Downfall by Mark Rubinstein Book Review

About the Book:

First, his doppelganger is killed—then it’s his father. Rick Shepherd is being stalked by a murderer.

Dr. Rick Shepherd switches on the evening news and sees his own face on the television—except it isn’t him, it’s a man who looks exactly like him and who was killed on the doorstep of Rick’s office. Two nights later, his father is killed, and Rick senses a growing target on his back. Rick needs to learn what’s behind these macabre events—before it’s too late.

My Review:

This is a character driven psychological thriller that moves at a consistent and methodical pace. There is much character thought in relation to action. We have the thoughts of Rick, the targeted doctor. We have the thoughts of Art, the detective investigating the case with troubling issues with his ex. We also have periodic chapters with the thoughts of the villain.

The pace of the plot movement was not engaging. I found myself skimming paragraphs of thoughts to get to the next dialogue or action scene. There was not much psychological tension. Rick received hang up calls and that was about it. Even those stop when he changes his phone number. There is one scene of suspense near the end.

Rubinstein does explore several issues in the novel such as perception and memories as well as the impact of childhood experiences. Readers who enjoy lots of character reflection will like this novel.

My rating: 3/5 stars.

About the Author:

Mark Rubinstein is an award-winning novelist, physician, and psychiatrist who has written nonfiction and suspense-thriller fiction. His books have won the IPPY Gold Award and two Benjamin Franklin Silver Awards. His Mad Dog Trilogy is under consideration for film or TV series adaptation. He lives in Connecticut with his wife and as many dogs as she’ll allow in the house. Downfall is his latest novel.

Oceanview Publishing, 352 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)