Rating: Summary: .....STILL FUN TO READ, GUYS! Review: In reading many of the reviews of this book, I think some of them are being a little TOO harsh on Mr. Patterson and Mr. Gross in "2nd Chance." Patterson's not up to par with this one, but it's still better than much of what's out there. The story is crisp, moves along nicely and overall, you find yourself rooting for the "women", and hoping they nab this dreadful Chimera. I find their dialogue fairly realistic; maybe a bit contrived at times, but sometimes it's great to get away from reality. There's enough horrible stuff going on in the world that I don't think I really want my mysteries to be TOO true to life. Unlike most of Patterson's book, I spotted the Chimera early on, and if you read it carefully, you'll spot him/her too. There is a major weakness in that the relationship between Frank Coontz and his son is never fully explained. Cindy's relationship with the handsome African-American minister, Aaron Winslow, is also a nice departure for the group. Jill's "disaster" is painfully realistic, and despite what some people may think, realistic in its delivery. All in all, Patterson continues to be one of our most dependable writers, who when even not at his peak, is worth the read.
Rating: Summary: Hey people, please! Review: Okay so Patterson isn't exatcly the most sophisticated writer, does it matter when the book makes you turn pages this fast? Patterson is a favorite of mine. I LOVE his thrillers! Thank you, thank you, thank you. No disappointment here.
Rating: Summary: Nice try Review: This book marks the return of Lt. Lindsay Boxer, Medical coroner Claire Washburn, San Francisco Assistant District Attorney Jill Bernhardt and Crime scene reporter, Cindy Thomas. In 1ST TO DIE, these four professional women band together to stop a serial killer targeting newlyweds during their honeymoon. As a group they were able to solve the crime and in turn become the closest of friends.In this second book of the series, The Women's Murder Club (or the Margarita Posse, as they call themselves) join forces in stopping a serial killer targeting African-Americans. What at first seems to be a series of random hate crimes turn out to be something more sinister. There is a self-righteous serial killer calling himself Chimera who is killing the relatives of African-American cops. When Chimera shoots Lt. Boxer's boss, the gloves come off and the Women's Murder Club is back in business. This book is weaker than the first novel. In the first book the authors focus on Lindsay Boxer who was feeling suicidal after learning she had a rare blood disease. There was very few details provided about the lives of the other three members of the group outside of their jobs with the sole exception of a confession given by Jill. In this current novel, Lindsay's condition is now in remission and she is stronger than ever. The character development of the other three is still slow. One of them gets good news that later becomes bad, one of them starts to date a witness to Chimera's crimes, and the last one gets her life threatened by this serial killer. The book has its requisite twist and turns and it is a quick read. What would enhance this novel is if there is a change of viewpoint in each one of the novels. Lindsay told the story in books one and two. Let someone else take the reins in the next one. Just something to consider for the next time.
Rating: Summary: One of his better books... Review: Lately, I've been doubting James Patterson's ability to turn out a decent read. "When the Wind Blows" didn't work for me. "Cradle and All" just seemed silly. "1st to Die" was a great thriller, and it is followed by another great thriller, "2nd Chance." The Women's Murder Club is back in business when a killer strikes San Francisco, commiting hate crimes. Lindsay Boxer, the newly appointed Lieutenant, joins her pals Cindy, Claire, and Jill to solve the mystery. The plot of "2nd Chance" moves along rather quickly, rarely stopping for a breather. When Lindsay isn't dealing with the stresses of her job, her personal life is there to stress over. Her father returns to get a second chance at being a good dad, she finds out one of her friends is pregnant, and she still is trying to cope with the fact that Chris Raleigh is dead. "2nd Chance" is one of Patterson's better books. It moves the plot forward with every page, but doesn't feel rushed. It reassured me that the Patterson that wrote amazing thrillers wasn't dead... he was just sleeping. Here's to hoping he continues this series with another strong installment.
Rating: Summary: Sex In The City Girls Grow Up & Solve Mysteries Review: This was my introduction to the Women's Murder Club. I couldn't help but compare them to the characters in the TV show, "Sex In The City". The city is San Francisco and there is little or no sex going on, but the character's relationships are adolescent and the dialog between them is atrocious ("The margarita posse rides again". Yikes!). They set out to solve the mystery of a serial murder who is killing black cops and their relatives. The mystery itself is a good one and kept me interested. When it is seemingly solved, there are about 60 pages left so I realized a large red herring had been served up. The plot saved this story from being a total washout, but these characters left a lot to be desired. I can understand Patterson's desire to branch out into different scenarios (I was getting a little tired of Alex Cross too), but he took a wrong turn with this one.
Rating: Summary: Patterson seems to be on a downhill slide Review: I don't truly understand the 5 stars here on this book. Everyone has the right to their opinions, but come on people--let's get serious. I would certainly give Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider 5 stars, but not this. 1st to die was better than 2nd Chance and I really doubt I'll be coming back to this series. Bad dialogue, hardly any descriptions. It really seems that Patterson's work is suffering because he wants to get out as many novels as he can quickly. Many authors do this and it is a shame. And the Alex Cross series seems to be on a downhill slide as well.
Rating: Summary: A pleasant sequel Review: Many times I find that I don't enjoy sequels. Maybe I set my expectations too high. However, Mr. Patterson had no problem setting the bar for future sequels I may read. This was great. Linsay Boxer is such a cool character. I must admit I din't think anyone could take the place of Alex Cross, but Lindsay seems to be doing a fine job. I am eagerly awaiting more novels with her character in them.
Rating: Summary: Thrilling thriller Review: Great Premise, good mystery. Read it in one day. Best book I've read since DRIVEN, by W. G. Griffiths, which I also read in one day. I highly recommend it.
Rating: Summary: WOmen's Murder Club Solves Another Thriller Review: This is one of Patterson's Best. After a bit of a disappointment in Violets are Blue, Patterson, tops the thriling mystery list again with the return of the Women's Murder Club. These women make Alex Cross look a bit rusty. Ha ha Don't pass thisone up. You'll be at the edge of your seat till the very end.
Rating: Summary: A page-turner...but not in a good way. Review: James Patterson's second installment of his Women's Murder Club series is a fast pased but ultimately unsatisfying read. The central mystery is an intriguing one--a killer is targeting police officers and those connected to police officers who are connected to a mysterious series of events that took place years ago. It's an idea that has merit and has been done better in other mystery stories--most notably anything by Elizabeth George. The mystery has twists and turns, most of them fairly laughable and rather redundant. The Women's Murder Club seems to have everything that could possibly go wrong happen to them--apparently Patterson has decided that at least one of them must suffer a major medical ailment per novel. There are numerous red herrings that come and characters drop broad hints to past events, right before being killed or forced to leave the narrative. This lead to me feeling frustrated with the novel, but no as much so as when I got to the end. Patterson pushes a red herring for several pages only to pull a culprit out of left field to finish the book on a rather unsatisfying note. I've read both of the books in this series and have been, quite frankly, underwhelmed. The mysteries are paper-thin at best, the suspense not really that mind-shattering and the charactes are, at times, one-dimesional. If you are looking for a good and largely forgettable read, try this one. If you want a real mystery with depth that keeps you guessing to the end, find anything by Elizabeth George.
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