Great plot to get yourself lost in. This book has everything. A real fast paced thriller. Will get your heart racing on more than one occasion. Very well written. Highly recommend this book

I absolutely love Jonathan's books, and once again he doesn't disappoint. The book was very well written, and entertaining until the very end. Recommended.

The burning by Jonathan Kellerman.
When a wealthy man is found murdered in his hilltop home, Deputy Coroner Clay Edison is shocked to discover a link to his own brother Luke on the scene.
A good read with good characters. 3*.

Another book in the series where Clay Edison is the main character. In this novel he tries to find out if his brother is involved in a murder. This is an enjoyable read but I prefer the Alex Delaware books.

A good mystery, twisty and fast paced. The plot is complex and well developed, the characters interesting.
The author is a master storyteller and i enjoyed this story.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

When a wealthy man is found murdered in his hilltop home, Deputy Coroner Clay Edison is shocked to discover a link to his own brother Luke on the scene.
The storyline was brilliant and fascinating you won't want to miss this novel!

A slow burner with lots of twists and turns. The main character is worried that his brother may be involved in a death he is sent to oversee. Lots of layers later the truth is uncovered. A good read.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am a lover of Kellerman's books. I didn't think this one is his best but as always a good read.

Clay Edison is the Deputy Coroner and is called to the body of a man in a hilltop mansion , whilst investigating the scene he finds a car owned by his brother, and after trying to contacting Luke he finds that he’s missing.
The story then focuses on Clay trying to find Luke , Luke has been in prison so Clay assumes he may have gone back to his old ways .
The writing is of a high calibre as I’ve come to expect from the Kellerman duo. I found it a slow burner to start but the pace picked up and all fell in to place perfectly.
The protagonist is a complex character but very believable , I found the book both compelling and engaging.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK.

This is the fourth in the Clay Edison series by father and son writing duo Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman. I am a huge Jonathan Kellerman fan and enjoyed the previous book in this series. Clay Edison, Deputy Coroner is called to a murder scene where he finds his brother's car in the dead man's garage and discovers that his brother has apparently disappeared. The novel is told against the backdrop of wild fires and a blackout which provides an atmospheric and intense setting. I love the character of Clay and the continuing exploration of his relationship with his wife, who in this novel has taken refuge out of town with their 3 year old daughter. This novel focused almost solely on Clay and his search for and relationship with his missing brother. I felt that this was at the expense of the rest of the plot and for me it took away the thriller element of the novel. Overall a good read that I enjoyed but felt that there were elements missing. It won't stop me reading the next in the series though ! 3.5 stars
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC

This is the 4th in this series of books written by father & son due Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman. I am a big fan of Jonathan and consider him to be one of my favourite authors so it was pretty much a no brainer that I would also take to this combination. Which I have!
This series features Clay Edison who is a Deputy Coroner which puts a bit of a different spin on this genre book. It's set in a time when there are wildfires raging and there's a blackout which challenges even the best at their job. He has packed his pregnant wife and young daughter off to be safe so he is flying solo. Which is not a bad thing being as he is about to be dragged into a situation he's really rather not be in. Called to the scene of a man shot to deal in his opulent home, Clay is shocked to see what he thinks is his brother's car in the garage, alongside the owner's own rather impressive collection. But his brother would never part with his pride and joy, so what is it doing there? Why would Luke have left it there, what had he in common with the dead guy? Loads of questions but the problem is, Luke is not answering. No one knows where he is. Clay starts to fret as Luke is not long out of prison and, well, might have been struggling a bit to try stay straight.
Although not the closest siblings, Clay feels an overwhelming need to protect his brother. But how far will he go to do this? How much is he willing to sacrifice for family...?
As with previous books in this series - and yes, it would be better if you started from book one and read in order - it hit the ground running, held me captive throughout, spitting me out at the end, satisfied but exhausted! The turmoil that Clay goes through throughout the book - how he misses his girls, how he loves his job and wants to get on, how he feels responsible for his brother, how all these things conflict and cause him grief. It's a lesson in survival and ingenuity as well as being a whodunnit. In fact, the whodunnit often takes a bit of a back seat with all the rest of what is going on. But, and I hasten to say this, it all does come together at the end. Very well.
All in all, a cracking addition to what is shaping up to be a rather nifty series. Roll on next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

This was not my favorite book in the series. I really like reading about coroners and the procedures doing an autopsy. But this on stretched my imagination and at times it was going too slow for my liking.

Another outing for Clay Edison and I think this character and his supporting cast are becoming well rounded and enjoyable elements to the Kellerman duo. With this outing for Clay involving his brother it looks further inward on Clay as a character and family man, his relationship with his brother and parents.

This father and son duo has done it again, a captivating book with strong characters. This is the 4th book in this series but can be read as a stand alone. If you haven't already I would definitely read the Clay Edison books from the start. This book was a slow burning but highly entertaining.

When a wealthy man is found murdered in his hilltop home, Deputy Coroner Clay Edison is shocked to discover a link to his own brother Luke on the scene.
Luke is fresh out of prison and struggling to stay on the straight and narrow. But surely he's not a killer?
When Luke goes missing, the case becomes even more fraught for Clay. He knows that the conflict between family and the truth could take him down the wrong path.
Is his brother capable of murder? Or could he be a victim too?
As wildfires and blackouts sweep through the state of California,
the truth will only get harder to find.

This is an excellent read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believable.
Great suspense and found myself second guessing every thought I had continuously.
Can't wait to read what the author brings out next.
Recommend reading.

