PANIC ATTACK (2021)

Panic Attack by Dennis Palumbo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
On sale: September 21, 2021

I love thrillers and the better written and circuitously plotted, the faster I consume the story. Suspending disbelief, sometimes I don't even attempt to solve the mystery. I'm just along for the ride and what a ride this book is! I actually tossed aside a literary novel that I've been reading for weeks and finished "Panic Attack" in a couple of days. At 1 o'clock in the morning.

FIRST SENTENCE: "On a bitterly cold afternoon in late October, I was one of twenty thousand witnesses to a murder."

THE STORY: In front of a football stadium filled with students and parents, the college mascot, dancing on the field, is struck down by a sniper. Pandemonium breaks out. While the authorities scramble to calm the public and find the shooter over the next few days, more deaths occur. Although the victims seem randomly chosen, Dr. Rinaldi suspects there is something that links them all together. Can he find the key to stop these dreadful attacks before it's too late?

WHAT I THOUGHT: This is the sixth entry in the Dr. Daniel Rinaldi series and I have read and reviewed them all. Author Dennis Palumbo hooked me by setting the stories in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where I lived for many years. His narrator, a psychologist who consults with the Police on difficult cases, is surrounded by interesting characters, who don't always behave normally, Dr. Rinaldi ends up in all kinds of trouble.With great dialogue, well-drawn characters, and sense of place, you won't have any trouble seeing this as a television series or movie.

For an earlier entry in the series I wrote that although there is the requisite violence and sex, Palumbo knows when to back off and let the reader's imagination take over. I'll have to change that to say violence and sex has been ratcheted up a bit. As a matter of fact the body count in "Panic Attack" is pretty high.

Luckily there are five other Dr. Rinaldi titles and, although you can read them as stand alones, reading them in order is much more fun. In order "Mirror Image"; "Fever Dream"; "Night Terrors"; "Phantom Limb"; "Head Wounds"; and "Panic Attack". Find them. Read them.

BOTTOM LINE: A solid entry in the series. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

DISCLAIMER: Thank you to NetGalley / Poison Pen Press for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

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HEAD WOUNDS (2018) by Dennis Palumbo

Head Wounds by Dennis Palumbo
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Talk about a roller coaster ride! This is a stressful thriller full of terrible acts. If you're a fan of shows like Criminal Minds, you'll devour this 5th entry in the Dr. Daniel Rinaldi series. As a psychologist, he often consults with the Pittsburgh police working with victims of violent crimes. This time around the stakes have been ratcheted up to unbearable.

FIRST SENTENCE: "Miles Davis saved my life."

THE STORY: A dying man directs Dr. Daniel Rinaldi to a dossier with information on his wife's death. Twelve years earlier Rinaldi and his wife Barbara were mugged down at the Point. Both were shot but Barbara died. "All my forty-plus years condensed into a stack of documents, copied records, data printed off the Internet. The gains and losses, both professionally and personally, that made up my life."

With an explosive start, the reader is caught in the same web that ensnares Rinaldi and his friends. The scary part is that they are "Engaged in a duel to the death of which everyone around us was unaware. With an enemy about whom no one knew."

The reader is warned that things are going to turn to horror and they do. The dread builds and results in horrific situations. There doesn't seem to be a way out alive.

WHAT I THOUGHT: Suspension of disbelieve is required. There is language, some sex, and painful violence. The stakes are the highest yet in the series. The story can be read without knowledge of earlier books, but if you are familiar with the series, the situations are even more disturbing. Interesting off-beat characters add to the story which is well-plotted and well-written. I'll have to admit that this was a disturbing read for me, but then I have been known to turn off crime shows or at least walk out of the room.

You don't have to know Pittsburgh, but the descriptions of wonderful places like the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh and the view from Mount Washington will make you want to visit.

BOTTOM LINE: Dennis Palumbo's mysteries are page turners and highly readable. It's not necessary, but I would still recommend reading the series in order. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED if you're not squeamish.
 
Genre: Psychological thriller, Suspense
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (February 6, 2018)
ISBN-10: 1464208166
ISBN-13: 978-1464208164

Disclaimer: An electronic copy of this book was provided to me by NetGalley/Poisoned Pen Press for a fair review.

Dennis Palumbo, formerly a Hollywood screenwriter, is now a licensed psychotherapist in private practice. He's the author of a mystery collection, From Crime to Crime, and his short fiction has appeared in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, The Strand, and elsewhere. Head Wounds is the fifth in the Daniel Rinaldi series. His first Daniel Rinaldi mystery, Mirror Image was published in 2010, followed by Fever Dream in 2011, Night Terrors in 2013, and Phantom Limb (2014) He was formerly a Hollywood screenwriter and his credits include the feature film My Favorite Year. He also wrote for Welcome Back, Kotter.

Short Takes 4/25/17

15 Ways to Be a Literary Advocate

Book Riot put together some wonderful suggestions for how to support books, reading, and libraries.

Dennis Palumbo on Between the Lines Barry Kibrick of NPS talks with Dennis Palumbo, renowned psychologist and Oscar nominated screen writer, about his new book Phantom Limb, fourth in his mystery series set in Pittsburgh featuring Daniel Rinaldi. I have read, loved, and reviewed all four.

