Double Cross by James Patterson

Synopsis:

Just when Alex Cross's life is calming down, he is drawn back into the game to confront a criminal mastermind like no other. The elaborate murders that have stunned Washington, DC, are the wildest that Alex Cross and his new girlfriend, Detective Brianna Stone, have ever seen. This maniac adores an audience, and stages his killings as spectacles in public settings. Alex is pursuing a genius of terror who has the whole city on edge as it waits for his next move. And the killer loves the attention, no doubt-he even sets up his own Web site and live video feed to trumpet his madness.

And in Colorado, another criminal mastermind is planning a triumphant return. From his supermaximum-security prison cell, Kyle Craig has plotted for years to have one chance at an impossible escape. If he has to join forces with DC's Audience Killer to get back at the man who put him in that cell--Alex Cross--all the better.

Kyle Craig is like an annoying gnat that will not go away. It is kind of nice to have the continuity of one of Alex’s enemies throughout the series, but he is just so annoying. So, I cannot really tell if keeping him around is a pro or a con, but he did make this book pretty interesting.

The continuous guessing game throughout the book keeps you guessing until the end. There are so many little pieces that go into the crimes that are being committed, that it becomes really interesting when it is all revealed.

There was less family time in this one. Over the past few books, Alex has been with his family almost as much as he has been solving crimes. It was nice to go back to Alex just working on cases. I do love his family, but I think a book like this was a needed break.

I feel like I still don’t really know the reasons behind all of the murders, the first one in particular. I feel like it was starting to get explained and then never did aside from the murderers wanting to be famous. I wanted a better explanation of their connection to Kyle Craig as well.

Overall, it was a good read and kept me turning the page until the end. I wish there would have been a bit more explanation, but it was entertaining and I liked how it was more about the crimes/criminals than about Alex and his life outside of work.

4/5 Stars

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Dragon Tears by Dean Koontz

Synopsis:

Harry Lyon was a cop who believed in order and reason, until the fateful day he was forced to shoot a man. Now he is haunted by the words that were uttered by a homeless stranger with bloodshot eyes..".Ticktock, ticktock. You'll be dead in sixteen hours...Dead by dawn...Dead by dawn...Dead by dawn..".

This was my first Koontz book, and it sure was a crazy journey.

It is one of those books that never lets off the action. Once it starts, it is pretty intense all the way through until the end.

It surely keeps you on the edge of your seat by keeping you guessing as to what is going on.

The villain is very mysterious in the beginning, but once everything starts getting revealed it get weirder and weirder. It turns into more of a sci-fi/horror novel.

Harry and Connie were pretty good protagonists. As the novel went along their chemistry kept growing.

I didn’t feel like there was any part of the story that dropped off in entertainment value, it was consistently intriguing cover to cover. Every character had a purpose in the story so it all flowed well together and made sense.

I really enjoy a good crime novel, and this one fulfilled that while also being filled with elements of horror and science fiction.

4/5 Stars

Memorable Quotes: “No death made sense. Madness and chaos were the engines of this universe. Everything was born to die. Where was the logic and reason in that?”

“Real justice for the victims could never be extracted from a perp who was so far gone that he couldn’t feel remorse or fear retribution"

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Cross by James Patterson

Synopsis:

Forensic psychologist Alex Cross's storied career in private practice, with the FBI and as a Washington, D.C., cop has brought him into contact with all kinds of seriously disturbed killers, but his 12th outing from bestseller Patterson (after 2005's Mary, Mary) may be the ultimate in lunatic deadliness. Beginning with a flashback to the murder of Cross's wife, Maria, Patterson quickly introduces Michael Sullivan (aka the Butcher of Sligo). What follows is a frenetically paced series of brutal rapes and killings by Sullivan, once employed by the mob as a freelancer and now at war with them. Cross juggles being a single parent and being involved in the dangerous game of tracking serial killers until he finally decides to give it up for his family. Needless to say, he's drawn back into the game when it promises a chance of finding Maria's killer. Cross's competence and vulnerability make a stark contrast with Sullivan's sadistic mutilations and psychological manipulations of his victims. Fans know that Cross will survive, but at what cost?

 This was one of the most interesting books in the series so far. We finally got some more insight into Alex’s life with his dead wife Maria. Her murder was finally explained to us.

She has been an important part of the whole series without actually being in it, so finally being almost introduced to her character and getting to read about her death made this one of the best books in the series.

The man that Alex and Sampson are hunting down is absolutely insane, but he is good at what he does. It makes it a lot creepier, especially at the end when it is clear that this man really has no soul.

The Butcher is scary and his crime scenes are gruesome; Definitely one of the craziest villains so far.

There was no slowing down once this book took off. It was a very addicting read.

It was interesting seeing Alex quit his long-time career and focus solely on conducting therapy sessions. It was so much different than the rest of the books, but as the saying goes “old habits die hard,” and we see that Alex can never really escape his past.

5/5 Stars

Memorable Quote: “Because you’re Dr. Cross, and I’m the murderer.”

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