what he needs to portray in order to manipulate suspects. I did not guess who the "bad guy(s)" were halfway through, which is a bonus. I appreciate that the action and the threads of the tale are well-concluded at the end. Really, my only complaint is that it's a little far-fetched. But it's fiction! I know. Okay.
I think I prefer this one to When The Bough Breaks, the first Delaware book; it relies less on coincidence and accidental happenings, and more on solid work (both psychological and detective).
Woody Swopes has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma; treatment is possible
When Alex Delaware agrees to assist a former colleague in convincing an angry family not to remove their cancer-stricken child from hospital care, he quickly discovers that all is not as it appears. When the patient disappears, Alex is quickly swept up in a complex web of conspiracy and deceit ultimately leading to a showdown with a cult guru and a fight to the death with an ax-wielding maniac.
If the plot sounds a tad far-flung, that’s because it is. Yet Kellerman’s deft first-person narrative style and tight prose tie the various story threads together into a suspense-filled and surprisingly emotional tale about the misuse of power and the unintended effects of so-called victimless crimes. Basically, though the author probably didn’t intend this, it’s a story about the far-reaching consequences of sin.
As a psychological thriller, Blood Test succeeds. It is exciting and creepy and satisfying. Readers should be aware, however, that it contains rather graphic depictions of the evil acts carried out by some of the characters, including drug use, prostitution, and physical and emotional abuse, along with one very disturbing description of a sex ritual. It should also be noted that Alex Delaware’s best friend is gay, though the author primarily uses this very likeable character not to promote a homosexual lifestyle but as a means of exploring prejudice and social injustice.
Though it not a “issue book,” Blood Test certainly tackles several issues that are if anything more prevalent today than when the book was written over two decades ago. The disturbing elements of the story may offend some readers, and certainly caution should be exercised in reading, but Alex Delaware’s heroism and Kellerman’s eminently readable writing make this book worthwhile for those who are able to stomach some of the nastier parts and grasp the story’s message that good—at least “good” as seen from a purely secular perspective—ultimately triumphs over evil.
Although this book has a good bit of drama and suspense, it loses its punch because basically every character in the story besides Alex Delaware, his gay detective friend Milo, and the sick boy, everyone else is a complete deviant. When you have basically every person, either being a child molester, drug dealer or killer, it lacks any real sense of believability or credibility. After a while, it's hard not to lose interest after yet another character is revealed to be an evil fiend. It just becomes too much. This is definitely a case where more is less. This overshadows a decent plot and solid writing skills by Jonathan Kellerman.
Carl Alves - author of Two For Eternity
Apparently, some of the earlier novels also have the Milo/Alex partnership reversed -
Alex and Milo start following the boy and the parents (and the older sister) and finding their backstory. And the backstory is terrifying - what happens when a man loses everything he has due to the weather and turns to his dark side. The last part of the story got a bit too surreal for my taste- it never left the land of the possible but still.
It is a terrifying novel. Very well done, very insightful but still leaving you with your skin crawling - the way that horror never can - because that may actually happen.
That's probably what my tombstone will say, isn't it?
The boy, Heywood "Woody" Swope appears to be the one normal foil for his reclusive, fruit obsessed parents and hostile 20-year-old sister, Nona. Named for an apple, Annona Blossom Swope is described in almost feral terms.
There is less of a psychological twist in Blood test than in some of the other Jonathan Kellerman books, but plot interest will keep you reading until the end.
The second half of the book, the story