Customer Reviews

1st to Die (Women's Murder Club)

5 star:		(254)
4 star:		(151)
3 star:		(83)
2 star:		(46)
1 star:		(69)

 

 

Author James Patterson gives book series psychologist cop Alex Cross a breather and lets four professional women, dubbed the 'Women's Murder Club,' track down a psycho killer of newlyweds. Led by homicide inspector Lindsay Boxer, the women (a reporter, a medical examiner and an assistant district attorney) leverage their respective expertise to decipher the clues of the gruesome nuptial slayings. The ad hoc women's club also becomes a support group for each other on issues of work, family, romance and illness. Lindsay Boxer, in particular, battles to balance a blood illness, a new beau, and her passion to solve the murders.

When the case is finally nailed down to the Club's satisfaction, it becomes unglued as Lindsay becomes unsure as to the real killer. Another search for the truth leads to a surprise ending, as well as to the meaning of the novel's title.

The author's risk to try something new seems to have succeeded in this novel. The 'Club' characters are likeable, enduring and memorable, just as those in the Alex Cross episodes. Maybe a strong '2cd' book series from James Patterson will benefit the '1st' series by keeping it fresh and novel.

The killer wonders "What is the worst thing anyone has ever done?", as he sets out to do worse.

San Francisco homicide investigator, Lindsay Boxer, is called to the most disturbing crime scene, a young couple has been murdered on their wedding night, the bride still in her wedding gown. This horrifying scene lays heavy in Lindsay's mind.

As the investigation begins, another murder is committed, again another young couple on their wedding night. Lindsay knows she is up against a sick serial killer preying on newlyweds.

As the official investigation is leading nowhere, Lindsay teams up with the medical examiner on the case, who also happens to be her friend, to begin their own investigation of these murders. The two women enlist the help of an investigative reporter, and the assistant D.A. to form the women's murder club. The women will meet and discuss how they are going to stop this killer, using the information obtained through the official investigation.

The search brings the women to their first, and only suspect...a bestselling author whose first un-published novel depicts each of the murders in detail.

With no concrete evidence to pin the murders on the author, the women will be lead on a wild chase to find the killer.

Twist and turns keep things spinning out of control, until the final shocking realization of who the killer is!

"1st To Die" is the first novel in a brand new series, and what a great novel it is. The plot races along, combining the murders, devistating health issues for Lindsay, and some romance, twisting and turning all the way to the shocking the conclusion.

James Patterson uses all the key elements used in his Alex Cross series, so fans of that series will not be disappointed with this new book. I read this book in one-sitting, it is THAT GOOD!

James Patterson is THE master of creating up-all-night reads, and his new book "1st To Die" is another masterpiece in a long line of great books.

A MUST read!

Nick Gonnella

After being terribly disappointed with James Patterson's Beach House, I immediately begin his First to Die. I'm happy to report that this book is more of what we should expect from a best-selling author. First to Die is the first book in his Women's Murder Club series, of which there are now four.

First to Die is written mainly in the voice of Lindsey Boxer. Boxer is a homicide detective for the San Francisco Police Department. When a newlywed couple is found brutally murdered just hours after their wedding (still attired in wedding regalia), Boxer is put on the case. Two other couples are also murdered, but one is in Napa and the other in Cleveland. Boxer is unsure whether there is a serial killer at work as even the methods of murder are different. But it is up to her to try to find the common denominator.

Boxer's best friend is San Francisco medical examiner Claire Washburn. The two of them befriend a crime reporter from the Chronicle, Cindy Thomas, and an assistant DA, Jill Bernhardt. Together, they dub themselves the Women's Murder Club. When the case seems to be going nowhere, the various women use their skills to crack open the case, a little at a time.

This book will take you on a roller coaster ride from start to finish. And even when it seems that Boxer has the case all wrapped up, there is still one more twisting turn at the very end. My only regret is that I started this series with book three, Third Degree.

First to die: The stereotypes of professional women and how they relate to each other. The only woman in this book who was not badly written was a corpse. No character in this book had depth greater than the paper thereof. And how obnoxious it becomes when the detective comes to her conclusions from hunches and omens. "I was sure I had missed something." Why? What would lead her to feel that way? Those "dark ghosts" of the victims were just leading her on or what? "Tell me, Melanie, I am here for you." What? WHAT? Is she a detective or is she Shirley MacLaine? And then she acts like a profiler. And all of this is delivered in lackadaisical prose that makes me want to scream for my money back. As if all of this isn't enough, for some reason Patterson decided his leading lady must have a preference for a man with soft hands. Eww.

Second to die: The setting. I've never been to San Francisco and nothing in this book makes me think the place would be interesting, although I've heard from friends that SF is one great place to visit. The author rattles off place names, but that's not the same as really creating a feel for the city by the bay. There are no sounds, no smells, nothing of the city's character, good or bad, is ever revealed. He's reduced SF to a stage flat. For clues on how to connect the reader to the place, read Crais's Elvis Cole books, or Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series; James Lee Burke could teach a master class on creating atmosphere; and even the young Michael Koryta creates a Cleveland far more compelling than Patterson's cardboard San Francisco.

Third to die: Plot and subplot. The first, in this age of serial killer thrillers, is neither original nor gripping. The subplot involving the lead character's illness was beyond belief the first time the subject came up. No GP would diagnose such a rare blood disorder without confirmation from a hematologist, and no GP who thought his patient was so seriously ill would wait for said patient to make her own appointment with a specialist. And it's dozens of these small inaccuracies / inconsistencies that make this book so impossible to believe.

