In an earlier posting on this blog, I wrote a letter to James Patterson explaining to him that I felt he was only out to make a buck now a days. Well, after reading this book I am not sure if I still believe that. 10th Anniversary is the new novel in the Women's Murder Club series. This amazing series not only spawned 10 books, but a television show on ABC! (Granted the show only lasted one season, but I don't think it had anything to do with the storyline. There are just a lot of murder shows on television.)
The Women's Murder Club series chronicles the lives of Lindsay Boxer, a homicide detective; Claire Washburn, the medical examiner and Cindy Thomas, a newspaper reporter. In the first two books, Jill Bernhardt is the assistant district attorney, but in this novel, Yuki Castellano assumes the role. These four women work together, both in their personal lives and in their professions, to solve the biggest crimes in the San Francisco area.
Each novel is a new mystery, and as the series progresses so do the characters. As a reader and as a woman, I am able to relate to these characters like no others. They live normal lives, have normal relationships, and have the same everyday problems any woman would have. 10th Anniversary takes a break from the traditional mystery/thriller and places the mystery in the background. This novel focuses on growing the characters personalities and taking them to places where they have never been. Upon first reading this novel, I felt a little let down, because I expected to be sitting on the edge of my seat the entire time. Now that I have left the story sink in, I am quite pleased with the novel. I am so excited that these characters can now take on new heights!
I know that I have left the major storyline out of this review. Don't look to far into that. The mystery in this novel was good, and avid mystery readers will enjoy it; but this was not the purpose of this novel in my mind. I would recommend that a reader begins this series with the first novel, 1st To Die, and work their way up to 10th Anniversary. It is only by starting at the beginning that a reader can see the dramatic changes that have taken place in these characters. If you don't choose to read the series in this way, than you can still be captivated by the mysteries and thrills in the previous novels.
Novels like this one are the reason that I fell in love with James Patterson. If he keeps writing like this, I will have to eat my words. I look foreward to being able to grab a fork and dig in!
http://www.jamespatterson.com/books_wmc.php This link will take you to James Patterson's personal website. On this page, you will be able to find synopsis of all ten of the Women's Murder Club novels. ENJOY!
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