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grandmashenanigans's review against another edition
4.0
Was rolling my eyes at the start but determined to finish the book. Once I got going, I wasn't so bored. Although I didn't enjoy this as much as Patterson's Alex Cross Series, it was nice to have a female heroine. Nice for a quick read, but not a repeat read. Check it out from the library so it doesn't collect dust at home.
irinna's review against another edition
5.0
1st to Die by James Patterson
features a tough yet empathetic homicide detective who, with the help of three friends, attempts to solve gruesome murders. As someone targets newlyweds on their honeymoons, Lindsay and her friends establish the Women's Murder Club, determined to apprehend the killer before another attack occurs.
features a tough yet empathetic homicide detective who, with the help of three friends, attempts to solve gruesome murders. As someone targets newlyweds on their honeymoons, Lindsay and her friends establish the Women's Murder Club, determined to apprehend the killer before another attack occurs.
martinapennetta's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
pirategirl121's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed the characters and the crime was excellent but I was not a huge fan of the love story. It felt incredibly unnecessary and slowed the book down.
greggbaconroll's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
redvelvetpenguins's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this! I was a bit worried a book written 15 years ago would date itself but luckily it stayed away from anything that would suggest it was written a small lifetime ago. The characters were fun and easy to follow and the twist kept coming. Only knocked a star off because I felt the story could've been wrapped up about an hour before it was. I will definitely be going on in the series.
synthwhoa's review against another edition
2.0
In some ways, I'm jealous of James Patterson. There is no way that I could write a book like 1st to Die. I couldn't commit to a fairly asinine titling trademark where everything has a number in it. I couldn't open with a suicide attempt, to shock the audience, and then go nowhere with it. And I couldn't write a book that felt so completely focus tested, with more effort spent satisfying core demographics than telling a story.
The Women's Murder Club is fascinating because it doesn't really have characters in it. There is Lindsay, the main character and homicide detective, whose personality is basically 'in some pain'. There is Claire, the medical examiner, who is the black one. Cindy is a reporter. She might have a personality. It is not in the book. Jill is a DA, she disapproves of things. Chris is a handsome man, his personality is 'handsome.' The villains are evil but not in a very complex way. It's vaguely violent in a Law and Order way. It's a lot like Law and Order, actually, right down to cops talking exclusively in sarcastic quips.
If you love it, I understand it. It's readable, and the brief chapters make it seem like you're flying through the book - is there a reason why it should have over 120 chapters? Not logically. The twists aren't particularly surprising - the final twist makes the entire thing retroactively dumber - but he does some interesting narrative trickery to subvert expectations.
But in the quest to make something marketable, the book is something unremarkable. It's a mid-season episode of Law and Order - not an episode on sweeps, not one that got a famous guest star, but one that is there to fill out the episode order and sell a few more ads for Polident. I respect that he's made a book that hits key demographics, but it doesn't make it a good read.
The Women's Murder Club is fascinating because it doesn't really have characters in it. There is Lindsay, the main character and homicide detective, whose personality is basically 'in some pain'. There is Claire, the medical examiner, who is the black one. Cindy is a reporter. She might have a personality. It is not in the book. Jill is a DA, she disapproves of things. Chris is a handsome man, his personality is 'handsome.' The villains are evil but not in a very complex way. It's vaguely violent in a Law and Order way. It's a lot like Law and Order, actually, right down to cops talking exclusively in sarcastic quips.
If you love it, I understand it. It's readable, and the brief chapters make it seem like you're flying through the book - is there a reason why it should have over 120 chapters? Not logically. The twists aren't particularly surprising - the final twist makes the entire thing retroactively dumber - but he does some interesting narrative trickery to subvert expectations.
But in the quest to make something marketable, the book is something unremarkable. It's a mid-season episode of Law and Order - not an episode on sweeps, not one that got a famous guest star, but one that is there to fill out the episode order and sell a few more ads for Polident. I respect that he's made a book that hits key demographics, but it doesn't make it a good read.
nicolamb's review against another edition
2.0
I really wasn't impressed with this book. After reading the really good Maximum Ride by the same author I expected so much more, but sadly I didn't recieve it. Maybe crime writing just isn't the authors strong point. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone.
missajbrowne's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
nicetory_99's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.75