Fourth to die: My patience. Read this sentence straight out of chapter 108 (and those faux cliff-hanger chapter endings are extremely irritating); I've removed the name used to prevent spoilers for anyone who may still want to read this book: "Against all logic, I was growing surer and surer that X might not be the killer."

That may be the worst sentence I've ever read. It should be entered in the annual Bulwer-Lytton contest.

'First To Die' is the first James Patterson book I've ever read. I'm not tempted, I'm not even sure I could be persuaded, to ever read a second.

It's hard to believe the author of the Alex Cross novels has sunk this low.

Most of the plot twists are telegraphed well in advance. But the worse problem is that this book is poorly written. Characters frequently mouth the obvious (in case you missed it), and if that is not enough, there is a movie-style "epilogue" with a gratuitous attack scene, presumably so that the reader can feel good about killing off a particular character. Just dreadful: poor writing, cliché after cliché in the characters, a hokey plot. Shame on you, James Patterson.

The book opens with the heroine kissing her service revolver - contemplating a lead dinner. The melodrama of this opening scene sets the tone for the hysterical drama of this book.

It looked to me as if the author wanted to steal the theme from every successful novel and weave them into one densely dramatic novel. He has the "bravely facing a terminal illness" story line combined with the "female bonding/solidarity" theme the "multiple twist" plot, and the current "forensic science" craze. And to Mr. Patterson's credit, the reviews of this book seem to label his conglomeration a commercial success. However, I remain unimpressed.

I think my disenfranchisement was enhanced by Mr. Patterson's descriptions of the murder scenes. His images were starkly and vividly black. I found them gruesome and disturbing. I am not a fragile or a squeamish person, but I also don't intend to fill my brain with scenes of spectacular evil.

This book was filled with sharp implausible plot twists and hackneyed female bonding scenes making it entirely forgettable. I hope that I soon will.

OK... having said that, truth is I got hooked on Patterson a few books back when I realized how much I liked the detective he'd created, Alex Cross. But after several books with cartoon-character villains and ridiculous dialogue by his too-precious daughter, not to mention writing sorely lacking in description and procedure, I felt duped. Nevertheless, I decided to pick up the latest paperback and was stunned that such thin characters and another cartoonish villain was managing to be another bestseller. The "women's murder club" made me think of Nancy Drew and the idea that professional woman would gather that way, let alone dub themselves something that insipid, is beyond any reasonable suspension of disbelievability. Having been a crime reporter for a daily newspaper for many years, I know a little bit about what truly is ridiculous in crime fiction, and Patterson is at the top of the list.

All I can say is wow. I read this book over the course of two days this summer, and I was more disappointed about it than any book I have read in a long time.

Now, I normally really enjoy James Patterson. I've read quite a few of his novels, and usually enjoy them immensely. So when I started reading this book, I did not immediately put it down, as I would have if it were an author I was unfamiliar with. I kept reading, knowing that it would get better.

Boy, was I wrong.

This book reads like a first draft by a high school creative writing student who is taking the class simply because it is required to graduate. Yes, it is that bad.

While there are a few good plot twists, and I like the general idea of the story, perhaps Mr. Patterson should have spent a little more time developing it. The characters are thin, the story is at best highly unbelievable in several aspects, and characters die that have no reason to. OK, fine, I can handle it when a few main characters die. I'm a huge fan of Stephen King, an author guaranteed not to let everyone out alive. But at some point you have to say to yourself, "ok, this is going a little too far." Even if you suspend reality enough to accept that parts of the plot could occur, you will probably want to throw the book across the room when you get to the last pages. I know I did.

You're probably saying to yourself "it can't be all that bad, right?" Well, let me tell you exactly how disappointed I was: this is probably the last James Patterson novel I will ever read.

Take my advice and go for a really good cop book like Plum Island or The Lion's Game by Nelson DeMille. I think you'll be glad you did.

The book starts out promising...you like the main characters and wonder where it is going. Then you get to 3/4 of the way through --
1. Did the author forget about the scenes he wrote about the killer in the beginning? (his end just does not fit and was directly contradictory to the chapters he wrote in the beginning)
2. Did he find a likeable male lead just didn't fit the mold of the "Women's Murder Club"? That must be the case because he killed off a likeable main character with no reason or advancement to the plot.
Rarely have I read a book where it was so obvious that the author was having trouble making his deadline. It's a shame because the promise of an excellent book was there. Hence, the only thing I felt at the end of this book was anger.

I don't know what it is. I guess I am just spoiled by the Alex Cross series because every single time James Patterson steps away from it, I am left in a state of disarray. However, unlike the other times he has ventured off, this time he came up with an incredible concept. Someone is killing people but not just any people. Someone is killing couples that have been married for less than 48 hours. In one case, less than a single hour. The killer keeps mumbling, "What is the worse thing a person could do?" Well, if ripping the dreams and hopes away from people who have just embarked on a new life together isn't the worst, I shudder to think what is. Linsey, a homicide detective in San Francisco agrees, and she is hell bent on solving the cases. So much in fact that she forms the Women's Murder Club consisting of herself, a district attorney, a medical examiner, and a reporter. Together they begin to unravel the madness and nothing and no one are what they seem. If you are James Patterson fan, this is right up your alley.