Member Reviews
I read books 1-4 to prepare for this ARC and I am glad I did, there was so much backstory I would have missed. This was a bit of wild ride and that town sounds super insular and frightening. I can't wait for the next book in the series to come out!
#TheLostCoast
#NetGalley
A complicated story about a spit of hardly accessible land on the California coast, an array of missing people, and two private investigators who attempt to track two of the missing — one a published author at 19, and the other, a lad of similar age who believes the author is his biological father and seeks to meet him. It is told in sparse prose, predominantly in conversation with people keeping secrets. The give and take is so fluid the authors speak in a singular voice. Engaging.
I’ve been reading Kellerman books for years (the entire family). Every time I find one new to me I grab it. In all this time I’ve only read two that I didn’t like. This, unfortunately, was the second one. It took me days to get into it and hours to finish it. The characters were, I thought, dry and unlikable although I did like the protagonists. The town itself was a place I would make an effort to avoid. It reads more as a ghost town than not. Now I’m waiting to find another so I can revert back to being a fan! Thanks to Net Galley and Random House for an ARC for an honest review.
If getting hung up on was a an Olympic sport, all the competitors would be PIs.
Yes, our deputy coroner Clay Edison has now become a private investigator. He just might have crossed one too many lines on his previous case. Quite naturally, looking for missing people can seem to be the “normal” type of case, but this time it is different. He has been hired to look into a case of fraud that takes him deep into the California wilderness.
When a murder takes place, it is quickly learned that something is terribly amiss. The body is hardly cold in the ground and people are fighting about the inheritance. But, things get deeper than that. Apparently there has been a scheme for some time that is swindling elderly people out of their wealth.
Clay proves very determined to get to the bottom of things, and begins turning every stone as he digs deeper and deeper. However, the deeper Clay searches, the more the folks in the small town he is in are reluctant to talk.
Along with an excellent plot, exceptional characters and the remote location where the story takes place, this fifth book in the Clay Edison series was an utterly compelling read. Now…to wait for book six.
Many thanks to Random House/Ballantine Books and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.
This not so improbable land scheme is a really good read by the father and son team of Kellerman and Kellerman. Clay, trying to escape the job of forensics investigator ends up using a lot of those skills to solve this mystery. He pairs up with an unlikely collaborator that readers of these two authors will likely hear about again. The scheme is broken open and mystery solved in this well written twisty thriller. Thoroughly enjoyed the read. I loved the characters.
THE LOST COAST – Book Five In The Clay Edison Series — by Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman
‘Cut loose from his former life at the coroner’s office, Clay Edison has set up shop as a private investigator. It’s steady, safe work. Until it isn’t.’
‘The trouble begins when a young man, tasked with managing his grandmother’s estate, hires Clay to examine some minor financial discrepancies. What starts off as a case of simple fraud rapidly explodes into a web of deception, an elaborate con game stretching back decades and involving countless victims.’
The Ending—My Heart! I love the dynamic between Regina and Clay, which reminds me a little of King’s Holly Gibney and the Finders Keepers Detective Agency.
Recommend!
Thank you, NetGalley and Ballantine Books (Random House Publishing), for providing me with an eBook of THE LOST COAST at the request of an honest review.
The Lost Coast is a great novel of suspense set in northern California. Clay Edison is a private investigator who is looking into some odd payments made to a land company by the grandmother of his client. Turns out to be quite the adventure!
The town of Swann's Flat is the setting. If you are familiar with Humboldt County, you will recognize it as the real Shelter Cove, but with many changes made for fictional purposes. The real town is nothing like the one in the novel! As a local, it was exciting to see this place used as the setting of a story by one of my favorite writers. The roads are bad here, but maybe not quite as bad as in the novel. The Lost Coast is a real place, but it is a wild natural preserve.
Anyway, Clay goes to Swann's Flat to find out what is happening there and stumbles into an incredibly audacious land scheme being run by a family there. It seems they own the town and their scheme has been going on for a long time. Clay has teamed up with Regina, another PI. Together, they dig into the mystery, and encounter danger.
I thought the plot was great. I like the idea of basing a fictional story on a real location, but changing some elements to make it more suspenseful and scary. The two characters work well together. Each has enough backstory to make them interesting for the reader. I thought this novel was well done. It is a stand-alone story. I would be interested in reading other stories in this series after meeting these characters.
Another great father/son collaboration. I've always enjoyed Jonathan Kellerman's books, and this one was unusual, interesting, and kept me on the edge of my seat.
Clay Edison was cut loose from his former job at the coroner’s office. He now works as a private investigator. His office receives a young man who has become the executor for his grandmother’s estate. The executor is puzzled over a mysterious payment made each month. He wants Clay to examine this financial discrepancy and also if he discovers any other financial discrepancies. It starts off as a simple case of fraud that turns into an elaborate con game stretching back decades with countless victims. It seems that all the evidence is pointed to a tiny town on California’s remote Lost Coast. Clay’s trip is a trigger happy welcoming committee who will guard their secrets with lethal force. As he continues to investigate, it brings Clay into a collision of other “players” — a teenager, a grieving mother, a military veteran and a PI investigating her own agenda. The price of truth turns out to be deadlier than Clay thought or could even imagined.
The authors have written a tale of deception and redemption. It includes action and suspense. So when the well-paced story has violence that happens, it came as a shock to me. (It is the first Clay Edison story that I read and it has intrigued me to go back and the first four books of this series.). Definitely worth the read.