Wednesday, May 31-Sunday, June 4, 2017

"Armchair Book Expo is an online conference that runs in conjunction with Book Expo in New York City. There are a large number of people around the world that are not able to join in the literary celebrations of Book Expo, so Armchair Book Expo brings the celebration to you by allowing networking among other book bloggers, authors, and publishers as well as special coverage of the event, all from the comfort of your very own armchair."

 

PHANTOM LIMB (2014)

Phantom Limb: A Daniel Rinaldi Mystery by Dennis Palumbo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dennis Palumbo now has four thrillers (as of September 1, 2014) in the Daniel Rinaldi mysteries set in Pittsburgh, where he grew up. That is one of the features that drew me to the series since I lived there happily for a number of years. It isn't necessary to be familiar with Pittsburgh; but if you are, it's fun to recognize the locations the author describes.

Daniel Rinaldi is a psychologist who reluctantly gets called in by the police from time to time, to help with difficult cases needing his skills. His specialty is traumatized victims of crime including sexual assault. But never fear. Since author Dennis Palumbo is also a psychologist in real life, he never goes too far with the violence or the sex. The focus is on one heck of a good story.

In Phantom Limb, things start off with a bang. Set in Pittsburgh, this roller coaster ride of a thriller is a worthy fourth entry into the series. Hollywood Starlet Lisa Harland now married to a very wealthy older man is kidnapped as she leaves her session with Rinaldi, who of course gets knocked out. Why does the kidnapper insist on Dr. Rinaldi being the one to make the ransom drop?

I tend not to tell too much of the story since part of the fun of thrillers is the surprise and unexpected plot twists. And Palumbo precisely lays out the various story lines, carefully pulling them together at the end. Except, of course, those things that MIGHT be part of the next book.

If you start with the first book in the series, you will feel like the reoccurring secondary characters are old friends. Palumbo has filled his stories with people that are memorable, quirky, cranky, and fun.

I read lots of thrillers and have to say that Dennis Palumbo is one of the best writers in the genre and he gets better with every new entry in this series.

Bottom Line: If you read and enjoy thrillers, add Dennis Palumbo to your list of authors to follow. You won't be disappointed! It's not necessary, but I would still suggest reading the other three books first. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Disclaimer: A copy of Phantom Limb was provided to me by Poisoned Pen Press/Netgalley for review purposes. Dennis and I were in a community theater production together in Pittsburgh many years ago.

Title: Phantom Limb: A Daniel Rinaldi Mystery #4

Author: Dennis Palumbo

Genre: Thriller, Mystery

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press

No. of Pages: 250 pages

Copyright: September 1, 2014

ISBN: 1464202540

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Source: NetGalley

Dennis Palumbo is a writer and licensed psychotherapist. His first Daniel Rinaldi mystery, Mirror Image was published in 2010, followed by Fever Dream in 2011, and Night Terrors in 2013. He was formerly a Hollywood screenwriter and his credits include the feature film My Favorite Year. He also wrote for Welcome Back, Kotter.

NIGHT TERRORS (2013)

Night Terrors: A Daniel Rinaldi Mystery by Dennis Palumbo
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Psychologist Daniel Rinaldi is once again drawn into dangerous situations where his skill working with victims of traumatic crimes is needed. Set in a wintery Pittsburgh, this roller coaster ride of a thriller is a worthy third entry into the series.

Bottom Line: Dennis Palumbo's mysteries are page turners and highly readable. It's not necessary, but I would still recommend reading the other two books first.

A recently retired criminal profiler is suffering from 'night terrors'. Before Dr. Rinaldi can begin to work with him, it is discovered that the ex-FBI agent is on a list of people being hunted down and killed by another serial killer. A second case concerning a mother, who believes her son is innocent even though he has confessed, seems unrelated but things may not be what they seem.

Preparing to write something about Night Terrors, I went back and read my comments on the other two books in the series and discovered that what I wrote then is still true.

Dennis Palumbo knows how to write and he knows how to tell a really exciting story without sharing more than the reader's mind can absorb. In other words violence but not too much violence; sex but not too much sex.

His characters are memorable, quirky, and fun.

It isn't necessary to be familiar with Pittsburgh; but if you are, it adds to mood to recognize the locations the author describes.

If you read and enjoy thrillers, add Dennis Palumbo to your list of authors to follow. You won't be disappointed!

Disclaimer: A copy of Night Terrors was provided to me by Poisoned Pen Press/Netgalley for review purposes. Also, Dennis and I were in a community theater production together in Pittsburgh many years ago.

Title: Night Terrors: A Daniel Rinaldi Mystery

Author: Dennis Palumbo

Genre: Thriller, Mystery

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press

No. of Pages: 250 pages

Copyright: May 7, 2013

ISBN: 1464201293

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Source: NetGalley

Dennis Palumbo is a writer and licensed psychotherapist. His first Daniel Rinaldi mystery, Mirror Image was published in 2010 and followed by Fever Dream in 2011. He was formerly a Hollywood screenwriter and his credits include the feature film My Favorite Year. He also wrote for Welcome Back, Kotter.

View all my reviews