This book is kind of a ‘Jack The Ripper Meets Sherlock Holmes.’ It sucks you in. It’s a clever story that is well told.

The ‘alienist’ in this story is Dr Laszlo Kreizler. The story is set in 1896 New York City. At this time, psychiatrists were known as alienists. And so, that is the occupation of Laszlo Kreizler. Although he is the central character, and the plot revolves around his studies and occurs because of his studies, Laszlo is not the narrator. Rather (in the style of Holmes and Watson), this novel is narrated by John Schuyler Moore, a police reporter who is friends with the good doctor.

So, to the plot … a serial killer is murdering young boys in New York City. The boys all have painted faces, and it seems were being exploited as young prostitutes. Kreizler believes he can find the killer and enlists the help of a bunch of people he trusts: Marcus and Lucius Isaacson, police officers who are brothers; Sarah Howard, Theodore Roosevelt’s secretary in the police; and John Schuyler Moore. The team begins an unofficial investigation into the killings.

I love how Kreizler employs the profiling techniques used as commonplace today. Yet, at this time, they are so new and ‘out there’ that it is imperative none of the officials find out about it. Except, of course, they know all along. They try to thwart the investigation at all points of the story.

I love the background of struggle within New York. It makes the team’s exploits all the more dangerous. Not only do they have a deranged psychopath to look out for, but also the police chief and his men and a couple of factions of gangland bosses and their henchmen. Everywhere they turn, people are out to get them and take them out of the investigation.

I won’t give away any spoilers with regards to the plot, but I like the way it unravels. The climax at the end is fab. All I’m gonna say about that

My only complaint about this book is that there are times I felt the author was giving information purely to show how much he knows. Purely to show he is clever. For example, there is a scene where John and Sarah visit the home of Theodore Roosevelt. It is a busy home, with lots of children bustling about. Fine. The author could have described this in one, maybe two, paragraphs. Instead, he describes each child by name, one by one, then Roosevelt’s wife, also, the hired help. It was too much narrator intrusion. There were a number of occasions where I felt this was the case. Don’t misunderstand me; I enjoyed the cultural background details. It really took me into the heart of this city at the turn of the century. Writing about real people, like Roosevelt, is intriguing. But not so much when it feels like the author is merely showing off his knowledge.

But I still enjoyed this book a lot. The plot is really clever, and the sub-plots are fantastic, as well. Overall, it was a most enjoyable read.

People who love murder mysteries. The historical element is intriguing, also. I love that Theodroe Roosevelt is quite a key part of the story.

The plot. The way the characters have to fight everyone to hunt down this killer. I also really liked the way it reminded me of Jack The Ripper. The descriptions of New York in 1896 are vivid and really take you into that world.

Narrator intrusion. The times where it felt like the author was telling information purely to show off how clever he is and how much he knows about police procedures in 19896 New York. Also, about Theodore Roosevelt. Also, some of the descriptions of the victims is very graphic. It made me feel. little queasy and uncomfortable at times.

Read a little about that time period and see whether certain aspects were really true. There is such a blend between fact and fiction in this book. It's clever.

Intrigued. There were times it made me feel a little queasy, though.

Caleb Carr.

It's a clever, exciting, interesting read.

It is graphic in some its descriptions of murdered bodies. Also, it is quite a long book. Too long, I felt.

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Created Jan 15, 2022 at 7:20am • Submit your own review...