Rating: 
Summary: If You're A Feminist, You'll Love It
Review: I have just finished "1st to Die" and "2nd Chance." These are also the first books I have read by James Paterson. Several people had highly recommended Paterson so I decided to get him a try. Both books have a great story line and I did enjoy the way Paterson developes his characters. I may try another Paterson book sometime in the future, but it will not any more in this series. If you are a feminist or enjoy reading about men getting slammed, you will love these books. I have to wonder what Paterson's thinking is for these books, is he reaching for the female reading population or maybe he hated his father. I had thought maybe it was just me as I read the first book. Since I already had the second book, I read it immediately after the first. It was the same thing. No more for me. I have off to look for one of regular authors. You can have James Paterson.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Book
Review: Yet another great read from Mr Patterson. I can hardly wait for #3 in this series !
Rating: 
Summary: Ho hum...
Review: Patterson's inagural novel in this series, "1st to Die", was pretty credible. I'm amazed at how he goes to the top of the charts and then hangs around for awhile (just like Grisham) no matter what the quality of the book itself. I kept reading because of plotline, but felt the characterization weak. The Chimera plot is pretty intriguing, and not as muddled as Patterson can sometimes be when he has two or three trains of thought going. I didn't enjoy the unveiling of Lindsay's father, and wouldn't have finished the book that way, but then, having a life-threatening tragedy threaten every one of the other 3 Murder Club members, was even worse. I think I didn't enjoy this book because I'm just not charged up about Lindsay Boxer, herself...no Sharon McCone, Kat Kijewski or Kathy Mallory, Lindsay just doesn't draw the reader in, doesn't make you want to understand her quirks and passions. Dialogue is less than stellar in this effort, and the attempt to bring the FBI in, with Lindsay showing them up, was tepid at best. Difficult to know who to blame, Patterson or Gross; but I'm guessing Patterson is too enamored over the success of these "duet" books he's writing to insure he maintains what made him "buyable". I probably won't return to this series, but am still hanging in with Alex Cross! Wait for the paperback. In fact, I'll probably be selling my 1st & 2nd to Die books on this site very soon, and I never get rid of a book for at least 3 years!
Rating: 
Summary: Almost There but...
Review: Though exciting with a good twist at the end, this book just does not rise to the level that "1st To Die" created. Perhaps more realistic but I was anxious to finish only because I wanted to just find out what happened and move on to my next book. I hope more in this series come out but try "1st to Die" and skip this one.
Rating:
Summary: Good, but could have been a lot better
Review: Can't never turn down a Patterson.
However, dissapointed? Perhaps, more at the twists and turns of the story since it is so predictable and extremely dramatic. Instead of reading the typical mystery thriller that Patterson usually writes, I'm surprised to find myself reading a plot that seems to be better categorized under "soap opera drama". As soon as "chimera"'s possible suspect was presented, it was almost too easy to predict who the real "chimera" was.
Can't wait to see what's in line for the next "murder club". Hoping that it would actually be a thriller instead of a "daytime soap opera" like plot.
Am also wondering who the heck is Andrew Gross?
Rating:
Summary: I wanted more
Review: '2nd Chance'was not what I'd hoped. I thought I knew 'whodunnit' by page 134 (hardcover), and I was wrong...kind of. Who I thought had done it was only PARTIALLY involved. Back in the day of "Along Came a Spider" or "Kiss the Girls" I would have had no clue about who was involved at all. I sloughed through '2nd Chance' to see if I was right (and dammit, I was.) Character development? I saw none here. I found a father Lindsay Boxer never knew, but I never got to know him or know Lindsay any better. I learned that Jill was pregnant, and that she was before, but I didn't see her any better and I have no idea what she looks like. Is the reporter's name Cindy? I think it might be. I know that she likes the guy she's dating, and he might be black, but I don't know for sure, because Mr. Patterson never told me. So Cindy (who might be blonde) is dating a preacher (who may or may not be black.) Claire (who is very good as a medical examiner, which means she conducts autopsies) is Lindsay's best friend. Claire is happily married, is probably black, and loves her husband, whose name escapes me, because he was never fleshed out as a character yet played an important role, I THINK. This book disappointed me tremendously. I'm mad at myself for reading it, and mad at James Patterson for writing this pulp [junk].
