Series

One of my favorite authors, that I read several of his series books, is James Patterson. He is the author of the ever popular Alex Cross series and the Women’s Murder Club series (among others). I’ve been reading the Alex Cross series for about 20 years. As soon as I find out that James Patterson has a new Alex Cross book coming out, I instantly go on the Libby app and reserve it for my Kindle! Deadly Cross is the latest book in the Alex Cross series. Like every other Alex Cross book, this one most definitely did not disappoint!

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Deadly Cross (Alex Cross, 28)Criss Cross (Alex Cross, 25)Target: Alex Cross (Alex Cross, 24)

About Deadly Cross

From Amazon –

A double homicide in the nation’s capital opens the psychological case files – on Detective Alex Cross.

Kay Willingham led a life as glamorous as it was public – she was a gorgeous Georgetown socialite, philanthropist, and the ex-wife of the vice president. So why was she parked in a Bentley convertible idling behind a DC private school, in the middle of the night, with the man who was the head of that school? Who shot them both, point blank, and why? The shocking double homicide is blazed across the internet, TV, newspapers – and across Alex Cross’s mind. Kay had been his patient once. And maybe more. 

While John Sampson of DC Metro Police investigates the last movements of Christopher Randall, the educator killed along with Kay Willingham, detective Alex Cross and FBI special agent Ned Mahoney find unanswered questions from Willingham’s past, before she arrived in DC and became known in Washington society as someone who could make things happen. They travel to Alabama to investigate Kay’s early years. There they find a world of trouble, corruption, and secrets, all of them closed to outsiders like Cross and Mahoney.

Kay had many enemies, but all of them seemed to need her alive. The harder the investigators push, the more resistance they find when they leave behind the genteel law offices and doctors’ quarters of the state capital. Alex Cross will need to use all his skills as a doctor, a detective, and a family man to prevent that resistance from turning lethal…again.

Merry Christmas, Alex Cross (Alex Cross, 19)Criss Cross (Alex Cross Book 27)Along Came a Spider (Alex Cross, 1)

My Thoughts

Well…first…I read the book in a day and a half. So I guess you could say, I liked it! Actually, I like Deadly Cross a lot. Like I said before, James Patterson is one of my favorite authors. With that said, sometimes when he has a co-author, the book doesn’t  have the “James Patterson voice”. Deadly Cross, however, was 100% James Patterson. The old James Patterson. I loved it! The simplistic sentence structure, and I do not mean that as an insult, keeps me engaged and moves the story along. Moves it along so much that I finished it very quickly! I’m sure the next people in line to read the book at the library was very pleased that I returned it so quickly!

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What Else Does James Patterson Write?

I could literally sit here all day and write out every single thing James Patterson has written, but the best thing I cold do is send you to his website. At his website you will see a list of his books, as well as, each book series broken up with reading lists. If you are like me, you will want to read the books in order. I highly recommend you do. The older Alex Cross books are so good and they provide you with a TON of backstory. If you have children, he writes excellent books for kids. When my kids were tweens (especially my son) they really enjoyed his books. They made them laugh!

I’ve told you before, my absolute favorite thing to read are series books. A close second are novella’s. Why? Well, simply because they are usually part of a series and they are short. I don’t mind reading long novels at all, but sometimes I just need a quick read. Insert the novella! This Kendra Elliot novella came at the right time for me. I needed something short, but I also wanted familiar characters. This gave me exactly what I needed at the exact time!

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About the Kendra Elliot Novella, Below the Bones

From Amazon –

Former FBI special agent Cate Wilde is a new bakery and bookstore owner—and retirement is now complete with a doctor boyfriend. Although she struggles with PTSD, the sweet life she’s living is a far cry from the gruesome work she left behind six months ago.

But when skeletal remains turn up on Widow’s Island—and the MO of the killer is too familiar to Cate—the dream comes to an abrupt end. What if the case she solved eight years ago isn’t as closed as she thought? Her hometown needs her, and despite her mental health and her boyfriend’s protests, she has no choice but to return to her dangerous past life.

Soon Cate is in a desperate race to stop a cold-blooded murderer from killing again, once and for all…only this time, she’ll have so much more to lose.

My Thoughts on the Novella

First things first, what is a novella? Very simply put, a novella is considered a short novel or a long short story. This Kendra Elliot novella was literally less than 100 pages. Despite not having a lot of pages, this book gave just as much as a 200 or 300 page novel. Kendra Elliot is one of my favorite authors. I have a Kindle Unlimited membership (check out the Kindle Unlimited Membership Plans) and I’ve read almost every single book by this author. In fact, when I finish one in a series, I always Google to find out when the next one comes out AND I put it on my calendar. Yes I do!

Close to the Bone (Widow’s Island Novella Book 1)A Bone to Pick (Widow’s Island Novella Book 2)Whisper of Bones (Widow’s Island Novella Book 3)Bred in the Bone (Widow’s Island Novella Book 4)Below the Bones (Widow’s Island Novella Book 5)A Broken Bone (Widow’s Island Novella Book 6)

One thing I like most about this author is that she does an amazing job making the characters feel believable. If I am reading a book and a character says or does something that just would never happen in a million years, and it’s not a fantasy type book, then it annoys me and I have a hard time buying into that character. That’s not the case with this Kendra Elliot novella or any book by this author. For instance, check out Columbia River series. This is another series by Kendra Elliot and it is fantastic.

I See the Series is Written by Two Different Authors

If you noticed that the series above is written by two different authors, then you would be correct! Both Kendra Elliot and Melinda Leigh co-write several series books that you find on Amazon. I don’t know the story behind how these two authors found each other to start writing, but they have very similar styles. It is not distracting at all. In fact, I sometimes don’t even realize which author wrote the book I’m reading. That’s how similar they are!