Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable Alex Cross romp
Review: Pop Goes the Weasel is, like all Alex Cross books, a page turning nail biter. It has all the elements we've come to expect from the Cross books, the family, romance, Sampson, and of course, a killer who's very cunning and hard to catch. Even after you catch him. The Weasel is a very sick criminal to read about, and the sad thing is, there are people out there like him. The plot is a take on Internet role playing games, the hitch is, this game is about killing and it is acted out in Washington D.C., among other places. This is where Alex Cross comes in. Now we know Alex is smart and a good all around human being, and the fun with these books is the chase. Alex tracks down serial killer. Serial killer attempts to outsmart him, ect, ect. But it works. Now, while I think this book may be one of the weaker Cross books, it is still fun and absorbing. So, if you love Cross, it's probably safe to say you'll enjoy this book. If you have no idea who Cross is, take a chance on the guy. And may I just leave a small message for James Patterson: Can't you write faster :)
Rating:
Summary: Good but wait for the paperback...
Review: While this book has some very fast paced and exciting scenes, it does tend to drag on from time to time. At some points it is very easy to predict, but the author will throw in some action to take your mind of it. Patterson generally writes with the common reader in mind and this is no exception. Short, concise chapters make the 400+ pages fly by. Reading the previous books in the Alex Cross series is not necessry but it does come in handy as there are a few paragraphs that make reference to them. Nothing important, just a little history that goes with each character to help you understand where each is coming from. While I did not find this book as exciting as the previous ones, it did manage to keep my attention and I was able to finish within 2-3 days. Since the paperback version comes out in a few months, I would hold off and buy that one. This book is a much better value at $8.00 than the $20-something hardcover.
Rating: 
Summary: A Very Boring Book!
Review: This book is extremely boring and predictible. If your time is of any value, stay away from it. It is a pure waste of paper!
Rating: 
Summary: Super
Review: Pop goes the Weasel, James Patterson Little, Brown and Company ISBN 0316693286 H. C. Mystery/Suspense We first met Alex Cross in Kiss the Girls, where a devilish duo went after women, Than there was Cat and Mouse where a blood thirsty butcher was after his family, now there is the weasel, who is a chilling villain that no reader will forget, I know that I won't for a long while. Alex and his partner John Sampson want to search for the Jane Doe killer, but their tyrannical boss George Pitman orders them to investigate a high- profile murder of a rich white man instead. This book combines a love story of great tenderness and a plot of relentless suspense and heart pounding pace. I found the court room scenes to be rather boring, other than that the story is believable, and the ending is so exciting that you will want the book to go on and on. James Patterson is a past winner of the prestigious Edgar's Award. Mr. Patterson is a heck of a writer who makes you believe the characters are real.
Rating:
Summary: Great book, but I hope that this doesn't end the Alex Cross.
Review: I enjoyed this book. I read it about 2 days which is very usual for the James Patterson books. Once again James Patterson proved that he is a great writer. Cat and Mouse is by far my favorite right now. As all James Patterson's book, it has its share of twists and turns. You will not disappointed that read it. I just hope that this does not end the Alex Cross series.
Rating:
Summary: Mr. Patterson--please retire (before things get worse).
Review: Coming on the heels of "When the Wind Blows"--a ridiculously silly and poorly written novel about genetic manipulation and stereotypical bad guys--Patterson's latest continues the downward spiral. While his other Alex Cross novels were all tense, tightly-written mysteries that kept you guessing, this one was an extreme disappointment. While there are flashes of Patterson's old style, the potentially decent storyline is overwhelmed by Cross's schmalzy sentimentalism about his family and by his grating self-righteousness about the plight of underprivileged Washington DC. By the end of the book, I was more annoyed with Cross than I was with the villain--at least the killer had some interesting conversational repartees. Add a couple plot inconsistencies--Patterson's editor must be sleeping on the job--and numerous unresolved points and you have Pop Goes the Weasel. If this sets the tone for the stuff James Patterson is going to crank out in the future, then he should simply leave us with his earlier masterpieces. Better to retire at the top of the game than turn Alex Cross into a forgettable and annoying oaf.
Rating: 
Summary: it's a lot better than 3 stars
Review: this was very well written, but it was an even better performance of the work by David and some English guy. Buy it you'll like it
Rating:
Summary: Another Patterson Treat
Review: James Patterson is just good! Anyone who has read his Alex Cross novels know that. Pop Goes the Weasel is soooo good. The moment I started reading it, I could not put it down. I took it to work with me and would actually read it in my cubicle. If you have never read an Alex Cross novel, you can start with this one. Patterson does not give away information on previous novels that would ruin those stories, so please read them. This book is not for the squeemish. There are some graphic parts so be forewarned. Although this is not as graphic as Kiss the Girls, if Kiss the Girls was hard for you to read, then you may want to reconsider this one. I doubt this one will dissapoint you on those lonely, cold winter nights coming up. ENJOY!
Rating:
Summary: Intense Beginning....
