Cross Country by James Patterson

Synopsis:

When the home of Alex Cross's longtime friend, Ellie Cox, is turned into the worst murder scene Alex has ever seen, he is devastated. The destruction leads him to believe that he's chasing a horrible new breed of killer. As Alex and his girlfriend Brianna Stone begin the hunt for the villain responsible for the killings, they quickly find themselves entangled in the deadly Nigerian underworld of Washington D.C.. What they discover is shocking: a strongly organized gang of teenage thugs headed by a powerful, diabolical man-The Tiger.

As the killing spree escalates, Alex and Brianna realize they are not dealing with any ordinary killer, but one who has brought his personal war of vengeance to America's capital. But just when the detectives think they're closing in on the elusive murderer, the Tiger disappears into thin air. Unable to let the killer get away with this narrow escape, Alex makes it his duty to bring the brutal butcher to justice. He knows that he must follow The Tiger. Alone.

When Alex arrives in Nigeria, he discovers a world where justice is as foreign as he is. Unprotected and alone in a strange country, bombarded on all sides by the murderous threats of The Tiger, Alex must draw on his fiercest instincts just to survive in a lawless world.

From the author Time magazine has called "the man who can't miss," Cross Country is the most breathtaking, heart-stopping, electrifying Alex Cross thriller yet.

 This was definitely not my favorite Cross book ever, so I don't have much to say about it. But, it did have some upsides.

There was definitely a lot of action in Cross Country. Once it started, it never really stopped. Alex was put through hell for trying to solve the case about The Tiger. He wasn’t let off easy at any point.

That was one of the only positives for me. 

I didn’t like The Tiger as a villain. He was unbelievable to me. That, and he was never really fully explained in my opinion.

Alex’s journey to Nigeria was also a bit much for me. It seemed pretty unnecessary, but it wasn’t out of character for him at least.

This book was weird. It did a good job at holding my attention even though I wasn’t really into it.

I guess it was just a semi-okay filler book in the series. The one before it was good, and I am hoping the next one is good as well.

2/5 Stars

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Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Synopsis:

On a warm summer morning in North Carthage, Missouri, it is Nick and Amy Dunne’s fifth wedding anniversary. Presents are being wrapped and reservations are being made when Nick’s clever and beautiful wife disappears. Husband-of-the-Year Nick isn’t doing himself any favors with cringe-worthy daydreams about the slope and shape of his wife’s head, but passages from Amy's diary reveal the alpha-girl perfectionist could have put anyone dangerously on edge. Under mounting pressure from the police and the media—as well as Amy’s fiercely doting parents—the town golden boy parades an endless series of lies, deceits, and inappropriate behavior. Nick is oddly evasive, and he’s definitely bitter—but is he really a killer?

I am just going to start by saying I loved this book. I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK.

I would go as far as to say this is now my favorite book. 

It took me awhile to publish this review because I didn’t think that any thing I wrote would do it justice.

Gone Girl is like two complete novels all in one. It starts out going one way and midway through turns completely around. I am going to write this review spoiler-free and put some spoilers under the cut. It was too great I do not want to spoil anything if you have not read it.

Gone Girl takes you through a spiral into insanity. How a person can go from seeming so normal to turning into a dark sociopath. It takes you down this journey through a series a journal entries written by both Amy and her husband Nick. You get to hear both of their points of view which makes the story-telling and flow of the novel really interesting.

It is an interesting story about how a relationship can go from perfect to dark and gloomy. From loving someone to wanting to destroy them.

Gillian’s writing is completely addicting. I didn’t want to put the book down, and when I did put it down I was always thinking about it. Trying to guess what was going on and what would happen next.

Reading Gone Girl is a full on experience. It isn’t just another book to read through quickly and then let it collect dust. I actually read it slower than most other books just because I was soaking in everything.

If you like mystery/suspense books, do not hesitate to read this.

5/5

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Spoiler Review -->

Wolf Girls: Dark Tales of Teeth, Claws and Lycogyny Edited by Hannah Kate

Synopsis:

Feral, vicious, fierce and lost... the she-wolf is a strange creature of the night. Attractive to some; repulsive to others, she stalks the fringes of our world as though it were her prey. She is the baddest of girls, the fatalest of femmes - but she is also the excluded, the abject, the monster.

The Wolf-Girls within these pages are mad, bad and dangerous to know. But they are also rejected and tortured, loving and loyal, avenging and triumphant. Some of them are even human...

Wolf-Girls is a collection of short stories about she-wolves. No two are the same. They range in writing style, emotion, and themes. But one thing remains the same – bloodlust.

I am not a big reader of werewolf (or she-wolf) tales, so I had to go into this one with an open mind and no expectations.

By doing so, I actually started to enjoy the stories as I got through more and more of them.

The writing in each of the stories was decent. Some of them seemed to drag on more than others, and some seemed to go really quick. It is definitely a grab bag of stories which made it a bit more exciting. I never felt like I was reading the same thing twice.

I never really felt attached to any on character or story, but they were super short so there wasn’t much time for that to happen and grow. This made it easy to set it to the side and pick up another book instead of just finishing it all at one time since it is relatively short.

For those interested in this genre of books, I would say give it a try.

3/5 stars.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

Synopsis:

Choices. Seventeen-year-old Mia is faced with some tough ones: Stay true to her first love—music—even if it means losing her boyfriend and leaving her family and friends behind?

Then one February morning Mia goes for a drive with her family, and in an instant, everything changes. Suddenly, all the choices are gone, except one. And it's the only one that matters.

If I Stay is a heartachingly beautiful book about the power of love, the true meaning of family, and the choices we all make.

I am not sure what I was really expecting out of this book, but it did not live up to my expectations.

Most of the book was spent living in the past telling the story of Mia’s life through flashbacks. This helped to show the relationships between her and the people in her life, but it got dragged out and boring at times.

The characters were pretty well written. I felt like I knew them all pretty well by the time I was done. The dialogue flowed really well between them as well. Character development was the best part of the book.

The story itself is interesting before you get into it. The execution comes up a bit short. I felt that there should have been more about the accident and maybe her condition instead of all of the flashbacks. A good majority of them served a purpose, but a few could have been left out for a more relevant story-line.

I thought there would be more drama surrounding her decision. I didn’t feel emotionally tied to it or her character at all. Maybe that is why I wasn’t as into it as the next reader.

That said, I want to read the sequel.

4/5 stars. I did really enjoy it, I was just expecting more.

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