Dr. Death : a novel /

The question of how close assisted suicide is to murder--and how close a death-dealing doctor is to a serial killer--forms the moral backbone of this intriguing thriller, the fourteenth in the Delaware series. After assisting in more than 50 suicides, Dr. Eldon Mate, loosely based upon Dr. Jack Kevorkian, is found murdered in his suicide van, hoisted on his own Humanitron killing machine. LAPD homicide detective Milo Sturgis once again seeks psychologist and friend Delaware's knowledge of behavioral psychology. Delaware's insights into the criminal mind (he posits the killer is after reflected glory here) are both compelling and convincing. (Kellerman himself is a noted psychologist.) The mystery is enhanced by the range of suspects, including the families of the suicides, Dr. Mate's son, and one of Delaware's clients, and by Delaware's own "nasty overlap" of ethical conflicts. A heady blend of criminal profiling and police procedural and another surefire hit from the best-selling Kellerman. --Connie Fletcher

A series of well-publicized gentle deaths are the work of self-appointed angel of mercy Dr. Eldon Mate, who attends to the terminally ill in cheap hotel rooms or in the back of his van. Now Mate himself is dead, carved up and found by two joggers and their dog on a high road above Los Angeles. Like Kellerman's previous bestsellers, this title features psychologist Alex Delaware, whose self-righteous pomposity blends neatly, as it has before, into a narrative liberally dosed with psycho-angles and agreeably warped murder motives. This time out, Delaware works with cop Milo Sturgis and counsels Stacy and Eric Doss, two teenage children getting over their mother Joanne's death, which Dr. Mate seemingly helped to hasten. In his dual role, Delaware encounters a rogue FBI agent tracking a killer obsessed with Mate; Mate's disturbed son; and Richard Doss, the kids' father, who by slipping cash to a shady character in a dark bar is marked as a prime murder suspect. Joanne's illness too proves mysterious. But Kellerman isn't in top form here. Most annoyingly, the FBI guy does the bulk of the sleuthing legwork, while Delaware spends much of the book either making love or pontificating on motivations for characters all very similarly flawed. The ending is agreeably tricky, but by then great gobs of Delaware have either delighted Kellerman's faithful or else turned readers' stomachs in a way that serial deaths, gentle or otherwise, may have somehow failed to do. Kellerman's rep and the book's strong, geometric cover will send this one on to the lists. (Dec. 5) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Kellerman has come up with another very enjoyable mystery. The crime-solving team of LAPD detective Milo Sturgis and psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware are back to attempt to solve the murder of Eldon Mate Dr. Death who had attended more than 50 assisted suicides. In death, Mate is found in the rear of a rented van, hooked up to his own suicide machine. Read by John Rubinstein, this engaging story works very well on several levels, as it discusses psychology, dysfunctional families, and Southern California lifestyles, in addition to the ethics of euthanasia. The book has a remarkably contemporary feel about as up-to-date as tomorrow's headlines, yet it may also inspire repeat listening. Highly recommended; essential for detective and mystery collections. Cliff Glaviano, Bowling Green State Univ. Libs., OH (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.