Fault Lines (Michael Stone #2) by Anna Salter

Great thriller

Published in 1999 by Pocket Star

Psychologist Michael Stone (a female, despite the name) has spent quite a bit of time interviewing Alex B. Willy, pedophile and sadist. When he gets out of prison due to a technicality, she knows he'll come after her because she is the only one who knows the twisted way his mind actually works, despite his charming demeanor. We follow Stone as she tries to work through her out-of-whack personal life, some demanding clients and the omni-present threat of Willy. Interestingly, Willy is not fleshed out much as a character. This works well, in that Willy becomes more of an unknown threat to the reader - a man capable of anything - but we don't know where he is likely to come from or what he is likely to do.

Fault Lines is surprisingly well-done, (I say surprising because a lot of thrillers featuring psychiatrists tend to get bogged down in jargon) and Stone is prickly but likable. Her world is peopled with interesting, but not terribly well-developed characters. This is a part of a series so I'd assume that the characters will be better developed as time goes on.

Salter is well-qualified to write about the life of a therapist as has co-authored a number of books about recovering from rape and child abuse and trauma.

All in all, a great little read.

I rate this book 5 stars out of 5.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: Fault Lines by Anna Salter.

Reviewed on October 12, 2004.