Troy Turner, elfin psychopath who looks 12 but he was a year older, and Rand Duchay, a mentally challenged youth of 14 who looked like a linebacker, decided to kidnap a two-year-old toddler from a mall and kill her for fun. Since they are seen on security videotape, the only question after they are caught is how responsible are they for their actions. Most people care very little about these kids, but the grandstanding defense lawyers have a bigger stake in the outcome than the worthless caretakers of Troy and Rand. Dr. Alex Davenport does an evaluation, but it is obvious the damage had been done when they were still babies. The California social services system for taking care of kids with incompetent or missing parents is often hit and miss, and when it is a miss, these kids only have the choices of rage.

It is 8 years later and Dr. Alex Davenport gets a midnight call. Rand is on the line. Shocked, Alex realizes Rand must have been released from the juvenile facility where he had been held. Rand wants to talk. Davenport agrees to meet him. Rand doesn't show up.

Hours later, Rand's body is found. Milo Sturgis, detective, takes the case, and Alex is riding shotgun. The little girl's parents are first on the suspect list. However, before 24 hours has passed, the list of possible killers is as long as one's arm.

If that wasn't enough mystery, Robin calls. Robin was Alex's girlfriend, but she left several books back in the series, unable to take the sadness of Alex's dark cases. Alex has a new girlfriend, Allison, an earnest honest psychologist, and they've been getting along quite well. However, Robin has Spike, their old dog, and she thinks Alex should drop by to give Spike a tummy rub since Spike is sick. Or something like that. She has split from her recent boyfriend and is all alone except for Spike.

Hmmmmm.

Not able to stop and deal with Allison and Robin, Alex, with Milo, pursue and interview a truckload of wicked mean adults and adults who meant well and failed - but which ones are responsible for what? Not knowing Robin is in the wings waiting as her understudy, Allison is tired of Alex hanging out with Milo and forgetting he is a psychologist and not a cop.

The good doctor has a lot to think about. The only one giving Alex any joy is Milo. Oh oh. Spoke too soon. Milo is tired of his job. He can't remember working on such a depressing case. Alex wonders what Milo is planning - after all, Milo has his minimum 20 years before retirement done.

Don't it make my brown eyes blue....

The author has never written a plot without stretches and holes in the fabric of his plots, and this one isn't any different. The only changes I've noticed throughout the series is Jonathan Kellerman has made Davenport less of an avenging superhero fighting cartoon villains and more of a detective with a psychology doctorate helping Milo understand the crackpots, predict responses after interviews and poke sticks at suspects hoping they will get defensively stupid.

Readers can easily ignore the gaps of story and logic (they aren't that bad, anyway), and settle down for a fun mystery.

I call these type books "grocery store books" because that's one place you can find them. Another term might be pulp fiction. Bottom line, I don't expect a literary masterpiece. Nonetheless, this was an enjoyable psychological mystery. I wish the ending had been a little more developed, but overall, good read.

Definitely some good twists and turns. It kept me interested for 2 days. It's a quick read.

Milo and Alex are at it again as they try to figure out who killed a young man, just out of the children's youth lock-up. Alex had consulted on the case that sent the boy to jail and he calls Alex when he's released. But Alex never meets with him because he's killed first. Tracking the killer leads to more gruesome murders and abuses. I listened to this book on audiobook. The reader is good; I like him. And I absolutely LOVE Milo. Many times I wish he was the central character - he's so much more dynamic than Alex - and I love the sense of humor Kellerman brings out in Milo. Alex is still seeing Allison in this novel, but you can foresee him rekindling things with Robin at the end. I wish Kellerman would make up his mind about Robin. I'm very tired of this on again/off again thing with them. Either have her stay or have her go. Either way doesn't make a difference to me, but don't keep oscillating!

This was my first Jonathan Kellerman book I've read and judging by the strengths shown in Rage I've picked up a few more. Similar to Stephen White, Kellerman's Alex Delaware series are about a Psychologist who gets mixed up in chilling crime acts. This one is about the murder of a 2-year-old that opens up to a twisted story of rape, cheating couples and a serial killer. I like how Rage unfolded and Delaware's speculations on the case with Milo. The shortcoming was the ending which came very abruptly and left many unanswered questions. Many of the blanks were filled in but I would have like to have known for sure that what Delaware suspected is really what happened. Even a short epilogue might have moved this up to a 5 star book.

Weirdly inconclusive ending. I'll be interested to see what happens in the next one.

Not sure I like how this ended. I feel like everything wasn't wrapped up.