Jack and Jill - James Patterson

Published by Nancy Williams on July 21, 2008

I started writing this review more than three weeks ago and then stopped. I am not sure why, although I do put it, and my reading hiatus, down to a change in routine for me. The problem with coming back to finish a review is the book isn’t nearly as fresh in my mind. Therein lies a lesson, and one which I have constantly considered and never undertaken - take notes when you read so that the thoughts and impressions you get can be referred back to long after you close the cover.

But let me try and get this finished…

Alex Cross is back in his third adventure, and, although I know that there are a stack of books to come, I am not sure where James Patterson is going to go after this one. I mean, where can he go after presidential assassinations and two different murderers running riot in Washington?! I did enjoy Jack and Jill more than the previous book however. Cross seemed a little more grounded, and although there was a love interest (who, sorry for the spoiler, conveniently becomes “available” at the end of the book) it seemed that this one might be more long lasting.

You don’t read Patterson for depth. You read him for pace, short chapters, breathtaking final sentences, twists and several ours of action packed escapism. In this book, you got all of that including the gore of the murders and the twisted minds of the murderers. Running the two murders in tandem made for an interesting storyline. You questioned continuously whether they were related or not or whether Cross was just really unlucky (the Die Hard-like bad day came to mind on several occasions) or really popular with the bad guys. Despite this layering of crime, it remained reasonably believable which I think is a skill in itself. He might not be out to produce literary classics, but I can’t fault Patterson for being able to tell a story.

You can read another great review here:

http://www.bookreporter.com/reviews/0446604801.asp

Rating: 6/10
ISBN: Book club book - no ISBN printed
Publisher: BCA
Year: 1996
Date Finished: 20 June 2008
Pages: 432
Challenges: