Rating: 
Summary: Mixed reviews---try these instead.....
Review: Okay, not everyone liked this rather atypical excursion in the Alex Cross series. While you wait for the next ones, try the fine books: Just Killing Time by D. VanArman, Cross-killer by M. Montecino, Valentine by Tom Savage, Killer by James PattINSON, and the works of Bayer, Diehl and D. Wiltse!
Rating:
Summary: Good story, poor prose style
Review: This guy needs an editor. I can't imagine how he has become
so popular. This is one case in which the movies are actually
better than the novel. This doesn't really speak well of the
writer.
Rating:
Summary: Alex Cross Vs. the Mastermind, part 2
Review: Patterson is one sick puppy!! Where did he ever get the idea for this book? Anyway, modern day vampires and their minions are certainly an interesting, if unusual, subject for a book of detecting. I must admit that, disturbing though the subject was, the crisp writing and fast-paced plot kept me reading on into the night. The final solution to the mastermind situation was somewhat less satisfying, sort of an afterthought to the whole concept of the work. The author seems to be just churning out these books at a fast pace, and not really thinking them through. Possibly too many best sellers engenders a contempt for the reader in the author's mind, and he figures they'll buy anything. Often that's too true, and we see the best seller list inhabited by mere remnants of talent from writers that were really excellent at the beginnings of their published careers, and now are just living on their reputations, and the gullibility of the reading public. How sad!
Rating:
Summary: Strange, and very predictable..JUST SPELL IT OUT FOR ME!
Review: You must read Roses Are Red before you read this book or you will be lost because it picks up right where RAR left off with very minimal back tracking.VIOLETS ARE BLUE:
(Another and possibly one of the last Cross Novels.) First off, I thought that the vampire theme was a little far-fetched and strange, but I kept reading like the fool I am saying "It will get better. There is some twist that Patterson always uses." But after about 90 pages, I realized that the only thing that was strange about this book was that it was so predictable. I could tell what was goign to happen at every point in this book. The book synopsis told all that the book was about. In fact, I could right a novel about this in my sleep. Litterally, I think for the most part this book was a dream.
But, I cannot say that it was all bad. Around the end of the book, (The last 150 pages)Patterson through in the patented twist I had hoped for at the beginning of the book and I could not put it down. This is the only reason this book recieved three stars and it was lucky at that!
Much better Patterson books suggested: Cat And Mouse
Along Came the Spider
Kiss the Girls
Pop Goes The Weasel
Rating: 
Summary: So Bad, I am slamming it AGAIN!
Review: ... This is the stupidest book that I have read in a long time. The plot is ludicrous, and poor Alex has lost his personality or it was frozen two book ago. I [also] listened to the unabridged audio and screamed aloud at the stupidity. ...
Rating: 
Summary: Great Book
Review: ATTENTION: IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY READ "ROSES ARE RED" DO NOT READ THE LAST 2 PAGES OF THE BOOK BEFORE MOVING ONTO VIOLETS ARE BLUE!!! take my word for it ~~ as for VAB...I first I thought the Vampire thing was kinda strange, but Patterson takes you into to this weird dark subcultre quite easily. Another great book in the Alex Crosss Series. keep them coming
Rating:
Summary: Not my favorite Alex Cross Mystery....
Review: I've read all of the Alex Cross series and usually love anything that James Patterson writes. But I almost put this book down a couple of times because of the DISTURBING vampire sequences.
Rating:
Summary: Alex Cross MAY be looking to retire soon...
