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December 8, 2019

Series Sunday: Criss Cross

(Alex Cross #27) 


Series Sunday is a bookish meme hosted by Literary Marie. I encourage all of my fellow book bloggers and bookhearts to play along.
  • Read an installment of a series.
  • Share your review/recommendation below.
  • Include the title, author and series name.

"Was I a stand-up guy? I'd cut corners. I'd planted evidence. Was I one hundred percent blue? And what would it do to me if M somehow revealed my darkest secret?" ~ pg. 248

My Series Sunday pick is Criss Cross, the 27th book in the Alex Cross series by James Patterson. The book hit different when the master detective is the subject of the investigation. The story begins with Alex and his partner, John Sampson, witnessing the execution of a killer they helped to convict. Hours later they are called to the scene of a copycat crime. A note signed by "M" is found on the corpse, then again near severed heads and other homicides. Was an innocent man put to death?

I have never seen Alex Cross this numb, this off his game, this behind on a case to let a criminal outfox him over and over again. The villian, simply known as M, ran circles around my favorite fictional detective. And James Patterson, in his signature short chapters, wrote just the right amount of suspense to work readers' investigative minds. I swear I was the fourth partner, trying to solve the mystery along with Alex, Bree and Sampson.

Meanwhile Alex's younger son, Ali, is featured in the subplot. He has a new obsession with riding mountain bikes and meets a training mentor. It was a little out of character for Alex to be okay with Ali riding with a strange adult man. That aside, it was nice to read more about Ali in Criss Cross before reading his new self-titled young adult series. Maybe his biological mama will, at the least, be mentioned there. Stay tuned for my review of Ali Cross in the new year.

"It was maddening to think that M was staying three steps ahead of me. Or was he three steps behind, following me?" ~ pg. 182

I see what James Patterson is doing with Criss Cross. This latest relese is for the Alex Cross fans. Several past cases are referenced so a newbie would be lost. There is no obligatory paragraph introducing the main or supporting characters. You either know them or you don't. I guess Patterson figures if you haven't read his shit by now...🤷🏽‍♀️ After all, Criss Cross is #27 in a series.

So I am going to follow his lead. If you are an Alex Cross fan, do not skip this one. I suggest a reading buddy (Hey, Chickadee, Hey 👋🏽) so you can discuss the mystery, possible suspects and remind each other of good 'ole Kyle Craig. If you are new to the series, start at the very beginning and work your way current. Consider it marked with my stamp of recommendation!

Title: Criss Cross
Author: James Patterson
Published: November 2019
Pages: 387
Edition: Hardcover
Challenge: Keeping Up with Patterson
Rating: 🖤 🖤 🖤 🖤

 

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