The Ghost Orchid is a recent thriller written by the prolific Jonathan Kellerman and features Dr. Alex Delaware who is brought in by his friend, Milo Sturgis, to consult on another peculiar murder.
A pool boy arrives at a house to do some maintenance and finds his task impeded by a couple of dead bodies floating in the water. Dr. Alex Delaware, psychologist extraordinaire, is almost recovered from a recent near-fatal injury when Detective Milo Sturgis finally calls him to take a look at the scene to see if he had any insights on where the investigation should go. Milo and Alex find that both victims have some troubling histories, so it is not clear who was the primary target and who may have just been unlucky. They also find that marital infidelity is at the root of the scene, but the motive may not be as obvious as it would first appear. The dead woman’s identity turns into a deeper mystery the more Alex and Milo dig.
Kellerman is one of those reliable and interesting suspense writers, and this installment in his long-running series continues his impressive publishing streak. This may also be one of his better entries even though there is not a whole lot that has changed by the dynamic between his characters. I did like the choice to not have Alex focus too much on what happened in the immediately preceding novel where he was nearly killed. Milo had been hesitant to consult with Delaware, but it was not too far into the story before that bit got resolved.
I also thought the lingering question as to which victim was the primary target was quite nicely placed. There is a scene where Delaware’s long-time girlfriend provides an important clue, which I thought was kind of brilliant.
I usually find Kellerman’s works to be pretty solid as far as leisure reading goes, but this particular novel was little bit above that when it came to the plot and the questions that had to be answered.
Kellerman is also not shy about introducing the more likely suspect way later into the story at times, which I sort of appreciate since the cast of characters in mystery novels are all kind of laid out early. I think this tendency sort of emulates how real murder investigations tend to go.
Anyway, this particular Alex Delaware novel is a pleasurable and a bit more compelling than many in the series and has certainly ensured that it will not be too much longer before I hunt down the next installment.
Since Halloween is a few days away, I think I will let my reading journey turn even darker as I let Darcy Coates reveal How Bad Things Can Get.
Reviews, Musings, and Other Things... 