False Prophet

Lilah Brecht, the daughter of a famous actress is assaulted and raped at home while her mother's jewels and some important papers are stolen from her safe. She clings to investigator Peter Decker in a way that makes both him and his wife uneasy. As he delves into Lilah's life, Peter discovers a complex and dysfunctional pattern of behaviour between Lilah's mother and her children. Revelation follows revelation until Peter and his partner Marge finally put all of the pieces together.
It a compelling page-turner but somewhat ruined by a less-than satisfactory ending.

Peter and Rina were on their honeymoon in the last book, DAY OF ATONEMENT. In FALSE PROPHET, Rina is pregnant and it's summer, poor thing. Peter's 18-year-old daughter, Cindy, who is a college freshman, hasn't been taking his calls lately. Is she jealous of the baby? At least Sammy and Jacob, Rina's sons, still like their stepfather.

Peter answers a 911 call involving a lovely spa owner, Lilah Brecht, whom the public knows as the daughter of golden age movie star Davida Eversong. Lovely Lilah may be successful with her business and is Davida's favorite, but does her talk about her psychic powers mean she's not playing with a full deck?

Lilah's taken a fancy to Pete. Worse, she's not happy about the ground rules Pete lays out for her. show more There will be some unpleasant scenes with the overgrown spoiled brat. Pete will have to save her from what could have been a messy death.

I would pompously state that the less said about Lilah's family the better, but it's possible that one or more of her kin were involved with the break-in at her house that resulted in the lady being hospitalized.

Are the staff at Lilah's spa and house really devoted to her?

The investigation doesn't seem to be going anywhere when it turns into not one, but TWO murder cases. There's going to be a opening in homicide in the Devonshire area. If Pete's to get the job, he wants Marge to go with him. (His partner wants to work in homicide, too.) In fact, one of the murder cases requires consultation with a Devonshire homicide detective. Will he become a regular supporting character?

Another complication is the potential for publicity, given the Davida Eversong connection. The despicable March 3, 1991 police beating of Rodney King has Decker's boss publicity shy. Pete and Rina discuss that famous real-life case in chapter 8.

The twists and turns the plot takes grabbed me and refused to let go. What a ride!

Notes:

The Earl Darcy mentioned in chapter 3 was a character in MILK AND HONEY, the third book in the series.

Near the end of chapter 7, we learn that Pete has a gentle mare named White Diamond and that Cobra is the biggest stallion in his stable.

The infamous 'N' word is used in chapter 13, but it's in a scornful remark made by an African-American character.

Horse lovers might wish to skip chapter 14.

Pete's joking attempt at a policeman's rap is found in chapter 24. (I'm with Marge about the results.)

In chapter 25, Pete gives some thought to the two half-brothers with whom he's maintaining a relationship, and to his brother by adoption, Randy.

There's a comment about one of the murders on the front dust jacket flap that would be a bigger spoiler if there weren't more than two characters who fit the description. Sneaky.

The last chapter was the sweetest. show less

A woman attacked in her own bedroom, stolen jewelery, stolen manuscript, a fading Hollywood star, a woman believing in her psychic powers to see without her eyes... all that could have made a great story. Except that it did not.

The story itself is not bad and could have worked but the cast of characters just does not work. A convoluted family history in the middle of everything was to be expected but some of the relationships inside of it are beyond belief - not to mention some of the relationships outside of it. And then all family secrets just coming up after so many years? Could have been handled but the writing was simply missing something.

On the Rina/Decker part - she expects their first child and is moody and almost invisible for show more the most part. Cindy (Decker's daughter) makes an appearance (for the whole summer), Rina's boys live with them and the family seems to be getting used to each other.

Not the best in the series but not a reason to drop the series - at least for me. show less

Peter Decker is trying to keep his wife Rina happy while she is pregnant--not always easy. Escpecially when the women he is helping in his latest case, Lilah, becomes overly attached to him, even showing up at his home in the middle of the night. Still, Peter must figure out who raped her and stole her family jewels and her father's memoirs. Lilah's family and the staff at her spa create quite a cast of kooky characters, topped off by Lilah herself who claims to have prophetic visions and that she "imaged" her attackers (saw them despite being blindfolded). As Decker tracks down the truth he has the ever present family problems to deal with, as he struggles to fit in his newfound life as an orthodox Jew to the demands of his job.
While I show more have enjoyed this series, this one just seemed mediocre to me. The supporting characters didn't seem real enough. The end had a twist, but it was easy to figure out where things were heading. If you are a fan of the series you'll want to read it, but otherwise it's just an average mystery. show less

Peter Decker's new case brings him into the glamorous Hollywood world when a celebrity is assaulted, but things are not as they initially seem and seediness turns out to be as prevalent amongst the rich as amongst the poor. As in other installments of the series, the mystery is taut and the stakes are high for Peter as well as for Rina when the victim decides that Peter should be her next conquest. Some of the characters are more than unlikely and their actions hardly probable, but it's forgivable if you're a follower of the series. The pacing is good and the standard characters are as interesting as ever.

I thought it was really good up until the last quarter of the book where it started to drag but at the same time little twists to the story were coming out, I found myself just reading it and not so much enjoying it :(

Lilah Brecht, die Tochter einer berühmten Filmschauspielerin, ist überfallen worden. Peter Decker, als Detective bei der Polizei von Los Angeles eher mit den dunklen Seiten seiner Stadt vertraut, ermittelt diesmal in der Glitzerwelt Hollywoods - und entdeckt hinter dem schönen Schein eine gierige und intrigante Welt der Familienfehden. Aber der Lösung des Falls kommt Decker erst näher, als er von seiner Frau Rina, die ihr erstes gemeinsames Kind erwartet, einen entscheidenden Hinweis erhält...