Jonathan Kellerman


Jonathan Seth Kellerman is an American novelist and psychologist known for his mystery novels featuring the character Alex Delaware, a child psychologist who consults for the Los Angeles Police Department.

Early life

Born on the Lower East Side of New York City, his family relocated to Los Angeles when Jonathan was nine years old.
Kellerman graduated from the University of Southern California with a doctor of philosophy degree in psychology in 1974, and began working as a staff psychologist at the USC School of Medicine, where he eventually became a full clinical professor of pediatrics. He opened a private practice in the early 1980s while writing novels in his garage at night.

Career

His first published novel, When the Bough Breaks, appeared in 1985, many years after writing and having works rejected. He then wrote five best-selling novels while still a practicing psychologist. In 1990, he quit his private practice to write full-time. He has written more than 40 crime novels, as well as nonfiction works and children’s books.

Life and career

Kellerman was born in New York City, son of David, an aerospace engineer and inventor, and Sylvia, a dancer and office manager. He attended Yeshiva of Central Queens before his family relocated to California. He grew up in Los Angeles and received a Bachelor of Arts in psychology at UCLA in 1971. He worked his way through college as a cartoonist, illustrator, journalist, and editor, as well as by teaching guitar. As a college senior, he co-wrote an unpublished novel that garnered a Samuel Goldwyn writing award. That prize has served as a stepping stone to film writing for other writers, but Kellerman deliberately avoided the world of screenwriting and enrolled in a PhD program in clinical psychology at USC. He received his doctoral degree in psychology from USC in 1974. His doctoral research was on attribution of blame for childhood psychopathology, and he published a scientific paper on that topic, his first, at the age of 22. He is currently a clinical professor of pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine.

Personal life

Kellerman is married to fellow thriller novelist Faye Kellerman. They have four children, the eldest of whom Jesse is also a novelist. Jonathan has repeatedly collaborated with his family on several works.

Alex Delaware

  1. When the Bough Breaks
  2. Blood Test
  3. Over the Edge
  4. Silent Partner
  5. Time Bomb
  6. Private Eyes
  7. Devil's Waltz
  8. Bad Love
  9. Self-Defense
  10. The Web
  11. The Clinic
  12. Survival of the Fittest
  13. Monster
  14. Dr. Death
  15. Flesh and Blood
  16. The Murder Book
  17. A Cold Heart
  18. Therapy
  19. Rage
  20. Gone
  21. Obsession
  22. Compulsion
  23. Bones
  24. Evidence
  25. Deception
  26. Mystery
  27. Victims
  28. Guilt
  29. Killer
  30. Motive
  31. Breakdown
  32. Heartbreak Hotel
  33. Night Moves
  34. The Wedding Guest
  35. The Museum of Desire
  36. Serpentine
  37. City of the Dead
  38. Unnatural History
  39. The Ghost Orchid
  40. Open Season
  41. ''Jigsaw''

    Related Novels

  42. The Butcher's Theater
  43. True Detectives Characters also appear in ''Bones ''

    Petra Connor

  44. Billy Straight
  45. "A Cold Heart" with Alex Delaware
  46. ''Twisted''

    Jacob Lev (with Jesse Kellerman)

  47. The Golem of Hollywood
  48. ''The Golem of Paris''

    Clay Edison (with Jesse Kellerman)

  49. Crime Scene
  50. A Measure of Darkness
  51. Half Moon Bay
  52. The Burning
  53. ''The Lost Coast''

    Nonseries novels

  • The Conspiracy Club
  • Double Homicide
  • Capital Crimes
  • The Right Thing to Do
  • ''The Murderer's Daughter''

    Omnibus

  • Blood Test, When the Bough Breaks, Over the Edge
  • Devil's Waltz; Bad Love
  • ''Double Homicide''

    Nonfiction

  • Psychological Aspects of Childhood Cancer
  • Helping the Fearful Child
  • Savage Spawn: Reflections on Violent Children
  • The Best American Crime Reporting 2008
  • ''With Strings Attached: The Art and Beauty of Vintage Guitars''