Behavior Beyond Analysis by Richard van Doren

Behavior Beyond Analysis by Richard van Doren is a crime procedural and the third book in the Abel Haskins Trilogy. Having recently joined the renowned BAU with the FBI, former parish minister, and subsequent police detective, Abel Haskins is pulled into the most horrific murder cases of his career. Abel is suited to join the FBI task force, which has to investigate the ritualistic killings of young girls kidnapped from church camps. As the investigation expands, it becomes clear that the killer has a bigger plan than any of them could have guessed. Following leads and hunches, Abel, his friends, and family come into the crosshairs of a Satanic group. Willow, the young woman Abel rescued from the Deep Dark cult, feels called to aid the investigation, but when she joins the Satanic cult, Abel is at a loss. Will he be able to keep his loved ones safe from a sinister adversary, or will he lose those he fought to save in his quest to thwart evil?

Behavior Beyond Analysis brings the reader face-to-face with a Christian take on dealing with evil crime and the spiritual trauma it causes those on the side of the law. The reader is inundated with Christian philosophy and debate around faith and how believers deal with adversity through their faith, which is brought to a head when Willow joins the Satanic cult. It also provides some insight into the sick ideology behind Satanic murderers. The plot develops slowly because of the amount of water-treading that results from the extended parts of doctrine and the regaling of memories by the characters. This is not your average crime novel, as it develops at a strange pace. Some parts are dedicated to Christian doctrine and seem to drag on, while others are skimmed over and related in short order. What makes the novel a pleasant read is that the violence is described secondhand, which prevents detailed and gory descriptions of the crimes. Furthermore, the author refrains from using the Lord's name, although some profanity is found that is supported by the nature of the story. What I did appreciate about the novel is that the reader is shown the effect of violent crime on those who have to investigate and solve the heinous crimes.

I give this book a rating of 3 out of 5 mainly because of the long passages of sermons and doctrine mulled over by the characters. This type of narration might be what some are looking for, as this is the third book in the series. I also gave a 3 out of five because I cannot say it was exciting or powerful. The plot is sound and authentic, but the long sermons that Abel listens to and gives verbatim to the reader tend to 'take over'. The formatting also gave me some trouble, especially in the first couple of chapters where many back-flashes are found. They could be indicated more clearly. The fact that this is the third installment in the trilogy does not affect the reading experience if you have not read the first two, but if this were the first, I would not be reading the second.