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stefaniefrei's review against another edition
5.0
About fitting in, identity and coping (Decker Lazarus 4)
If you want to just try the series, go for book no 1 (The Ritual Bath) and this, no 4, no 4 being for me the slightly better of the two, but no 1 should be needed to understand the whole context.
Newlyweds Peter Decker and his wife Rina, formerly Lazarus, spend an unusual honeymoon – visiting Rina’s ex-parents-in-law: with the death of Rina’s first husband from brain cancer, they lost their son, now their grandsons Sammy and Yonkie will be raised by Rina with Pete. So the LAPD-cop wants to help Rina make them feel more comfortable, still feeling a lot out of place in the strictly jewish-orthodox enviroment in New York, standing out despite his own decision for Judaism, though for a more moderate form. Too many ghosts for the Lazarus family, leave alone the very tiny housing conditions, especially with a large man like him. It is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year’s celebration, with Yom Kippur to come, the Day of Atonement, namegiver to the book’s title. And as if this were not tricky enough, Pete had not known that the friends to come over to the Lazarus‘ home would open a pandora’s box he had avoided ever so long. And then, the group comes to realize a troubled teenage boy is missing. Pete goes into cop-mode.
There are so many things I just love about this book. There is a decent enough crime story – sometimes you get to read a story about good kids doing stupid stuff and just do not get to understand why. Here, author Kellerman clevery describes how the very protected and isolated upbringing of the young boy made him ever so much more vulnerable. Of course, the reader will get a gripping hunt – including how much footwork is included in police investigations. There even are some psycho thriller portions with the involvement of some rather gory details and very nasty crimes. And the reader will learn a lot more about Pete Decker, see him under real pressure.
Kellerman, herself orthodox according to Wikipedia, has cop Decker be the one to evaluate and ponder religious matters. He is new to living by religious laws and thus more given to criticism. So when he escapes the claustrophobic situation at the Lazarus‘ home, his thoughts are: „Just a hundred years ago, hundreds of Jews had poured into America, working ninety hours a week for a better life, for a chance to get out of the ghetto. But for some, so much freedom had seemed too frightening.
Solution: Why not bring the ghetto into America?
And Rina chose this voluntarily.“ p. 21
The book gives you a wonderful insight again into religious rituals, this time the aforementioned holy days, not without backing this up with the differences for the various religous groups and some further details. I really enjoy if a crime story goes deeper and gives you some more more of a grip to matters of society and had dearly missed that type of information in book no 3. Kellerman intertwines the purpose of Yom Kippur wonderfully and tightly with the events around the disappearance, so no way of one being just the stooge for the other. To the protagonists, religion and everyday activity, it’s all linked. To the story, each carries the other along, without lecturing. And not to forget the irony behind some of the events, like when Pete tries to talk his wife out of wishing to possess a gun for self defence:
Peter: “If you sell the gun.“
„Peter, it should be my decision, not yours.“
„You’re my wife! According to Jewish law, I bought you.“
Rina glared at him: „I hate when you use religion to prove a point.“ p 158 Not the only time when Peter really messes up badly…
If you want to just try the series, go for book no 1 (The Ritual Bath) and this, no 4, no 4 being for me the slightly better of the two, but no 1 should be needed to understand the whole context.
Newlyweds Peter Decker and his wife Rina, formerly Lazarus, spend an unusual honeymoon – visiting Rina’s ex-parents-in-law: with the death of Rina’s first husband from brain cancer, they lost their son, now their grandsons Sammy and Yonkie will be raised by Rina with Pete. So the LAPD-cop wants to help Rina make them feel more comfortable, still feeling a lot out of place in the strictly jewish-orthodox enviroment in New York, standing out despite his own decision for Judaism, though for a more moderate form. Too many ghosts for the Lazarus family, leave alone the very tiny housing conditions, especially with a large man like him. It is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year’s celebration, with Yom Kippur to come, the Day of Atonement, namegiver to the book’s title. And as if this were not tricky enough, Pete had not known that the friends to come over to the Lazarus‘ home would open a pandora’s box he had avoided ever so long. And then, the group comes to realize a troubled teenage boy is missing. Pete goes into cop-mode.
There are so many things I just love about this book. There is a decent enough crime story – sometimes you get to read a story about good kids doing stupid stuff and just do not get to understand why. Here, author Kellerman clevery describes how the very protected and isolated upbringing of the young boy made him ever so much more vulnerable. Of course, the reader will get a gripping hunt – including how much footwork is included in police investigations. There even are some psycho thriller portions with the involvement of some rather gory details and very nasty crimes. And the reader will learn a lot more about Pete Decker, see him under real pressure.
