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danielle_marie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.25
zermeena's review against another edition
3.0
I hate to give this book such a low rating, but it was not successful. Instead of telling the story from Alex's POV, this book is mainly from Mike's POV. It felt like Mike's character was not stable. At many times it sounded like Alex was speaking through Mike. I hope the next book returns to the original format.
canadianbookaddict's review against another edition
2.0
The story line is good but I found there was one part that had way to much New York history. I didn't like Alex and Mike in this one as much as I liked them in previous books.
I don't know if I will even bother continuing this series.
I don't know if I will even bother continuing this series.
jrmama42's review against another edition
4.0
I was starting to get tired of the Alex Cooper series, and especially Mike's character. This was the first time I've listened to the audiobook, and it took a while to get used to the characters' voices after hearing them differently in my head for so long. A big change in this book is that most of the story is told from Mike's perspective; I actually found this to be a refreshing change and it made me more sympathetic toward his character.
One thing I love about these books, that keeps me coming back for more, is the New York City history woven into the plot. This book had some interesting background on Washington Heights (where my daughter lives) and the old forts on both sides of the river. The plot was interesting, mixing courtroom drama with organized crime and political intrigue. I think I'll stick with the series, but opt for the audio version from now on.
One thing I love about these books, that keeps me coming back for more, is the New York City history woven into the plot. This book had some interesting background on Washington Heights (where my daughter lives) and the old forts on both sides of the river. The plot was interesting, mixing courtroom drama with organized crime and political intrigue. I think I'll stick with the series, but opt for the audio version from now on.
felinity's review against another edition
4.0
Security breaches put Alexandra Cooper's life on display for everyone, and then
Not quite as strong as others in the series but you'll get a good dose of New York history, and plenty of trivia. Chapman's suspicious nature continues to be a strength, even though the stress of the operation may be enough to permanently damage some of his working relationships, and much depends on how people react under the increasing pressure.
Disclaimer: I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Not quite as strong as others in the series but you'll get a good dose of New York history, and plenty of trivia. Chapman's suspicious nature continues to be a strength, even though the stress of the operation may be enough to permanently damage some of his working relationships, and much depends on how people react under the increasing pressure.
Spoiler
I felt the implied connection between Shipley and Estevez was a little contrived, and switching to another first-person view felt awkward to me. I'd much rather have had the default third-person narrator taking over, because there wasn't a strong reason for it. No internal monologues, nothing that couldn't have been observed from outside by someone like Mercer. (That may just be me though.) In fact, in a way really this is Chapman's book, not Cooper's - she's offscreen for much of it, and it's Chapman's history that holds the key.Disclaimer: I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
indydriven's review against another edition
3.0
This is the 17th book in the Alexandra Cooper series. The author took a different view with this book and wrote it from the viewpoint of Mike, the cop who is good friends with Alexandra and also now her lover. Alexandra is kidnapped early in the book and you see the relationship and Mike's feelings about Alex from his POV. I enjoyed the change and hope that she will write another book in this vein. It is hard to keep a series fresh that has run this long and this was a nice change.
nomadreader's review against another edition
5.0
originally published at http://nomadreader.blogspot.com
The backstory: Devil's Bridge is Linda Fairstein's seventeenth mystery to feature New York City sex crimes ADA Alexandra Cooper. I discovered this series early in 2003, when The Bone Vault, the fifth book was released. I quickly read all five, and since then, I've eagerly awaited the publication of each book. Alexandra Cooper has been in my life longer than Mr. Nomadreader has.
This review will contain minor spoilers from earlier books, particularly Terminal City and where Alex's romantic life stood at the end of that novel.
The basics: Devil's Bridge opens up a few weeks after Terminal City. Mike and Alex are slowly feeling their way into a relationship that's new, even if they've been close friends for many years, and they're fielding questions most people get to avoid in the early weeks of new relationships. Early in the book, (minor spoiler) Alex is kidnapped, and Mike begins narrating the search for her.
My thoughts: I didn't know I was yearning for Mike to narrate a novel, but when the narration switched, I got excited. This device worked beautifully. It offered insight into his thoughts and feelings, but it also was incredibly effective as a storytelling technique. Although Alex works closely with Mike and Mercer in most novels, I enjoyed the opportunity to just focus on the mystery as a police procedural. I also liked having more direct insight into Mike as a character, including the history of his feelings for Alex.
There's an urgency to this novel because no one knows where Alex is. It reads quickly, and I was completely engrossed. Yet after I finished the book, I felt some frustration for the series. The last few books have all taken place in the span of a few months, which allows for little character growth, either during the books or between them. Particularly given the changes I've been hoping for for more than ten years and expecting for more than five, part of me is ready to just be there. Admittedly, Fairstein has come up with wonderful diversions for Alex and Mike the last few years, and perhaps if I were reading them all for the first time in quick succession it would feel fine, but to wait a year for the next adventure and mind more mystery than character movement feels like we're all standing a bit too still.
