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You can’t run
Detective Alex Cross is pulled out of a family celebration and given the awful news that a beloved relative has been found brutally murdered. Alex vows to hunt down the killer, and soon learns that she was mixed up in one of Washington’s wildest scenes. And she was not this killer’s only victim.
You can’t hide
The hunt for her murderer leads Alex and his girlfriend, Detective Brianna Stone, to a place where . . . More >>
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March 1st, 2010 at 12:32 pm
Alex Cross has just been notified that a distant family member has been murdered. As he looks into the details of the gruesome death, he finds connections to even more killings and mysterious disappearances. Soon the pieces of the puzzle begin to fall into place and all signs seem to point to a killer within the White House. Alex Cross has faced his fair share of foes, but never has he gone against a killer who is as untouchable as this madman. Never one to give up, Alex Cross holds nothing back in his quest for justice.
James Patterson brings back his most beloved character in this sixteenth installment of the Alex Cross series. Long time fans will be pleased to know that this latest installment falls much closer to home than recent attempts. Patterson has certainly put Cross through the ringer with countless relationship problems, a myriad of career changes, and even a poorly imagined international romp in Cross Country. This time around we are treated to what hooked us on these novels in the first place: great mystery, strong character development, and the relentless pacing that has become the trademark of Patterson’s writing.
While I enjoyed the high profile mystery in this plot, what really sold me were the relationships that are so beautifully explored with the characters we have grown to love. There are some truly heartwarming and gut wrenching scenes that might just catch you off guard, if for no other reason than the glimpse into the eventual reality for Alex that they hint at. Mushy stuff aside, there is still plenty of action and suspense to go around for thrill seekers to devour.
It should come as no surprise to returning readers that this story is peppered with bad language, sexual content, and violence throughout. Readers searching for some “light” mystery reading should keep on searching. However, if you long for a raw, engrossing thriller that will keep you churning pages long into the night, then I, Alex Cross is certainly for you.
Rating: 4 / 5
March 1st, 2010 at 3:08 pm
I am a huge, huge Alex Cross/James Patterson fan! and I was thrilled beyond belief to read this newest “Alex Cross” book.
The story opens with Alex celebrating a birthday at home with his family and girlfriend Bree (this is something I never quite understood – the need for the author go ALWAYS give Cross a girlfriend). Unfortunately, Alex gets “one of those calls” during his party and finds out that his niece (daughter of a brother he had not be close to in adulthood) has been found dead. When Alex arrives at the scene, he is told that they only have “remains”, that his niece was actually killed and then put through a grinder of sorts – Alex is stunned and vows to find the killer.
As it turns out, Alex’s niece was a high price call girl who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time – meeting the wrong person. We discover that Alex’s niece worked for a high end and exclusive brothel, located in an out of the way location and managed by a man without a conscience.
In the midst of all this, Alex’s beloved Nana falls very ill and must be rushed to the hospital. Alex now finds himself torn between being at his Nana’s side AND finding his niece’s killer.
Alex will spend much of the storyline playing catch up. It seems that although he does have some leads, the killer is always one step ahead, somehow untouchable and as the storyline develops we will soon find out why this killer is so protected.
This book is good and the suspense is pretty consistent. I like that Alex does not miraculously get all the answers quickly in this one and I like that he is highly conflicted for the most part. This is well written – using Patterson’s usual quick and easy chapters. Alex is well written and for fans of Alex Cross, this one makes me feel as though I understand him just a little bit more than the last book.
What does not work for me is the emphasis on Nana in all of the books, but particularly this one. I mean, Alex seems surprised when Nana gets ill and may die – all I can say is “Alex, she is 90!!!! maybe its time you came to realize that she will not live forever”. I find that Alex’s constant protecting and worrying about Nana is getting a little old. I can truly understand the importance she has for him, but this book is 50% about her and frankly, it got a little boring after a while. I keep trying to figure out why Patterson feels the need to always give Cross a crutch (he calls it family support, but it does not feel that way to me). Between his Nana and his round of girlfriends, Alex does not seem to be able to rely on himself for anything!
Still, this book is about the main storyline of mayhew and murder and, as always, Patterson does a great job! I have to say that the “discovering of the murderer” was a tad of a letdown – after building up the story – Patterson just kind of announces who the murderer is (I never suspected until the very end) and that’s it. There is no huge confrontations between Cross and the murderer and it felt a little flat.
