The People vs. Alex Cross by James Patterson

Synopsis:

This time it's Alex Cross on trial.

Alex Cross is on the wrong side of the law. Serving a suspension from the force while he awaits trial for murder, Cross has been branded as a trigger-happy cop, another bad apple walking the streets with a gun, an accusation that Cross will do anything to refute. To make himself feel useful again, Cross opens a counseling office in the basement of his home. When his former partner Sampson shows up needing his help, Cross jumps at the chance, even if it may end up costing him what's left of his career. When a string of young, blonde women go missing, the investigation leads Cross and Sampson to the most depraved, darkest corners of the internet. Struggling to prove his own innocence and uncover the truth lurking online, Cross must risk everything to save his most at-risk patient of all...himself.

There was a whole lot going on in this book. Alex Cross was on trial for murder while there was a massive case going on involving the dark web and some demented person wanting to kill blonde women.

As most Cross books go, there were a lot of unbelievable twists and turns, but they’re written for entertainment purposes, not to be hyper-realistic. Once you get over that bit, it was a good read – although very disturbing. The Dark Web is very real, and things like this happen, which just makes your stomach turn.

Once I became hyper-aware that this was the 25^th book in the series, I started thinking about the formula they all follow. All of the cases are different, and Alex’s personal story certainly progresses throughout the series, but most of the books are pretty much the same. There’s still something that keeps me coming back. I’m invested in the characters and the family.

The older Ali gets, the better his character gets. He has such a personality that it has almost rejuvenated the series in a way, even though it never really died. He is just very youthful and his character is full of promise. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised to see a spin-off series at some point following his life story.

The People vs. Alex Cross was an engaging book, and there were some interesting technological aspects to it. If you are this far into the Alex Cross series, you have to keep going. If you haven’t started it, I would highly recommend it for any crime novel lovers.

It was also nice to see Alex get back into the therapy game. I will be more interested in this going forward too.

4/5 Stars

Memorable Quote: “I smiled and gazed beyond the breaking waves to the sea and the far horizon, feeling that these kinds of moments, these small triumphs, were more than enough to keep me working for the good in the world despite all the dark webs I’d been thrust into over the course of my life.”

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Never Never by James Patterson

Synopsis:

When Sydney police department sex crimes detective Harriet Blue is called into her boss’s office, she never imagined it would be to tell her that her brother is the prime suspect in the brutal murders of three women.

Shocked and in denial, Harry is transferred to Perth to avoid the media exposure this case will attract. Harry is sent into the outback – the never never – to investigate the disappearance of mine worker Danny Carter. The mining town is a seedy place, full of money and immoral ways to spend it. As Harry delves deeper into the murky lives of these miners, she finds that Danny isn’t the first to go missing.

Never Never introduces a new heroine in James Patterson’s list of badass leading characters. This time, we are taken to the middle of the desert in Australia to solve the case of missing miners.

I think this book was more of a case of the co-author’s writing style shining through. It didn’t seem like a James Patterson book. I can’t pinpoint the reason why, it had the basic formula, it just seemed different.

I think Harriet Blue is a great new heroine. I love Lindsay Boxer more than any other novel protagonist, but Harry differs in that she has a “don’t give a crap” attitude and it can be funny to read. I’m still waiting for the James Patterson version of The Avengers when all of his detectives play a role in the book or in a separate series. I think it would be fun.

Back to this book – it keeps the bad guy a secret until the end, but I guessed the twist pretty early on. So, I wasn’t surprised when it was revealed, but that’s okay. It didn’t take anything away.

There was a depth to this book that I enjoyed. It was a great debut for the character and I can’t wait to read the next one.

4/5 Stars

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16th Seduction by James Patterson

Synopsis:

Fifteen months ago, Detective Lindsay Boxer's life was perfect--she had a beautiful child and a doting husband, Joe, who helped her catch a criminal who'd brazenly detonated a bomb in downtown San Francisco, killing twenty-five people. But Joe wasn't everything that Lindsay thought he was, and she's still reeling from his betrayal as a wave of mysterious, and possibly unnatural, heart attacks claims seemingly unrelated victims across San Francisco. As if that weren't enough, the bomber she and Joe captured is about to go on trial, and his defense raises damning questions about Lindsay and Joe's investigation. Not knowing whom to trust, and struggling to accept the truth about the man she thought she knew, Lindsay must connect the dots of a deadly conspiracy before a brilliant criminal puts her on trial.

Okay, first of all, I am not really sure where the title for this novel came from. None of the story lines were very seductive.

Second of all, there was talk of a terrorist group, but they also weren’t even mentioned all that much. I understand why, it was more focused on Connor Grant, the Stealth Killer, and J. I thought back on it once I finished the novel and realized I hadn’t heard a whole lot about them. With the way the book ended, it is open to being explored more in the next book.

So, the huge explosion, it almost seems like such a small part of the storyline, even though that is what the whole book is based around. The larger pieces were Connor Grant himself and Lindsay.

There was a brief appearance by the Stealth Killer, but that seemed like a random subplot. I thought it was really interesting, and it really could have had its own book, but it was treated almost as a book shot inside of this larger novel.

Overall, it was a Women’s Murder Club book, and it was nice to have them back. The main storyline was tied up, sort of, but it seems like all of the other ones were just left floating around in the ether.

3.5/5 Stars

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Cross the Line by James Patterson

Synopsis:

Shots ring out in the early morning hours in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. When the smoke clears, a prominent police official lies dead, leaving the city's police force scrambling for answers.
 Under pressure from the mayor, Alex Cross steps into the leadership vacuum to investigate the case. But before Cross can make any headway, a brutal crime wave sweeps across the region. The deadly scenes share only one common thread – the victims are all criminals. And the only thing more dangerous than a murderer without a conscience, is a killer who thinks he has justice on his side.
 As Cross pursues an adversary who has appointed himself judge, jury, and executioner, he must take the law back into his own hands before the city he's sworn to protect descends into utter chaos.

This book was really strange for me. Before starting it, I read the cover synopsis as I usually do. From reading that, I thought this book would be a lot more intense than it actually was. I was expecting major conflict between Alex and Bree and Alex’s life to be severely threatened.

Maybe it is just me, but I don’t really think I got any of that out of this one.

That being said, I did enjoy it. It was nice having another Alex Cross book that wasn’t a book shot. There was plenty of action, and the storyline was actually interesting. I think my reading experience may have been lessened just from me expecting something more intense to happen. I am upset by that, because there was actually a lot going on, but I was just expecting more.  This is probably my own fault, and I wasn’t looking forward to conflict between Alex and Bree at all. You’d think I would be happy that it didn’t happen.

If you are a fan of Alex Cross, you will enjoy this read. Maybe just don’t read the cover synopsis like I did.

3.5/5 Stars

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