The verdict: Devil's Bridge is an adventurous thriller and a unique entry in this long-running and well loved series. In many ways, it stands on its own and would be a nice place for new readers to enter this series. The mystery is superb, but this long-time fan wanted more development in Alex's personal and romantic lives. And with Alex absent for much of this novel, I'm really looking forward to spending time again with her in the next book (but I wouldn't mind it at all if Mike helped tell the story.)
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
The backstory: Devil's Bridge is Linda Fairstein's seventeenth mystery to feature New York City sex crimes ADA Alexandra Cooper. I discovered this series early in 2003, when The Bone Vault, the fifth book was released. I quickly read all five, and since then, I've eagerly awaited the publication of each book. Alexandra Cooper has been in my life longer than Mr. Nomadreader has.
This review will contain minor spoilers from earlier books, particularly Terminal City and where Alex's romantic life stood at the end of that novel.
The basics: Devil's Bridge opens up a few weeks after Terminal City. Mike and Alex are slowly feeling their way into a relationship that's new, even if they've been close friends for many years, and they're fielding questions most people get to avoid in the early weeks of new relationships. Early in the book, (minor spoiler) Alex is kidnapped, and Mike begins narrating the search for her.
My thoughts: I didn't know I was yearning for Mike to narrate a novel, but when the narration switched, I got excited. This device worked beautifully. It offered insight into his thoughts and feelings, but it also was incredibly effective as a storytelling technique. Although Alex works closely with Mike and Mercer in most novels, I enjoyed the opportunity to just focus on the mystery as a police procedural. I also liked having more direct insight into Mike as a character, including the history of his feelings for Alex.
There's an urgency to this novel because no one knows where Alex is. It reads quickly, and I was completely engrossed. Yet after I finished the book, I felt some frustration for the series. The last few books have all taken place in the span of a few months, which allows for little character growth, either during the books or between them. Particularly given the changes I've been hoping for for more than ten years and expecting for more than five, part of me is ready to just be there. Admittedly, Fairstein has come up with wonderful diversions for Alex and Mike the last few years, and perhaps if I were reading them all for the first time in quick succession it would feel fine, but to wait a year for the next adventure and mind more mystery than character movement feels like we're all standing a bit too still.
The verdict: Devil's Bridge is an adventurous thriller and a unique entry in this long-running and well loved series. In many ways, it stands on its own and would be a nice place for new readers to enter this series. The mystery is superb, but this long-time fan wanted more development in Alex's personal and romantic lives. And with Alex absent for much of this novel, I'm really looking forward to spending time again with her in the next book (but I wouldn't mind it at all if Mike helped tell the story.)
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
stephms's review against another edition
3.0
I truly did not understand the way some of the characters were acting/reacting in this one (primarily Vickee, I suppose), based on their history with Alex Cooper.
slc333's review against another edition
4.0
All the books in this series to date have been narrated in the first person by Alex. This one starts off this way but not to far in we switch to Mike's POV after Alex is abducted. I really, really enjoyed seeing Alex through other people's eyes and seeing how Mike feels about her from inside his head because we don't get any clue to his real feeling from the way he interacts with her. I can say that after this book I am more inclined to buy into their romantic relationship but I hope that we actually see a change in his behaviour in future books to reflect how we now know he feels. No he doesn't have to become a mushy discuss his feelings kind of guy that would be out of character but maybe he could do something other than make nasty digs which is how Alex & Mike have interacted in the previous 3 books. I though Vickee was a mega bitch about Alex in this book. Alex keeps telling us that Vickee is one of her closest friends yet she
Spoiler
immediately jumps to the conclusion that Alex is cheating on Mike because she is having a drink with an old flame, and she encourages other people to believe this to the point they try to stop Mike looking for Alex. I freely admit I have not read all the books in this series so maybe Alex has a history of cheating but I don't remember it ever being mentioned in the dozen or so books I read. And I don't know about you but I don't automatically assume my close friends are cheating especially when I know how much they care about their current partner nor would I discourage people from looking for one of my extremely busy workaholic friends who failed to show up for work or contact anyone on the basis that they took a day of to have sex with an old flameSpoiler
annemariewhelehan's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
This is book 17 of the Alexandra Cooper series, which I’ve been reading for 20 years. I use to love them at the beginning and bought them religiously when they were released. Now they are a like a comfort blanket to read every now and then when I’m not looking for anything too taxing. This one was written from Mike’s perspective and not Alex’s so I missed all the usual Alex voice. But the author explains in the Acknowledgements that she did want to explore a different voice to get a different perspective on Alex’s character. She achieved this. I’ll continue onto book 18 in due course.