#BookReview: I, Alex Cross - James Patterson

The latest in the Alex Cross series finds our hero enjoying time with his family and girlfriend, a fellow detective.  When Alex's niece is found murdered, his peaceful family time comes to an end as he commits hours to finding out what happened.  The disappearance of several other young women comes to Alex's attention and he realizes that his niece's murder is tied to that of the others.  Interference from the White House on down proves to hamper his investigation, but he is Alex Cross and nothing or no one will stop him from getting to the truth.

What did you like about this book?
Like a pair of well worn slippers, it's easy to sink into a James Patterson novel, particularly an Alex Cross story.  It doesn't require much thought and is a perfect way to spend an hour or two.

What didn't you like about this book?
Like a pair of well worn slippers, it's easy to sink into a James Patterson novel, particularly an Alex Cross story.  It doesn't require much thought and is a perfect way to spend an hour or two.  Yes, I just repeated myself.  I've said it before and I'll say it again.  At this point Patterson is so predictable that Stevie Wonder could see the plot a mile away.

What could the author do to improve this book?

Stop phoning it in.  Expected to publish no less than 10 books this year, I have a hard time believing that James Patterson devotes any reasonable amount of attention to any of his stories.  It would appear that lending his name to lesser known authors as a co-author proves to be more lucrative and less time consuming than actually writing.

374pp

Published November 2009