Cross Country (Alex Cross) [Hardcover]

James Patterson (Author)

Book Description

Series: Alex Cross | Publication Date: November 17, 2008

When the home of Alex Cross's oldest friend, Ellie Cox, is turned into the worst murder scene Alex has ever seen, the destruction leads him to believe that he's chasing a horrible new breed of killer. As Alex and his girlfriend, Brianna Stone, become entangled in the deadly Nigerian underworld of Washington D.C., what they discover is shocking: a stunningly organized gang of lethal teenagers headed by a powerful, diabolical man--the African warlord known as the Tiger. Just when the detectives think they're closing in on the elusive murderer, the Tiger disappears into thin air. Tracking him to Africa, Alex knows that he must follow. Alone.

From the author Time magazine has called "the man who can't miss," CROSS COUNTRY is the most heart-stopping, speed-charged, electrifying Alex Cross thriller yet.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bestseller Patterson's 14th Alex Cross thriller doesn't follow up on the plot threads left dangling in 2007's Double Cross concerning still-on-the-loose serial killer Kyle Craig. Instead, Cross, a Washington, D.C., police detective, takes on a very different quarry—a human monster known as the Tiger with ties to the African underworld. When the Tiger and his teenage thugs butcher writer Ellie Cox, her husband and children in their Georgetown home, Cross is devastated because Ellie had been his girlfriend in college. The Cox family massacre proves to be just the first in a series. Cross pursues the Tiger to Nigeria, where the profiler finds himself at the mercy of corrupt government officials who may be working with the Tiger. Spending less time than usual exploring his villains psychological backstory, Patterson delivers an atypical tale of James Bond–style revenge. Craig's brief cameo toward the end suggests the series will resume its usual path in the next book. (Nov. 17)
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Review

"Tame holiday stress with [this] irresistible read!" (Women's World )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1St Edition edition (November 17, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316018724
• ISBN-13: 978-0316018722
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1.2 x 9.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (400 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #56,255 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

From my publisher:

James Patterson...


* James Patterson holds the New York Times bestsellers list record with 63 New York Times bestselling titles.

* JP has sold more than 220 million books worldwide. And considering pass-along and libraries, it's safe to say many more people than that have read a Patterson!

* In 2010, JP was named by kids everywhere the Children's Book Councils' Children's Choice Book Awards "Author of the Year" in 2010. More than 15,000 kid and teen readers voted for JP in a category he shared with Suzanne Collins, Carl Hiaasen, Jeff Kinney, and Rick Riordan. His Witch and Wizard series saw the biggest launch of a series for young readers ever, surpassing sales of first installments of Twilight, Diary of A Wimpy Kid, and Percy Jackson & The Olympians.

* JP has grossed over 3 billion dollars in worldwide sales. This is larger than the worldwide theatrical gross of Avatar, the highest grossing film of all time.

* JP has had 43 New York Times hardcover #1 bestselling novels, also a publishing industry record.

* Last year, JP has sold more books than John Grisham, Dan Brown, Tom Clancy, and Stephen King combined (source: Nielsen BookScan).

* JP properties are gaining wide interest amongst film and TV producers. JP's award-winning series for young readers, Maximum Ride, is currently with Avi Arad (Spiderman, Iron Man) and Universal Pictures. Lloyd Levin (Green Zone, Watchmen) is attached to produce a feature film adaptation of JP's newest young readers series, Witch and Wizard, and James Patterson Entertainment is set to produce the next Alex Cross film, I, Alex Cross which will feature Idris Elba (The Wire, The Losers) as Alex Cross. And, a television adaptation of JP's 2007 love story Sundays At Tiffanys aired in December 2010 starring Alyssa Milano and Eric Winter.

* JP's books are licensed in 43 countries worldwide, and are in print and actively sold in 100 countries.

* According to a 2010 Bowker Sisters in Crime Survey, JP is the favorite mystery writer amongst readers under 50...AND over 50! Survey respondents comprised American men, women and teens who bought at least one mystery fiction title in 2009 and/or 2010.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

171 of 182 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Where is Alex Cross?, November 20, 2008

By 

Laura "Bookworm" (New York USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Cross Country (Alex Cross) (Hardcover)

This is one of the most poorly thought-out, unbelievable books I have read in a long time. Almost from the beginning, I had the odd feeling that I had just stepped into the most contrived situation imaginable. Horrible grisly murder after horrible grisly murder, unexpected poorly thought out action, characters that you never really get to understand or don't even want to, overuse of the exclamation point to underline the action(!); felt like a cheap harlequin thriller to me.

The Alex Cross series was a great one; this doesn't even feel like it is written in the same voice. Alex is a gritty smart introspective detective; the Alex Cross in this book was something of an idiot -- blindly forcing himself into situations he had no business even thinking of entering into, all without that careful forethought we have been treated to in the past. I would skip this one, or at least wait until you can find it in the bargain bin.

76 of 80 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Thoroughly Disappointing, December 3, 2008

By 

E. R. Whyte (Oakley, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cross Country (Alex Cross) (Hardcover)

I am a HUGE fan of James Patterson's Alex Cross series. I look forward to the new releases with great anticipation. However, I must say, I was thoroughly disappointed by this latest Alex Cross novel. It was a tough book to get through; which, for me, is unusual for this series.

(1) The murders were extremely gruesome and violent beyond what seemed necessary. (2) I have to agree with some of the other comments; Alex seemed to have lost his good and common sense in this book. His decisions constantly put those around him in harms way. His decision to fly off to Africa to pursue a killer in a foreign country with absolutely no government assistance seemed downright ridiculous. (3) Although I believe the plight and conditions that exist in Africa should be brought to main st America to encourage awareness; I didn't think this crime-thriller novel was the best forum. (4) The entire plot was beyond believable.

Mr. Patterson's writing style with the short chapters remained but his wonderfully woven storyline was missing from this novel.

57 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars AWFUL!!!, December 4, 2008

By 

C. Carnes "Avid Reader" (Midwest) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Cross Country (Alex Cross) (Hardcover)

This book was horrible, I got it on tape to listen to while driving 1,000 miles (in one day) with my husband over the Thanksgiving holiday. I told him prior to the drive that Patterson had finally written his OWN BOOK......one with Alex Cross in it. I promised him it would be a real treat.

The lack of plot and Alex' complete disregard to the dangers he was in was totally unfathomable. I don't understand why it was written this way, I am so not impressed.

This book disappoints in a huge way. Thank goodness I have gotten smart and not spent my hard earned money on his latest books, I got it at the library.

We struggled to listen to the last couple chapters, it was surreal.

Not worth the effort to read.