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Forensic psychologist Dr. David Edminson spends his nights in LA's Skid Row, administering mental and emotional care to those the rest of the world would sooner forget. He knows the streets and its downtrodden inhabitants better than anyone, which is why the police turn to him for assistance when a local stripper is found murdered. When another body turns up, the cops fear they have a serial killer on their hands. The doctor has his hands full with his regular clients and trying to uncover the truth behind his grandfather. Now he must get into the mind of a serial killer intent on snuffing out strippers—before his own girlfriend becomes the next victim.
There is much more to this book than you might glean from a plot blurb. At first glance, it appears to be another thriller about strippers and hobos. But once you dive into the story and the mind of Doctor Edminson, the book takes you to a much more interesting place. This is not a story about a serial killer; it's a story about humanity. Dreyfus draws on over fifty years of experience as a psychologist to breathe life into characters most authors draw as caricatures. Every denizen of Skid Row—every minor character to grace the pages of this book—is a fully-fledged human being with equally human problems. The doctor himself is a complex look at the folly of the human mind and how our own perception colors our memories and relationships. Tight dialogue and excellent writing round out this tale as a fantastic foray into the underbelly of the city—from LA to NY—that paints the personalities who live there as sympathetic and relatable. If you're looking for a dime-a-dozen thriller, look elsewhere. This one offers a much deeper experience.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review