Review: I have been a voracious fan of James Patterson ever since I read the back of a copy of 'Kiss The Girls' while waiting in line at the grocery store, and took a gamble and bought it out of sheer boredom. I have been thoroughly entertained (for the most part) with the exploits of Dectective Alex Cross over the past 6 years, my favorites being 'Kiss The Girls' & 'Jack & Jill'. I must admit that the Mastermind in 'Roses Are Red' was a great adversary for Alex, especially his partially hidden agenda and identity, which was totally revealed at the end of the book -- meaning, if you have already read that particular novel, you already KNOW virtually HALF of 'Violets Are Blue'. Sure, you may not know ALL of the events, but guessing the WHO will certainly NOT be a challenge whatsoever. This alone virtually ruined a good chunk of an otherwise ambitious novel. The other half is the bizarre and morbid underground world of Vampires in this country. Yes, you read that right: VAMPIRES. Not in the 'undead' sense with Bela Lugosi turning into a bat and flying off after his latest assault, but an honest-to-goodness REAL (and growing) world of people who drink blood and actually create fangs for themselves to complete the transformation into this dark persona. Weird? ABSOLUTELY. Is it real? Unfortunately, yes. Patterson takes this complex society of people and fabricates a story that certainly doesn't seem nearly as outrageous as you might think -- at first. Again, no secret as to the WHO is pulling off murder after grisly murder by draining the victims of their blood and leave them hanging, literally. The murders seem to be localized in California, but shortly after Alex becomes involved, they begin to spread to other parts, and suddenly a theory hits Alex as he conducts his investigation with the help of a beautiful California law enforcement official: could these murders have been caused not just by the same people, but by different GROUPS of these so-called Vampires who inhabit virtually ALL parts of the country...?? It's a VERY disturbing thought, one that Alex delves into entirely. Chapter-per-chapter, 'Violets Are Blue' has the largest body-count of ANY previous Alex Cross novel, and as we all know, Patterson piles on the chapters (usually a hundred or more per novel). Normally this wouldn't bother me, but add in the fact that I already know the identity of the Mastermind revealed at the very end of 'Rose Are Red', therefore the annoying phone calls that Alex keeps getting throughout his Vampire investigation are pretty much just that: ANNOYING. ALL of the mystery is GONE. All I wondered was when the next call would come, and how would the Mastermind attempt to bother Cross this time. I found this particular outing for Patterson my least favorite novel of his in the Alex Cross series thus far, and a big change from 'Roses Are Red' which although not the best in the series, I did however manage to finish in one single day (which I haven't done in YEARS). I can't say that I won't ever pick up another future Alex Cross novel, but this one just left me flat and ultimately unfulfilled.
Rating:
Summary: james Patterson is all I'll read!
Review: ...I love Alex Cross, and James Patterson's writing. My night isn't complete with out one of his books in my lap. Although i did find roses are red a bit out of place in my collection of books. it was..unusual, however in someplaces people do believe they are vampires...
James Patterson is an extremely gifted man, and his story lines suck you right in and make you feel like your right there in the story.
I've finished all of the books in the Alex Cross series, and I find myself waiting impatiently for the next one. I can't wait until it comes out. James Patterson just isn't turning out Alex's life fast enough, I'm so enthralled...
Rating:
Summary: Far from his best
Review: I absolutely loved 1st To Die, so I was excited when I picked up Violets Are Blue and began reading. But unlike 1st to Die, it appears that this book was rushed to print without the editors taking enough time to polish it up. First, there are way too many murders. The book would have worked better if it had focused on one or two murders, with the threat of another ticking like a time bomb throughout. Instead, he has the characters running in too many directions. And, you never get the feeling of tension and fear that comes when you know another murder is going to be committed and you think, hurry, character! Don't let the next person die! You don't feel that here. Also, Patterson uses redundant language. I'm a writer, editor and aspiring novelist, so I read with more of a critical eye than some. But I never use the same word twice two sentences in a row. He does it over and over and over. (Example: If he calls a character by name, he'll use her name again in the next sentence, instead of referring to her in the pronoun form in the second usage. Or, if he uses the word "though" in one sentence, he uses it again in the next sentence.) In the end of the book, he completely gives away the killer, instead of letting the reader discover the killer through clues. Finally, I like white space, but there's more air in this book, I think, than text. If the pages had been tightened up, it would have taken up half the space.
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