I was provided an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher. This is my own honest voluntary review.

The Burning is the 4th book in the Clay Edison series by Jonathan and Jesse Kellerman – a father-son writing duo. Clay Edison is a Deputy Coroner and steadfast in his moral compass; so when he finds a tenuous link to his own brother at the crime scene of an affluent businessman the needle goes haywire!

This is the second book in the Clay Edison series that I have had the good fortune to read and The Burning follows on nicely from Lost Souls. A wildfire has wrapped California in chaos keeping the Edison family drama close, almost as much as the case that unfolds around Clay – however, in this case, both are closely entwined. Clays brother, Luke, has been in trouble with the law before and has a history of drug addiction and violence. He’s managed to turn his life around since leaving prison, but his relationship with his brother has been on rocky ground ever since.

Clay Edison is usually a morally upright character, speaking for those that have no voice of their own – the dead, so when his latest crime scene has links to his brother, he begins to ask questions. Of his brother; who has since vanished, his brother’s family, and of himself. The reader spends a lot of time throughout The Burning inside Clay Edison’s head – the questions that he is demanding answers to are often approached through his thoughts. This made for some interesting reading as it threw me off the scent of the case itself; of more concern was if Luke could have gone off the deep-end again than for the dead-body of the businessman he’d had dealings with. Was Luke innocent of guilty of all that had been placed upon him? There were questions of second-guessing another person’s ability to change their lives and the doubts were well described, in both forms. The ones that had placed judgment on Luke via his brother and the counter to that opinion in Luke’s eccentric wife.

The vast differences in Luke and Clay’s life also had a part to play – Luke and his wife live off the grid. Their contrast to the normality of Clay’s life added an unusual dynamic to their relationships and added an additional element of interest for the reader. I found the scenes in which Luke’s world was described particularly enjoyable for the graphic imagery of the imagination involved.

Due to the nature of the missing person case and how close it is to home for Clay, he too ‘goes off the grid’ in terms of his investigation methods. There’s no backup from official means in The Burning and Clay has to go it alone. His methods become increasingly frantic and questionable; resorting to contacting those that his brother has harmed, breaking into crime scenes, and withholding information from the police. It’s a shrewd case of judgment that doesn’t paint Clay Edison in the usual shining light he usually falls under. I found The Burning a bold statement when it comes to addressing beloved characters and putting them into situations that don’t show their character in the best possible way; I questioned many of Clays methods and motivations throughout The Burning, which, ultimately, is what kept the pages turning for me. Yes, there was the desire to know the resolution of the case and find out what happened, but the crux was ‘Will Clay manage to do this alone?’ and ‘Will there be repercussions for his own actions?’

The Burning isn’t an all-out-action thrill ride. It’s a slow, suspenseful investigation that builds up as the book progresses and the truth is slowly revealed. The heart of the case links back to the previous book in the series and while I believe The Burning can be read as a stand-alone – all the blanks are filled in – I believe that reading Lost Souls will benefit the reader of The Burning as it gives a broader, more complete picture of events.

The backdrop throughout The Burning is Californian Wildfire, which helps give the book its title. This adds yet another layer of suspense throughout the book and gives an increasing feature to the events that happen. Rather than just being a ‘thing’ that is happening around the characters, it is involved within the narrative and has an important part to play in the novel. It impacts some of the questionable drama between Clay and his wife, Amy. It holds an important impact as the book comes to its climax. The description of these fires seemed to leap out of the page and it’s as close to a wildfire I’d ever like to come if their words are anything to go by!

Together, Jesse and Jonathan Kellerman paint a wondrous worldview. Their handling of description is vivid, yet easy to digest. They are concise with their words. Through them you can easily picture the events as they happen and the world in which they transpire. I found the melding of their writing near seamless; not knowing which of the two authored penned which part and it made for a very smooth, immersive piece of writing.

The Burning is the 4th novel in the Clay Edison series and is yet another fantastic read. Clay is a deputy Coroner living in Calafornia and this novel takes place during the wild fires where by most parts of California are dealing with no power and rising temperatures and evacuation for safety reasons. Clay is called out to the shooting of a wealthy business, Rory Vandervelde, whilst cataloguing and investigating Rory’s huge home, pool house and garage Clay spots something that is very familiar to him, but that definitely does not belong to the murder victim. A very unique car, so individual that Clay recognises it as the one owned by his brother. His ex-convict brother who was supposedly on the right path and having changed his ways. How di the car get there? Why would Luke have sold it? More importantly where is Luke? Risking everything for his brother, his life, career and family Clay sets out to find answers trying desperately to be positive about Luke’s involvement, whilst all the time believing the worst.
Yet another fast paced, frightening psychological thriller from this incredible writer and his obviously talented daughter. Jonathan Kellerman books never disappoint and neither does this latest novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this offering from Jonathan Kellerman. I have not read the other three in the series so approached this one with fresh eyes. Yes, I enjoyed it but I did not find it captivating like come reviewers. I will not repeat the synopsis here because it has been done previously. I would however go back and read the books in the series I have missed.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance reader copy.

I always request advance copies of Jonathan Kellerman books on behalf on my mother as she loves his books.

'This book was incredible, I was hooked for every second and I just couldn't put it down'

A Compromising Situation…?
The fourth in the Clay Edison series finds Clay in a potentially compromising situation when he investigates the latest murder case. Could his own brother Luke be involved? With Luke awol and the Californian fires and electrical blackouts causing havoc, his latest task is fraught every step of the way. Fast moving thriller with a well drawn and credible cast and a compelling narrative.