Cross Down: The Sunday Times bestselling thriller

Product Information

The second clue is that the book cover promotes this book as an “Alex Cross and John Sampson thriller”. I received a copy of this book from NovelSuspects and Little, Brown in exchange for an honest review. This was a solid thriller recipe, that built on the premise of what would happen if Alex Cross was incapacitated and his partner and best friend, John Sampson had to work on his own without him. As the book goes along, John realizes that he can't trust anyone except for Alex and their FBI friend Ned Mahoney. Overall it’s a good read, maybe those that are more familiar with American politics and the history of US presidents.

Alex of course knows that they aren't random but the day he goes to share, he and John find themselves amid gunfire and Alex is shot - hence the title "Cross Down". This one is fast-paced, and really features John Simpson in a rush to save the country from a looming threat.Following the next day, Alex and John agree to meet at the DC Metro headquarters before the second round of meetings. Sampson will have to work solo for a time, at least until he can find a partner of his own to help diffuse all that is going on.

Alex Cross was benched early in the game and wasn’t really able to help solve this one, but John put on his cape and saved the day. The brilliant crime-solving duo of Washington, DC’s, Metro PD and the FBI has a proven MO: Detective Alex Cross makes his own rules. He has written many other number one bestsellers including collaborations with President Bill Clinton and Dolly Parton, stand-alone thrillers and non-fiction. Patterson and DuBois, for a decent addition to the series, which keeps getting new life breathed into it. As I mentioned earlier, it shouldn’t be a surprise to readers, as the book cover and description were up front about it.

I knew from the 1st chapter that it was not James Patterson's writing and I should have stopped reading then, but foolishly continued.

Patterson and DuBois do well with this collaborative effort, allowing another protagonist to take some time in the spotlight. The co-author of this book was Brendan DuBois who also co-authored Countdown and that book was the same, nothing but horrific violence and very short on plot. For me, Alex has remained a fierce, intellectual knight of moral character and the proper use of action. Cross is rushed into surgery at a nearby hospital, suffering from a collapsed ling and fighting for his life. Did not find the many new characters likeable and the more I read the more this became unbelievable and ridiculous.Alex ends up in ICU and fighting for his life, John does what Alex normally would have done and heads to save the day and find out what is happening.

This leaves John to figure out why these attacks are happening and what the connection is between the attacks. Over three decades and 31 books, the character of Alex Cross has hunted many serial killers and other villains and bad guys. He was Patterson’s first detective series that helped lay the foundation for his kingdom of several bestselling series and stand-alone novels.In the previous Alex Cross novels, the story was told from Alex’s point-of-view and this one was told from John’s point-of-view, which kept the same rhythm and flow without disrupting the storytelling style. There may be a clue to discover the plot to unleash a nuclear blast within the United States, devastating the country as a whole. If you haven’t read this but plan on doing so I highly recommend you check your local library; not worth the money to purchase. His time with Metro PD in Washington has been quite eye-opening, an experience shared with his partner, John Sampson.