I still love Patterson and Alex Cross and this book is well written and is a thrilling read. I am still not sure why Patterson chose to call this one I, Alex Cross, but who cares? Its an Alex Cross book and I am thankful.
Rating: 4 / 5
March 1st, 2010 at 5:01 pm
Don’t mess with Detective Alex Cross, especially when it comes to his family members. With one family member murdered, and another in the hospital fighting for their life, Cross sets out to help solve a very personal murder case–a series of brutal murders that, not only involve his niece, but will take him to the top echelons of the US government. James Patterson brings to the table, once again, all of his previous masterful talent and bold imagination. Although, some passages may disturb the squeamish, I was held captive throughout the entire book. I especially like the surprise ending. This may be one of Patterson’s best efforts yet.
The thriller is written in short chapters, which I like, and the font is large enough to make reading enjoyable. The prose is clear, succinct, and paints a picture of full-blown evil and terror. A fast read.
Rating: 5 / 5
March 1st, 2010 at 6:25 pm
I haven’t read Patterson in a while now (few years) but with my new Kindle, decided to jump back into his writing. I’ll keep this short, especially since I’m not one for writing reviews.
Bottom line: this book is terrible. The plot, which intrigues at first, quickly becomes tiresome. The additional “filler” as one reviewer put it, is exactly that: you could remove the entire Nana thread cutting the book by a third and still end up with the same character development and ending.
The end is (not a spoiler) just flat out worthless. I actually read the few remaining pages of the next book (advertised at the end of this book) hoping that I would receive something else – anything else – to appease my disappointment, unfortunately no luck.
Seems like this book was quickly “manufactured” using Patterson’s name as the only means of selling copies.
You can definitely find much better books for the same price or better.
Rating: 1 / 5
March 1st, 2010 at 6:53 pm
I, Alex Cross begins with Cross getting a disturbing call during his birthday. Apprantly, his niece was thrown through a wood-chipper and her remains stuffed into a bag inside the back of a car. As he begins to investigate, he starts to learn of her dark past while tracking down a killer that may be to much for him to handle because of his power.
The murder investigation, assuming you could even find it buried beneath the medical drama with Nana Mama, but ill get back to that, was never really a mystery to begin with. The entire time it consisted of Cross being pointed down a line to the conclusion by everyone as they gave him everything he needed without any real investigation going on. I want to see Cross do his work, not have his hand held the entire time. Zues, the killer, was not interesting at all. We barely hear of him, see him twice the entire book, and never had any motive behind what he did. He was just a sick man who screwed up one day. It was also obvious as to who it was considering the name he chose. Plus having the entire plot revolve around escorts was never interesting at all. How many times do we have to hear about impossibly beautiful women being naked through this book? It was there for bad shock value and nothing more.
The time spent with Nana Mama were pointless and just boring. If you cut out every time Cross spends talking to her, over half of the book would be gone and we would still end up with the same conclusion without missing anything. I absolutely hate Nana Mama and I was praying that she would finally die by the end of the book, but its obvious that she wasnt going to, despite her being over 90 and constantly in a coma. Please Patterson, kill her off already.
The other characters, namely Cross’ family and Sampson, were non-existant and didnt act the way they should be. The kids are nearing graduation from highschool and yet they all acted like they were 8 year olds. Bree was hardly around and never really did anything aside from cooking and looking over Nana Mama. Since those parts were pointless, her part in this book was pointless too aside from the ending. Sampson, like in the previous book, acted like a hired thug that only talked when he needed too. Instead of him saying or doing anything, it was always Cross that told us what he said or did. I dont care to hear it from him, I want to know what Sampson is thinking. I want Sampson to talk for himself.
On a side note, the arrogance of Patterson is arguably at his worst here. In the interview on the book near the top of the product page, he bashes late-author Tony Hillerman. And in this book, he deems the humor of Jon Stewart and everything related to The Daily Show to be “droll humor. ” While I cant say much about Hillerman, as I have never read his books, its just insulting to everyone for him to kick a probably good author when hes dead. Im sure he atleast Hillerman had talent and morals compared to JP. Not to mention, The Daily Show and Jon Stewart are both great, so its obvious that Patterson would not know humor or again real talent if it smacked him the face.
In conclusion, this book was bad. No mystery, a bad and obvious villian, pointless medical drama thrown in, with characters that were not themselves. The only redeeming quality of the book was that it was a vast improvement over Cross Country in terms of being able to read. Even then, thats not saying much. Skip this book.
Rating: 1 / 5