Customer Reviews

Caroline Masters

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I came deceptively close to purchasing 'Caroline Masters' before I noticed at the very bottom of the front cover these words: 'Formerly Titled Final Judgement'...I carefully put it back on the shelf and figured if I wanted to re-read the book I had originally read 4 years ago, I'd go back and open up my 1st edition hardback copy of 'The Final Judgement'. My question isn't why they re-released the book, but why totally changed the title? It seems like a plot to milk money from a book that had already stopped making money a couple years ago...now maybe that is a bit too harsh and it may not be true, but if not, why so soon? I know authors, or more accurately the publishers--do this actually quite often, but it usually happens after decades, not just 4 years after it originally was published...

All that aside, this really IS a pretty good example of the legal/thriller genre. Mr. Patterson has written a good number of superior murder/mysteries, and 'Caroline Masters/Final Judgement' I am happy to say is another literary home run. If you are a fan of RNP you know he has a predictable pattern to his novels...which is to say he'll start off a story, set the stage, and then before long we are going back in time re-visiting one (or more) characters' earlier lives to find out more of why they are who they are and usually this is staged to plant the seed of doubt as to their possible guilt or innocence. In this novel, Mr. Patterson again takes us back into the earlier lives of our main character and on this journey through time we also run across moments where we can see how and why the accused just MAY be a murderer. It kept me guessing all the way through, and made me feel that my $25.00 was well spent.

WARNING: IF you have already read Mr. Pattersons 'The Final Judgement' this isn't just the same story re-written, its the EXACT same story totally un-touched--all they did was change the title. If you HAVEN'T read it before, by all means, pick it up and enjoy a great court-room thriller.

Patterson is one of the few authors around that can make the entire story interesting, not because you want to find out how it ends, but because you want to find out more about the characters. Each page brings you more into the lives of the characters. This book is no different. It has murders and sex and lawyers and secrets from the past.
I enjoy Patterson's flashbacks into a character's past that usually in some indirect way have a bearing on the outcome of the story.
But I have on problem with this book. THIS BOOK IS CALLED THE FINAL JUDGEMENT, NOT CAROLINE MASTERS. THIS IS NOT A NEW BOOK. IF YOU ARE A PATTERSON FAN, YOU PROBABLY READ THIS BOOK A FEW YEARS AGO. IT CAME OUT IN HARDCOVER AND PAPERBACK UNDER A DIFFERENT TITLE. WHY MUST PATTERSON RESORT TO TRICKERY AND A HORRIBLE NEW TITLE IN ORDER TO ENTICE PEOPLE TO BUY A BOOK THEY ALREADY READ. I CAN GUESS WHY. CAROLINE MASTERS WAS IN PROTECT AND DEFEND AND HE WANTED FANS OF THAT BOOK TO READ THE FINAL JUDGEMENT...

I love Richard North Patterson's books and have read every one as it has been released. I was very disappointed to realize this is just an old book that has been re-titled. I think it's a poor way to get money from loyal readers. I loved it the first time, but I was duped this time!

Final Judgement was great. Vintage Patterson. It mixed mystery, suspense, and wonderful courtroom drama with family dynamics. Patterson has a way of making his characters real. He did so with Carolyn. Why re-issue a great book under a different title? It borders on devious. Makes it seem like something it's not. Same thing was done with a William Patterson book, Black Market. It was re-issued as Black Friday. Same book. Unless you read the small printing, you think you have bought a new novel. Final Judgement was a great book. Don't detract from it by giving it a different title. Don't detract from Richard North Patterson's greatness by misleading his readers with below the board tactics and misrepresenting books as new works when they are not.

I almost purchased "Caroline Masters" and am so glad that I checked with ... to discover that I had already read "Protect and Defend".

The book was the first Richard North Patterson that I had read. His story-telling skill, knowledge of the legal system and his writing ability are superb. His plot moves smoothly and the surprises he springs on the reader are both plausible and unexpected. It is a joy to read this book, which I would highly recommend. My only criticism of "Caroline Masters" is the deception involved in publishing an "old" book under a new name. Is there some way that we can protest a title change to the publisher? This is really most unfair to readers. Perhaps it we who need to be protected and defended.

Don't be fooled! I thought that the plot of this book sounded familiar. It is! It is just a new title for The Final Judgement written by Richard North Patterson several years ago. I did enjoy The Final Judgement and the family relationship development. I'm wondering why the title was changed.

I recently read and finished Patterson's last novel, Protect And Defend. My wife had bought me another Patterson novel entitled Caroline Masters thinking that I would probably enjoy reading about the woman who is one of the central figures in Protect And Defend. In perusing the book I realized that I had read this book before but under the title of The Final Judgement. Nevertheless I read it again before returning it to the bookstore. I enjoyed it every bit as much as I did the first time I read it. If you are a Patterson fan, you know that you

meet Caroline Masters in a couple of Patterson's other novels: in the novel Eyes of A Child she is a criminal defense lawyer representing another lawyer who has been accused of killing his girlfriend's husband. Masters appears again as a strong willed judge in Degree of Guilt. Caroline Masters is a good read from the standpoint that it gives you a complete view of Masters, her motivations, her ambition and most of all her devotion to her niece Brett. This book is an excellent refresher course for those who may have read Patterson for the first time in Protect And Defend...and even if you have read this book before it deserves another read.

I think I may now have a new favorite author(sorry John Grisham). Five hundred pages is quite a lot to read, but I hated for this book to end. Patterson's books have more twists and turns in them than a blind driver without a map. He kept me guessing until the final pages. My wife read this book and thinks he is totally incredible also. We can't wait to read his next book!

I am grateful to the other reviewers who clued me in to Carolyn Masters being a reissue of Final Judgement. I, too, almost bought it without realizing. Patterson's books (along with Turow, Grishom, et al)are some of my favorite rainy-day reads, and I hate to see his reputation tarnished by a tawdry publisher's trick. Final Judgement is a wonderful book, almost prescient, considering what the Bushies just did to women's right to choose. Read it (under either title, I guess).

I too, think it's unconscionable to reissue a book under a new name without CLEARLY stating in the book's description that it's a re-issue.

I actually put this in my cart, thinking that it was a new book by RNP. Pure chance led me to read the reviews. I would have demanded a refund of my money or worse if I had actually wasted my money purchasing a book I knew I had read previously under another name.

How desperate can you get? I can't imagine that Patterson's hurting for money that badly, but I just lost a lot of respect for both he and his publishers. I certainly hope that this isn't being done with other authors.