Review: Yes, earlier reviews which stated that the editing was poor, the writing was sloppy in areas, the character development was shallow and contrived, the storyline/plot included erroneous information, was sometimes convoluted, and included unbelievable situations, etc. are TRUE. However, In spite of these shortcomings, I still enjoyed this novel. Maybe it's because it was my first Alex Cross mystery and as such I had no comparison point or maybe it's because I was looking for an entertaining, easy to read, quick start psychological thriller which I could read in one sitting and feel satisfied when finished. As such Pop Goes the Weasel was an entertaining and fast paced novel for me. I was hooked from Chapter One with the car chase scene...a fast-paced, hold on to your seat, wild ride through the streets of DC. When the cops caught up with the speed-demon he menacingly replied...You can't touch me. My name is Geoffrey Shaffer and I have diplomatic immunity because I'm a British Diplomat...oh what a weasel! Pop Goes The Weasel, protagonist, Alex Cross, detective with the DC police department, is on a mission to find the weasel who is responsible for a series of Jane Doe killings in Southeast DC but of course, trying to prove that Shaffer is the killer will take on a number of plot twists and turn to include Cross himself, Cross'family members and especially Cross' fiancée Christine. I enjoyed reading how Pop Goes The Weasel storyline developed around diplomatic immunity, the members of the Four Horsemen, the kidnapping, Patsy Hampton, the trial, the weasel's family, the weasel's doctor. I liked Patterson's easy to read writing style; I liked that the writing was graphic and vivid; I liked that the story had it's own chilling suspense aspect and the chapter lengths while short were not a problem for me. The storyline captivated my interest most of the time; however, for me the Weasel was a more intriguing character than Cross or his family. The villain had depth and was well developed; the villain's storyline was interesting, and the villain kept me guessing as to what he was going to do next. Of course, the book also offered some disappointments/shortcomings that need to be mentioned: --Christina's Kidnapping--This aspect of the story was never fully developed. After a year had passed she was barely mentioned and one was left wondering whether she was dead or alive. --The Cross' kids--I never felt like I really knew these characters; maybe they were fully explored in previous books however, very little was mentioned regarding them in Pop Goes the Weasel. For example, I had no idea as to how old these kids were; I thought the son was older but then someone eluded to the daughter being older. --The ending was totally unbelievable-- While fiction can be mindlessly diverting it doesn't have to be farfetched. Overall, I found Pop Goes The Weasel to be entertaining, fast paced, exciting, a good read and a page turner from the standpoint of how the story was going to conclude. My appetite has been whet for other Patterson books; I definitely plan to read other Patterson books especially previous works such as Cat and Mouse and Jack and Jill.
Rating:
Summary: The Game of Death
Review: Although I have enjoyed other works by James Patterson, I had never experienced Alex Cross until finishing "Pop Goes the Weasel". Now I understand why Patterson has earned a legion of fans, whose fierce loyalty withstands even his less-heralded efforts, and I now count myself among those followers. Alex Cross is a detective in Washington, D.C., with a reputation as a family-centered, classy intellectual (looking like a young Mohammed Ali), who has repeatedly demonstrated skill and composure on the most harrowing of cases. His last challenge (told in "Cat and Mouse", which I have just started) took a significant toll on him, affecting his own family life (including his hopes for a future with his lady-friend, Christine) and his physical and emotional well-being. He is still working through that residual stress and exhaustion when a series of Jane Doe murders comes to his attention. Although he is forbidden to work on the cases by a jealous supervisor, he and a group of fellow-minded detectives conduct a covert investigation, hoping to stop the villain they call "the Weasel", who is actually a British diplomat named Geoffrey Shafer. As their efforts progress, the Weasel's spree escalates; simultaneously, Cross makes strides in strengthening his family life. Suddenly, his personal and professional lives collide, and Cross is drawn fully into finding and stopping the Weasel, whose murderous atrocities are surpassed only by the games he plays with those dedicated to stopping him. Development of the story alternates between narration supplied by both Cross and the Weasel, which allows a compelling perspective on this psychopath and his motivations; essentially, he presents the profile being developed by Cross in his own words and acts. As the Weasel taunts his many pursuers, squirreling in and out of capture, you experience his growing excitement and suffer the increasing pain and pressure borne on Cross' shoulders, as the things Cross values become pawns in the Weasel's game. One of the most enjoyable aspects of this work for this first-time listener was meeting the "human side" of Alex Cross; he is not a humorless, hard-nosed cop, as so many of his ilk are written. In contrast to his suave and impenetrable professional exterior, we see Cross being witty and unabashedly romantic, loving his children and his "Nana", and worrying over the effects of his work on them (always weighing a return to private practice). But at the same time, we applaud his strength and dedication (in spite of his own limitations and those imposed involuntarily) to stopping those who prey on innocents. James Patterson has created a thinking-man's hero in Alex Cross and leaves his readers/listeners satisfied but wanting more. We also finish feeling optimistic, for ourselves and for Alex Cross and his family.
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