Hangman (Paperback)

Reviews

Reviewed by Amanda P. - 17 July 2011

Lieutenant Peter Decker and his wife, Rina Lazarus, are caught up in yet another criminal adventure. This is a good thing. Faye Kellerman is a brilliant crime writer. She has created a 'serial husband and wife couple' who have had incredible staying power. Decker is getting older - he turns 60 in Hangman, his eldest daughter is pregnant, his sons are at university. Youngest daughter, Hannah, is about to leave for Israel, and to be with her boyfriend. However, the Deckers are not the Deckers without a family. Enter 14-year-old Gabe, the son of a hit man, Chris Donatti, who once shot Decker. Gabe's mother, Terry, needs help. Donatti has beaten her up for the first time. She arrives in California with her son, and contacts the only person she believes can stand up to her husband - Pete Decker. Terry disappears and Gabe ends up at the Decker home. Meanwhile Decker investigates the murder of Adrianna Blanc, a neonatal nurse hung on a building site. Her boyfriend, Garth has disappeared, along with two of Adrianna's friends. Adrianna called Garth and broke up with him before she was murdered. She was also seen talking to a hunky stranger in a bar the night before she was murdered. Kellerman manages to weave the plots together, and threads the orthodox Jewish lifestyle of her couple into the story. My one gripe is the idyllic relationship that the couple share. I don't think many wives would tolerate Decker's obsession with his job. But then, Rina is special. I've read all Kellerman’s books, so she must be doing something right. Highly recommended. Amanda Patterson www.writerswrite.co.za