May 3, 2023

The 23rd Midnight by James Patterson (Women's Murder Club #23)

Synopsis

Detective Lindsay Boxer put serial killer Evan Burke behind bars. Now a new killer has recreated Burke's most infamous crimes-and disappeared without a trace.

Detective Lindsay Boxer put serial killer Evan Burke in jail.

Reporter Cindy Thomas put Burke on the bestseller list, in her true-crime book about the case.

An obsessed fan is studying every detail-and committing fresh horrors that carry Burke's signature.

Now Lindsay's tracking an elusive suspect, one who's penning a deadly playbook featuring Cindy's name in blood-red ink.


'The 23rd Midnight' was a great follow up to a very solid '22 Seconds' novel. I said in my review of that one that I expected it to be more intense from the synopsis. Where that one lacked in some tension, suspense, and intensity - 'The 23rd Midnight' made up for it PLUS some. 

And appealing to my personal wants, we got a classic "Women's Murder Club" meetup to sift through evidence and bounce ideas around. But this time, Cindy was not there - because it was her they needed to save.

Speaking of the Women's Murder Club, it was a good novel for most of them - 

Lindsay Boxer

We got to see a new side of Lindsay. After so many years and so much pain and trauma, she's not quite sure if she wants to continue with her job or move on. If there is a plan for this series to continue, I have to imagine she takes a vacation and comes back ready to take down more criminals. It wouldn't be the same if Lindsay wasn't working cases as a cop. 

Cindy Thomas

Cindy is who this novel revolves around. She's seeing some great success due to her new True Crime novel, but it also puts her life in danger. While she may not have actually appeared in as many scenes as she sometimes does, a good majority of the chapters touched on how the story goes back to her, her novel, and her connection to a psychotic serial killer. 

Yuki Castellano

I love the books in this series that have one of Yuki's court cases as a heavy feature. The chapters are always interesting and keep me turning the page fast to see if she comes out on the victorious side. 'The 23rd Midnight' was full of tension and suspense with Cindy in danger. But Yuki's chapters were almost more gripping to me. Almost. She's a great character and isn't always super involved in the books. It's a treat when she is. 

Claire Washburn

Unfortunately, with so many strong story lines featuring the other three, Claire didn't see as much time in this one. That was the only thing I was bummed about. But, it wouldn't have made sense with the flow of the story to insert her randomly where she wouldn't normally be. 


A classic, thrilling Women's Murder Club installment. 

5/5 Stars


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1 comment:

  1. 'The 23rd Midnight' was a great follow up to a very solid '22 Seconds' novel. I said in my review of that one that I expected it to be more intense from the synopsis. Where that one lacked in some tension, suspense, and intensity - 'The 23rd Midnight' made up for it PLUS some.

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