A psychologist's attempts to trace the origins of a former patient's breakdown place him at the hub of the investigation into a string of vicious serial murders.

Little Woody Swope was gravely ill. Treatment was possible, if painful. But his parents, members of a bizarre sect called the Touchers, threatened to take him out of hospital. Then Woody was gone. So were the Swopes, leaving their motel suite heavily bloodstained. Enter Alex Delaware, child psychologist, young, burned out, and semi-retired. He and his LA cop friend Milo find a heap of suspects - an ageing ex-hippy doctor; a back-country police chief;...

Psychologist Alex Delaware receives a mysterious book on his doorstep, a beautifully bound volume that contains archival-quality photographs of murder victims, arranged in sequence by an unseen but meticulous hand. This is the Murder Book, a tantalizing mystery, but a record of terrible, brutal death. When his old friend Detective Milo Sturgis realizes that he can identify one of the victims, the trail goes hot, but in the process, both Sturgis and...

Alex Delaware is called in to help elementary school children overcome the trauma after a female sniper has fired on a schoolyard. None of the children are injured, but the sniper is killed and Delaware gets a plea from the sniper's father to do a "psychological autopsy" to clear his daughter's name.

Professor Hope Devane is murdered on a quiet street of L.A., and homicide detective Milo Sturgis asks for help from Dr. Alex.

Years after failing to help troubled teen-turned-stripper Lauren Teague, psychologist Alex Delaware ignores the advice of friends to solve her murder, delving into the victim's past and the sex industry of southern California.

The anonymous caller has an ominous tone and an unnerving message about something "real dead ... buried in your marsh." The eco-volunteer on the other end of the phone thinks it's a prank, but when a young woman's body turns up in L.A.'s Bird Marsh preserve no one's laughing. And when the bones of more victims surface, homicide detective Milo Sturgis realizes the city's under siege by an insidious killer.

Veteran homicide cop Milo Sturgis and psychologist Alex Delaware expose the shadowy side of glittering Los Angeles as they investigate the gruesome death of a young couple-murdered in flagrante--the man identified as a notorious womanizer and eco-friendly architect, the woman unidentified--in this unforgettable tale spiced with eco-terrorism, arson, blackmail, conspiracy, and a vendetta that runs deep.

Jonathan Kellerman's Mystery opens in a bar where Dr. Alex Delaware and his girlfriend, Robin, are amused by several men who can't seem to keep their eyes off a stunning young girl drinking alone. But Alex finds nothing funny the next morning when homicide detective Milo Sturgis stops by with crime scene photos in which the "bar girl" figures prominently. How can Alex tell? Not by her face, which has been obliterated. It's her clothes that catch his...

"A much loved woman's dead body is found in her apartment, victim of horrendous overkill even as her dining room table is perfectly set for a romantic dinner. It turns out her devoted boyfriend has an alibi and, with few clues leading to a suspect, LAPD's Lieutenant Milo Sturgis calls in psychologist Alex Delaware for help. Then another woman is shot execution style; three bullets in the back of her head leave her husband with a profitable business....