The case started with questions surrounding a series of unexplained payments to a mysterious company. The initial answers Clay Edison finds may have satisfied his client, but Clay is still curious. As Clay continues to delve, the mystery deepens. And it just might lead to murder.
The premise of this story is an interesting and, unfortunately, not completely improbable land scam and morphs into a mystery full of tangled twists and turns. Witty, rapid fire dialogue keeps the story moving . While some of the characters are a bit one dimensional, appearing more a stereotype than an actual individual, there was still enough depth to keep me well absorbed in the story.
This is the first Clay Edison story I've read, but it won't be the last. I liked his curiosity and his sensitivity. He can't let the case go, but having been injured in an earlier case, he's always thinking about how his actions may affect his family. And an interesting twist at the end of story assures us there's more stories to come.
A gripping addition to the Clay Edison series..The authors blend psychological insight with suspense. The narrative is taut, with a plot that keeps you guessing til the end. I loved the characters and the setting is awesome.
Many thanks to Random House and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.
I am a longtime fan of the Alex Delaware series by Jonathan Kellerman, so was excited to see what he and his son would write together. I am embarrassed to admit that I did not realize that this book is also part of a series, and not the first one. So, I read this as a standalone and honestly don’t think I missed anything by not having read earlier ones.
The tense atmosphere of the unforgiving Northern CA coast and the creepy near-ghost town of Swann’s Flat were the perfect setting for a story about long-term corruption and murder. It was a welcome change from the gritty streets of Delaware’s LA. I loved all the quirky characters that inhabited the town and the fact that every one of them not only had something to hide, but also had something to gain by keeping people out.
I was a little disappointed in the main character, Clay. He doesn’t seem to have a personality other than as a husband beholden to an over-protective wife. I thought it odd that we needed a punchy, sassy side character like Regina the PI to liven things up.
Thank you to Netgalley and Ballentine Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Clay Edison is now working in the private sector as a private investigator. When he’s contacted to work on a fraud case involving property in a remote area on the California coast, Clay dives in and finds more than he’s bargained for. The town is remote indeed and the few residents aren’t any too happy to have visitors. When a missing poster catches Clay’s eye at a store in a nearby town, he’s got another mystery on his hands, but is there a chance that there’s a connection? Clay pairs up with another PI and as they travel back to Swann’s Flat will they solve the case or will the tiny town eat them alive? The Kellerman’s have once again written an edgy thriller that’s difficult to put down. Hoping that Clay and Regina Klein pair up for more cases in the future! Thank you to Ballentine Books and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.
Clay Edison has become a private investigator since being asked to leave his previous job. The work has been solid and it isn't dangerous. A friend sets him up with a new client who has been named executor of his grandmother's estate. The young man has found some small inconsistencies in the finances, he would like to know what has caused them. Clay begins to investigate and all signs begin to point to a small town where the grandmother had purchased some property. Clay decides to take a trip to the small town and figure out just what is going on there. He soon learns that the town is filled with secrets and there doesn't seem to be anyone there he can trust. Follow along as Clay digs down deep to find the answers he seeks, sill he be successful or will someone get in his way. This was a wonderful read that had me on edge the whole way through. I look forward to seeing where the authors take Clay next.
Clay becomes a private investigator. He gets a case where someone is ripping off buyers in a remote area in California.
This book keeps you guessing throughout.
Thanks to publisher Ballantine Books and to Netgalley for the ARC.
I have enjoyed this series, but this one misses the mark for me. Clay Edison is still an enjoyable character, and the action writing is fine, but the plot goes in a few directions and in this case, I didn't enjoy the ride. The small coastal town, population 11, with homemade mansions and rife with corruption is more than a little hard to believe. I do look forward to more, but I hope the Kellermans can rein it in a bit an provide a better plot to go with their excellent characterizations.
Father and son are back at it in "The Lost Coast" and they did not disappoint with this one. Lots of action, thrilling from beginning to end and it is a great addition to the series they have written together. If you like Jonathan Kellerman, you will enjoy his latest in the series with Jesse. Looking forward to what happens next in this series!
Chris Villareal becomes the executor of his grandmother’s estate and discovers a suspicious charge to her account. It is discovered to be a scheme. This scheme takes Clay Edison to Swann’s Flat, California where he will then uncover an additional problem during his investigation causing him to solve two cases. I enjoyed the characters in this book. There were so many agendas I became a little confused at one point but it quickly came together. The setting was vividly described I felt like I had seen the area before. This is a series but can be read as a standalone. This book was fast paced and did not drag on. I highly recommend!
Thank you Random House Publishing Group/Ballantine Books, Jonathan Kellerman, Jesse Kellerman and NetGalley for this ARC. This is my honest review.
This is the latest Clay Edison thriller from Jonathan Kellerman and his son Jesse Kellerman. The Kellermans make a great writing team. The characters are unique and this is a credit to both authors. Clay is investigating a con game that is being played out on a remote California coastal town. The plot has multiple layers and is filled with exciting twists. A definite must read for anyone who enjoys a fun thriller.
This is part of a series, and it would likely be best to read them in order, even though there is backstory given about the characters. The first half of the book was a bit slow for the genre, but the patient did pick up for the second half. There were a few unexpected twists, and the ending was satisfying. An okay read overall.