Once again Faye Kellerman does not disappoint with her new book The Lost Boys. Aside from the always interesting background of the Decker family and its Jewish and non-Jewish roots, the search for a lost boy and then others keeps your interest from beginning to end.

The latest installment in the Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus series starts with a missing person, a developmentally challenged adult who disappears while on a field trip with his residential facility. While searching for him in the nearby woods, a set of buried remains are discovered. The bones belong to a young college student who went missing with 2 of his friends 10 years earlier, setting off a second story arc as Peter Decker and his colleagues revisit the cold case, trying to find out what happened to the 2 friends. Meanwhile, Rina is visited by their foster son, Gabe Donetti, who asks Rina to go with him to meet his mother, who has returned from India and needs his help. This arc picks up the story of Gabe's parents from previous Decker/Lazarus novels, and the fact that it is not resolved before the end of the book makes you think/hope there might be an independent follow-up. This is the 26th book in this series and is as clever, well-thought-out, well-written, and enjoyable as any of them. The characters are engaging, real and have the depth to them that you would expect in a long-lived series. Peter Decker's age is alluded to several times, raising concern in the avid fan that his detective days may be coming to an end, but the end of the book leaves hope that we will get at least one more installment from Kellerman before Decker turns in his badge. There are also hints that his legacy may continue in future books even if he & Rina no longer take center stage. Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

The Lost Boys
I’m beginning to realize that ebooks are just not for me. There are so many books I want to read, but I feel I lose focus when I don’t have a physical
Copy. I really enjoyed this book, but I feel there is a lot I missed.

This story follows the missing case of Bertram, a special needs adult, who was high functioning, that goes missing on a day trip with this facility. As the investigation ensues, more details are discovered. He was using a map app on his phone, he was in love with his girlfriend, who was at another facility, a worker from his facility left the job and was nowhere to be found and has pictures of Bertram and his girlfriend in her house. So many theories began. Was he kidnapped? Did this woman help them escape so they could be together? Neither families were too concerned either. While searching the woods where he went missing, they come across remains, from many years ago. Now the detectives have two cases to solve at the same time. I think I was more interested in the cold case because it has more depth. Three boys went missing on a camping trip and never were heard of again. They find shattered hands on the victim. A few weeks later they find another body. One body is missing and they are convinced that boy is still alive.

This was a page turner and kept me on my toes until the end. I don’t want to get spoilers away. This book will be released on Jan 12, 2021.

Thank you William Morrow for this copy to read and review!

#justonemorechapter #netgalley #thelostboys #coldcases #williammorrow

A wonderful installment to the Decker/Lazarus Series... Whilst Peter Decker navigates a missing person (possibly murder) case, Rita is busy with their foster son, Gabriel, and his long-lost mother. The missing person's case quickly adds on a murder to Decker's case load... He and McAdams - who are so wonderful together - work to unravel the case... all while eating some of the most mouth-watering meals prepared by Rita. I don't want to give much away but this is such a satisfying novel that features such wonderful characters... And, I had forgotten how "interesting" Gabriel's father is. I hope Ms. Kellerman picks up right where this one left off in her next book!

I jumped all over this book because of the author, she is as reliable as her husband and I knew I was in for a good story, and I was, sorta. The initial crime is not huge and dramatic, but no less urgent. A special needs man disappears without a trace. Following threads leads no place, hmmm. At the same time, an old case of missing, presumed dead, hikers won't go away.

This is well written, moves quickly and the characters are well drawn-the story flows. It did read a bit like a Jon Kellerman book. A first clue leads down a path that seems pretty direct to me.

Overall, nice, fun, enjoyable mystery from a most reliable author. 4.5 stars

I was a devout acolyte of Faye Kellerman’s early Decker and Lazarus books. The Ritual Bath (1986) is, to me, one of the greatest first mysteries ever. In it, Peter Decker, an LAPD detective, encounters the orthodox Jewish Rina Lazarus after a rape and murder at her neighborhood mikvah, or ritual bath. Improbably, the two eventually get married and the series, now 26 books long, is a strong one. The early books were marked by intensity of character discovery, intensity of violence, and Kellerman’s propulsive narrative skill.

All these many books later, Peter and Rina have aged into a comfortable old married couple with many children and grandchildren, and Peter has retired from the LAPD and taken on a “retirement” job as a detective in upstate New York. I have found through reading many writers who were almost excessively violent in early books – Karin Slaughter and Val McDermid come to mind – that as the authors age, the violence becomes less extreme. In the cases of all of these talented writers I stuck with the books, because all of them are extremely well written.

And what hasn’t changed are the wonder of Kellerman’s main characters. All these years later, I love them as much as I did in my first encounter. Rina is that almost perfect woman who isn’t annoying (unlike say, Susan Silverman in the Robert Parker books). Peter is kind – a kind husband and father, and a kind mentor to his present partner, Tyler McAdams, a recent law school grad who is figuring out his life. Rina and Peter are always worth a visit just on their own.

What also hasn’t changed is Kellerman’s sure hand with narrative. She sets up her story with a good hook. A developmentally disabled man, Bertram Telemann, has disappeared from a scheduled field trip set up by the home he lives in. The group had gone into the woods to hike and a head count on the bus home comes up one short.

While looking for Bertram, the police come across some older bones, and a cold case comes into play. Ten years ago, three college students had disappeared on a camping trip in the woods and were never heard from again. Sadly, the bones discovered turn out to belong to one of the missing boys, and Peter and his partner begin to unravel the case.

Kellerman has such a sure hand she’s able to unspool both stories almost simultaneously, though the story of the boys takes front and center as Decker and his partner reach out to the parents of the missing boys to help them understand what happened.

Decker announces a change toward the end of the book that made me think this was a series wrap up, but Kellerman leaves a thread to unravel in a future story at the end of the book. She also lays out a possible new direction for the series. Either way this was a book that flew through my reading fingers far too quickly. It also made me remember and appreciate all the reasons I love this series.

Fantastic novel. Intricate and involved plot and a superb ending. The last line will leave readers anxiously awaiting the next F. Kellerman novel.

Love love loveeeee Rina and Peter.....first thing, I’ve read all of these books and I forget the characters age Peter is 70, yes 70 and still the best detective out there... this starts with a man who goes missing from a group home, Peter and his Harvard protege Tyler go on the hunt. But as usual roadblocks await as Gabe the foster son shows up with mama problems, hence our old favorite Chris Donatti making an appearance! Finally in true Decker fashion another case pops up. I flew thru this book because I had to know everything and as always I was not disappointed!

I will read anything Faye Kellerman writes. To say I loved this book was an understatement. It seems like it's been a while since Decker and Tyler have been on a case. The latest installment in the Rina/Decker series had me hooked from the first chapter. These get better with time. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy.

I have read every book in this series since THE RITUAL BATH, and love Peter and Rina. Obviously, I know their families and ancillary characters very well. The problem with this book is that there are both too many characters and too little context for many of them. That being said, I would not suggest this to a first time reader of these books.

There are several plots running through the book. I found that added to the confusion. I am unsure that I found the closure totally satisfying. It’s obvious that Kellerman is transitioning the series with Peter aging out of his mighty detective role.

As always, I look forward to the next book In the series. Thank you Netgalley for this book. Because of my years of reading these books and my love for the characters, I was excited to be allowed to read and review this book.