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A review by book_concierge
1st to Die by James Patterson
2.0
Book on CD read by Suzanne Toren
2.5**
From the book jacket: Debut of The Women’s Murder Club. In San Francisco newlyweds are being stalked and slaughtered. Enter four unforgettable women, all friends … Lindsay, a homicide inspector in the city’s police department … Claire, a medical examiner …Jill, an assistant D.A… and Cindy, a reporter who has just started working the crime desk. Joining forces, pooling their talents, courage, and brains, they have one goal to find, trap and outwit the most diabolical and terrifying killer ever imagined.
My reactions
Patterson definitely knows how to write a fast-paced mystery thriller, with plenty of plot twists to keep the most avid amateur (reading) sleuth guessing. That being said, I did figure this out way ahead of the Women’s Murder Club, but it was still a good ride.
What I liked most about the book was how he portrayed the four women who form the Murder Club. Cindy, in particular, was a pleasant surprise. A young, untried reporter stuck on the features desk, she more than rises to the occasion and shows a great deal of imagination, tenacity and courage. She is the one who grows the most, I think during this novel. The other three start out as crime-solving professionals and certainly show their own strengths. I did get a little tired of the emotional roller coaster Lindsay is suffering – she has a health problem and is juggling a possible romantic relationship in addition to trying to solve the case and catch the killer. The book opens with her contemplating suicide and then backtracks in time to explain how she got to that very low point. I found the subplot of her health issue to be somewhat manipulative and really unnecessary padding. Besides, given her health, I found it unrealistic that she resorted to Margaritas so frequently.
The audio book was performed by Suzanne Toren, and her gross over-acting lost a half-star (well, really lost a full star, but then I reconsidered and gave a half-star back). She “growls” or turns on a particularly “smarmy” voice when performing the bad guy. She “agonizes” when performing Lindsay’s emotional struggles. She’s simultaneously annoyingly smug and irritatingly chirpy when voicing “girl-reporter” Cindy. And she’s given to taking “meaningful” pregnant pauses to ensure the reader gets the significance of certain phrases.
I am not a big fan of Patterson, but I was reasonably entertained and I’ll probably read another in this series … emphasis on READ … not listen (especially if Toren performs all of them).
2.5**
From the book jacket: Debut of The Women’s Murder Club. In San Francisco newlyweds are being stalked and slaughtered. Enter four unforgettable women, all friends … Lindsay, a homicide inspector in the city’s police department … Claire, a medical examiner …Jill, an assistant D.A… and Cindy, a reporter who has just started working the crime desk. Joining forces, pooling their talents, courage, and brains, they have one goal to find, trap and outwit the most diabolical and terrifying killer ever imagined.
My reactions
Patterson definitely knows how to write a fast-paced mystery thriller, with plenty of plot twists to keep the most avid amateur (reading) sleuth guessing. That being said, I did figure this out way ahead of the Women’s Murder Club, but it was still a good ride.
What I liked most about the book was how he portrayed the four women who form the Murder Club. Cindy, in particular, was a pleasant surprise. A young, untried reporter stuck on the features desk, she more than rises to the occasion and shows a great deal of imagination, tenacity and courage. She is the one who grows the most, I think during this novel. The other three start out as crime-solving professionals and certainly show their own strengths. I did get a little tired of the emotional roller coaster Lindsay is suffering – she has a health problem and is juggling a possible romantic relationship in addition to trying to solve the case and catch the killer. The book opens with her contemplating suicide and then backtracks in time to explain how she got to that very low point. I found the subplot of her health issue to be somewhat manipulative and really unnecessary padding. Besides, given her health, I found it unrealistic that she resorted to Margaritas so frequently.
The audio book was performed by Suzanne Toren, and her gross over-acting lost a half-star (well, really lost a full star, but then I reconsidered and gave a half-star back). She “growls” or turns on a particularly “smarmy” voice when performing the bad guy. She “agonizes” when performing Lindsay’s emotional struggles. She’s simultaneously annoyingly smug and irritatingly chirpy when voicing “girl-reporter” Cindy. And she’s given to taking “meaningful” pregnant pauses to ensure the reader gets the significance of certain phrases.
I am not a big fan of Patterson, but I was reasonably entertained and I’ll probably read another in this series … emphasis on READ … not listen (especially if Toren performs all of them).