Rating:
Summary: About the same as 1st to Die ... so so
Review: With this second Womens Murder Club novel we at least start off knowing who most of the characters are: a cop, a coroner, a DA and a reporter. All are women. The characters still lack substantive development and the book lacks something by not having at least one strong male character to balance out the four conspiring women. The storyline is still a good one and there are a number of plot twists to keep you guessing. I'll read another Womans Murder Club mystery but I'll certainly not be buying a hard back.
Rating:
Summary: Bring On Nimber Three!
Review: A series of racially-charged murders puts San Fransisco on a powder keg. Who is doing it and why? Enter Lt. Lindsay Boxer, a crack homicide detective, and her Women's Murder Club, a collection of brilliant friends who are determined to crack the case. Although the second in a series by a series-oriented author, "2nd Chance" is fresh. The reader must contemplate a number of clues with no clear idea as to were the story is going. James Patterson slowly peels a delicious onion of intrigue. He also strikes a good balance, bringing out each of the Murder Club characters. However, the story belongs to the recently promoted Lt. Boxer, who combines brains, passion, vulnerability and a relentless determination when tracking the killer. "Second Chance" was a pleasant surprise. I look forward to number three!
Rating:
Summary: typical soap opera
Review: Well now all the women (who seemed self reliant in the first book) are now going to have find the man of their dreams (Lindsey just had hers killed off in the previous book so she will have to wait another one or two books) marry them and produce children, because what else is there for women to do with their lives. The main characters in this book are supposed to be smart, sassy and successful but I felt like this was "Days of our Lives". It was a nauseating and wimpy read. Patterson now seems to be afraid of the strong women he created in the first book!
Who is Andrew Grossman anyway?
Rating:
Summary: Patterson Makes Good on His 2nd Chance
Review: I'd really lost almost all interest in Patterson's work lately--he's gotten so caught up in double and triple plot twists that his storylines just don't make sense anymore--but I'd retained a bit of respect for the man who gave us Alex Cross and Along Came a Spider, a truly terrific book. So although I'd sworn not to purchase another Patterson, at least at full price, when I got the chance to borrow 2nd Chance, I decided to give Patterson his own eponymous opportunity. And how fortunate that I'd just read DC Comic's re-issue of Crisis on Infinite Earths, because that book gave me the perspective to really enjoy Patterson from a different perspective. The tiny chapters, the snappy pace of the book (even though it is over 400 pages, don't be put off, about a third of those are blank, what with the beginning and ending margins!), the abbreviated dialogue, stylized characters and plot driven story--Patterson reads like a comic book for adults, I realized! And when I'd come to this realization I began to enjoy him quite a bit more. Instead of comparing his books to those featuring Alex Delaware (by Jonathan Kellerman), Hieronymous Bosch (by Michael Connelly), or Lucas Davenport (by John Stanford), none of which he can hold the proverbial candle to, I began comparing them to Batman and Spiderman comics and the like. Now, granted there are no pictures and his characters have no superpowers, but there is a very similar approach--no moral ambiguity, stereotypical characters, and everything in service of the duel between good and evil. And to his own credit, Patterson dispensed with the obligatory double plot twist in 2nd Chance, keeping the story credible. What effect co-author Andrew Gross had on this book is a mystery and will probably remain so, but it seemed to be entirely beneficial. I enjoyed 2nd Chance more than I'd enjoyed any Patterson book in years. (For your own good, stay away from Cradle And All unless you want to experience the depths to which an author can sink and still get published--even the comic book analogy can't save this one!) I'll surely borrow a copy of whatever Patterson writes next, and who knows, I might even find myself actually paying good money for his stuff sometime in the future.
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