Criss Cross, James Patterson

Criss Cross opening line: It was a miserable mid-March afternoon, chill and sleeting, as John Sampson and I ran to the main gate of the Greensville Correctional Centre, a hexagon-shaped high-security prison in the rural, southern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

My blurb:

‘M’ is getting the better of Alex, and in more ways than one. He is clearly killing people with random abandon. But is he a copycat killer, or have they just executed an innocent man? Alex is convinced they did not make a mistake. And then Ali is kidnapped, and finding ‘M’ becomes a huge priority.

Criss Cross

Could a ghost from his past take everything away from Alex Cross?

Mere hours after witnessing the execution of a killer he helped put behind bars, Alex Cross is called to the scene of a copycat murder. A note signed ‘M’ rests on the corpse: ‘You messed up big time, Dr. Cross.’

Was an innocent man just put to death? As the executed convict’s family launch a vicious campaign against Cross, his abilities as a detective are called into question.

The enigmatic ‘M’ lures Cross out of Washington, DC to the sites of multiple homicides, all marked with distressingly familiar details that conjure up decades-old cases and Cross family secrets.

Details that make it clear M is after a prize so dear that – were the killer to attain it – Cross’s life would be destroyed.

My verdict:

This is the 26th installment in the Alex Cross novels, and like each one I have read, it is a page turner. I really enjoyed this novel and would recommend it.

Publishing information:

Disclosure: I was sent the book to review by Penguin Random House South Africa. I was not required to write a positive review. This post is in line with my blogging policy.

Inspiration published on Lavender and Lime March 8:

• • 2019 – Romesco Sauce
  • 2017 – Tissue Salts For Anti-ageing
  • 2015 – Don’t Look Back
  • 2013 – Tuffy Hamper Give Away
  • 2012 – Flour Tortillas
  • 2011 – Mushroom and Gorgonzola Pasta

Top of Page