I enjoy reading everything in this series. Alex and Milo team up as usual, this time to solve a thirty-year-old case that Milo has been ordered to work on. The actual solution takes a very long time, but it's interesting to me to follow the tedious steps of an investigation so that didn't put me off the story. On the other hand, hearing about the boring aspects of driving from one neighborhood to another in the LA area, street by street, almost put me to sleep. The interaction among the characters made up for that, as did the twists and turns in the case. ( )

Terrible. I love Milo but this book was useless. There were so many things that did not make sense. ( )

So many strange coincidences that allow this very cold case to be pulled back into the light -- but an enjoyable and consistent Sturgis/Delaware novel nonetheless. There were a couple of bordering off-color remarks about women by Milo that were slightly jarring -- not so much because they skirted the grounds of taste (although they did), but because they focused on the sexiness of women in the book. Strange commentary from a gay man who clearly couldn't care less.

Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss. ( )

St ( )

Jonathan Kellerman’s creative juices still continue to flow unabated after dozens of bestsellers over the last few decades, and he is back with the thirty-sixth Alex Delaware thriller, Serpentine, close on the heels of the previous one.

This time around, LAPD Homicide Lieutenant Milo Sturgis is forced to take on a mega-loser of a case—a thirty-six-year-old unsolved murder of a young woman. The victim, who had left behind a three-year-old daughter, was found shot to death inside the wreck of an expensive car. All these years later, the daughter—a wealthy woman now—is helped in her effort to find closure by an influential acquaintance by getting the case reopened. Milo’s friend, psychologist Alex Delaware, is drafted into the investigation immediately and the duo embarks on a mission where three previous attempts over the years have been utter failures. The latest investigation throws up more suspicious deaths—of people connected with the original case—albeit without any pattern. Milo’s tenacity and Alex’s insightfulness open up several avenues and present them with several suspects before a totally unexpected revelation refutes all their theories. The stone-cold case finally rushes to its resolution through some solid detective work aided by a bit of luck.

As always, watching Milo and Alex go about their business is a lot of fun. Their easy camaraderie, cerebral interactions and the way they complement each other once again provide great entertainment. It’s nice to meet some of the other recurring characters too. Kellerman’s writing is what I would call—in my limited experience—classy; he has a way with words that draws the reader in and does not let go easily. Serpentine’s intriguing plot is neatly paced, with new revelations and twists coming at regular intervals, keeping the reader guessing all the way towards the satisfying end.

While it is a terrific read, Serpentine has the same recurring issues of the past few novels in this series: too much description of food, people and roads; Alex’s underutilisation as a psychologist; repetitive sequences of Milo’s visits to Alex’s home and kitchen; and the too-perfect domestic life of Alex and Robin. But the positives outweigh the negatives so far and all is well, at least for now.

To put it shortly, Kellerman delivers yet another gripping police procedural with his evergreen pair of protagonists conquering yet another seemingly unsolvable case, and I would rate Serpentine a solid 4 out of 5. My immense gratitude to the author and the publisher of Serpentine, and NetGalley, for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. ( )