When the Bough Breaks (novel)
_1st_edition_cover.jpg) First edition | |
| Author | Jonathan Kellerman |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Alex Delaware novels |
| Genre | Mystery |
| Publisher | Random House |
Publication date | 1985 (1st edition) |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover) |
| Pages | 432 pp |
| ISBN | 0-345-46660-8 |
| OCLC | 53397597 |
| Followed by | Blood Test |
When the Bough Breaks is a mystery novel by Jonathan Kellerman. It is the first novel in the Alex Delaware series.
Plot introduction
Dr. Morton Hander practiced a strange brand of psychiatry. Among his specialties were fraud, extortion and sexual manipulation. Hander paid for his sins when he was brutally murdered in his luxurious Pacific Palisades apartment. The police have no leads, but they do have one possible witness: seven-year-old Melody Quinn.
It's psychologist Dr. Alex Delaware's job to try to unlock the terrible secret buried in Melody's memory. But as the sinister shadows in the girl's mind begin to take shape, Alex discovers that the mystery touches a shocking incident in his own past. And behind it lies an unspeakable evil that Alex Delaware must expose before it claims another innocent victim.
Characters
- Alex Delaware - Psychologist
- Milo Sturgis - Police detective
- Dr. Morton Hander - Psychiatrist and murder victim
- Melody Quinn - Delaware's patient and murder witness
Awards
- 1986 Anthony award, Best First novel[1]
- 1986 Edgar Award, Best First novel by An American Author[2]
Adaptations
The novel was adapted for a 1986 television film, also titled When the Bough Breaks, co-produced by and starring Ted Danson as Alex Delaware.
References
- ↑ "Bouchercon World Mystery Convention : Anthony Awards and History". Bouchercon.info. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
- ↑ "The Edgar Awards: A Literary Mystery Award". Awards.omnimystery.com. Retrieved March 5, 2012.