Kellerman, herself orthodox according to Wikipedia, has cop Decker be the one to evaluate and ponder religious matters. He is new to living by religious laws and thus more given to criticism. So when he escapes the claustrophobic situation at the Lazarus‘ home, his thoughts are: „Just a hundred years ago, hundreds of Jews had poured into America, working ninety hours a week for a better life, for a chance to get out of the ghetto. But for some, so much freedom had seemed too frightening.
Solution: Why not bring the ghetto into America?
And Rina chose this voluntarily.“ p. 21
The book gives you a wonderful insight again into religious rituals, this time the aforementioned holy days, not without backing this up with the differences for the various religous groups and some further details. I really enjoy if a crime story goes deeper and gives you some more more of a grip to matters of society and had dearly missed that type of information in book no 3. Kellerman intertwines the purpose of Yom Kippur wonderfully and tightly with the events around the disappearance, so no way of one being just the stooge for the other. To the protagonists, religion and everyday activity, it’s all linked. To the story, each carries the other along, without lecturing. And not to forget the irony behind some of the events, like when Pete tries to talk his wife out of wishing to possess a gun for self defence:
Peter: “If you sell the gun.“
„Peter, it should be my decision, not yours.“
„You’re my wife! According to Jewish law, I bought you.“
Rina glared at him: „I hate when you use religion to prove a point.“ p 158 Not the only time when Peter really messes up badly…
emil_y_'s review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
britjan126's review against another edition
2.0
The mystery itself was boring and definitely a waste for it to be 466 pages. The story of Peter's biological family was more interesting than the murder mystery itself.
lorkay's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
ncrabb's review against another edition
4.0
As book four opens, Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus are finally married. Decker is fully and officially Jewish. He technically didn’t have to convert, since his biological mother was Jewish, but he had passed all the tests and attended all the study groups. But this is not the honeymoon he had hoped for. Instead of being somewhere exotic, Decker is in Brooklyn spending Rosh Hashanah with his new wife’s former in-laws, of all people. He’s hanging out with some orthodox Jews, and one of them turns out to be far more involved in his past than he wants to deal with.
When Noam, the son of one of Rina’s family members, goes missing, it’s up to Decker and Rina to figure out what happened to the kid. The young man wanted what so many adolescents want—a sense of self, a sense of freedom and autonomy. The best way he could get that, eh reasoned, was to hook up with an older guy from the neighborhood—a guy who seemed to understand him so well. He, too, had been part of an orthodox family at one time, and he understood the restraints Noam dealt with. He tapped into the kid’s psyche in ways no one else had. The problem is, he’s a psychopath who wants nothing more than to introduce Noam to his chaotic bloody murderous world. It’s up to Decker and Lazarus to find him and bring him home before the psychopath kills him. It’s a dizzying chase between New York, Los Angeles, and ultimately back to New York.
I was fascinated by the snapshot of how orthodox Jews live and celebrate their sacred holidays. You’ll learn much from this book without feeling like someone sought to teach you things. That’s a good kind of learning in which to engage.
When Noam, the son of one of Rina’s family members, goes missing, it’s up to Decker and Rina to figure out what happened to the kid. The young man wanted what so many adolescents want—a sense of self, a sense of freedom and autonomy. The best way he could get that, eh reasoned, was to hook up with an older guy from the neighborhood—a guy who seemed to understand him so well. He, too, had been part of an orthodox family at one time, and he understood the restraints Noam dealt with. He tapped into the kid’s psyche in ways no one else had. The problem is, he’s a psychopath who wants nothing more than to introduce Noam to his chaotic bloody murderous world. It’s up to Decker and Lazarus to find him and bring him home before the psychopath kills him. It’s a dizzying chase between New York, Los Angeles, and ultimately back to New York.
I was fascinated by the snapshot of how orthodox Jews live and celebrate their sacred holidays. You’ll learn much from this book without feeling like someone sought to teach you things. That’s a good kind of learning in which to engage.
pepper1133's review against another edition
4.0
I love my Faye Kellerman mysteries. Total brain fluff. This one delves deeper into the orthodox culture of Brooklyn and paints a picture of what it's like to grow up in its confines. Bonus points for a realistic outcome for Noam.
vaderbird's review against another edition
3.0
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
em_beddedinbooks's review against another edition
3.0
Loved this one too. I am deeply involved in the lives of Decker and Lazarus, both personal and proffesional. I feel as if I am out of touch with close acquaintances if I don't read books by Faye Letterman every now and then. This book deal s with teen rebellion and its aftermath, in the setting of a fairly orthodox Jew community
dontmissythesereads's review against another edition
4.0
Book #16 read in 2007
This was a very fast-paced read. I enjoyed it very much. I look forward to reading more in the series.
This was a very fast-paced read. I enjoyed it very much. I look forward to reading more in the series.
sparkingjoyinreading's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0