The Random Factor

by Linda J. LaRosa, Barry Tanenbaum

Lurking in a dark doorway on a quiet Manhattan side street is an anonymous man with only one thought on his mind - the perfect murder.
And thus begins a chain of brutal, inexplicable crimes against the citizens of New York. Month after month, the apparently random murders continue until, in desperation, the police turn to their last hope - brilliant criminologist Noah Aikman.
Working with his daughter Alexa, Aikman unearths one common clue: Each victim was found missing one piece of identification. But what was the motive? And where would the killer strike next?

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction, Crime

273 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1978

Reviews

[Charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

Geniale verhaallijn!!

[Steve Mepham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-reading this book after many years; yes it's a little dated but it remains an intriguing idea and a well written story in the vein of Lawrence Sanders. Well worth a little of your time and stands up very well against some of the rubbish being produced today.

[Jack Heath]

Synopsis: a chain of inexplicable murders in New York continue until the police turn to their last hope - brilliant criminologist Noah Aikman.

[Ann Repetto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wildly unbelievable but a fun read.

[Johan D'Haenen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Niet slecht... maar er zitten toch wat haken en ogen in het verhaal en de uitwerking ervan die de pret voor mij deels bedorven hebben.

[Katinka Van · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leuke thriller, spannend. Je volgt zowel de detectives als diegene die de moord pleegt, wat wel een cool effect geeft! Maar het plot is niet zo ongelofelijk als de cover doet vermoeden.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous book! Read it decades ago and have tried in vain to find it since.

[Alayna Bohan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish this was still in print. Thankful a friend let me borrow his copy so I could experience this gem.
And I can't believe no one has turned this into a movie or mini-series.

[Matthieu · Rating 5 out of 5]

45j merk je aan context en stijl, evenwel: wat een verhaal!

[ARES 🌗 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivating loved the read and I love that the entire murder plan was based off of a board game that was a creative twist. The book flows well and I didn’t find myself skimming any sections however the chapters are long so it took me a while to finish since I kept reading a chapter a day or so

[Purple · Rating 5 out of 5]

Astounding! Came completely out of the blue and blew me away! Not so much of a whodunnit, but more of a whydunnit. This is seemingly a very hard book to find, but it is well worth hunting down. It keeps you guessing and turning pages to the very end.

Find it, read it, thank me later.

[John Stokes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible! Very hard to find. Somehow, I've lucked up and own 3 copies of this book, (2 hardcovers and 1 paperback, which I've seemed to misplace). Simply one of the best mysteries I've ever read. Outstanding.

[Samuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

it's about neuroses in america playing a game of killing, what i piced out of the book is that a criminal can never be perfect.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why isn't this available on Kindle? I remember it being a great book and mystery and Would really enjoy reading it again.

[Martin Krajč · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zaujímava kniha, hlavne čo sa týka motívu vrahov. Slovenský preklad názvu, však veľa prezradí.

[Mellisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second reading, I read this book when I was 14 years old, I like it so much I never stopped reading murder mysteries!

[Katrien · Rating 5 out of 5]

Toppertje! Geen klassieke whodunit, maar wat een verhaal!

[Jessy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adembenemend, ijzingwekkend. Dit boek houdt je in de ban van de eerste tot de laatste pagina!

[Eruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous book! Read it decades ago and have tried in vain to find it since.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very well thought out concept to keep you guessing. Thoroughly enjoyable.

[Jan Withofs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although a 70's book, still very exciting. One of the best suspense books I've read!