Roses Are Red

James Patterson

Average Rating 7/10 (2 Reviews)

The bank robber handed the phone to Betsy, but she knew the exact words the manager would hear, and who the speaker was.

'Betsy, it's Steve. There's a man here in our house. He has a gun pointed at me. He says that unless the woman in your office leaves the bank with the money by eight-ten exactly, Tommy, Anna, and I will be killed. It's eight-o-four.'

The phone line suddenly went dead. Her husband's voice was gone.

A series of meticulously planned bank robberies ends in murder, and Alex Cross must pit his wits against the bizarre and sadistic mastermind behind the crimes. Although torn between dedication to his job and commitment to his family, Cross cannot ignore the case, despite the risks he knows will come with hunting down a killer - and the heartbreaking cost.

James Patterson's new bestseller takes us from deep inside the crazy world of a psychopath's masquerade right to the heart of fiction's most brilliant detective. Alex Cross is back in an explosive tale where mind games lead to violence, and the slightest mistake will be punished with death.

Review by Kevin (011101) Rating (7/10)
Review by Chrissi (310301) Rating (7/10)

Review by Kevin
Rating 7/10
The latest Alex Cross story has a wild mix of bank robberies, and mad man murders.

Fast moving, it shows the family man at home, the lover and the in-depth psychological detective. Strong story, until the end. Easy reading.
Kevin (1st November 2001)

Review by Chrissi
Rating 7/10
Roses are Red is the latest Alex Cross Novel, where he comes across people performing murders in the styles of copycats.

The crimes at first are diverse and appear unlinked, however, a pattern emerges that brings Alex in to solve the crimes. The psychological thriller aspect is great, I am not going to spoil the story by a long and involved discussion about the book, because there are twists and turns to keep you interested. But (always a but, I know…)

I have to say that the final twist was a surprise - I am not convinced that I liked the final twist, but that is just me. I hope that the future Alex Cross novels give a little more meaning and depth to the route which he has chosen to explore. I am afraid that this is the reason for a slightly lower score than you may have expected for one of my favourite authors.

But other than that, it was a good read, and I will continue to enjoy the antics of our friend the psychologist, Dr Alex Cross. PS Why are there so many psychopaths in the good ole' U.S of A??
Chrissi (31st March 2001)