3rd Degree by James Patterson (The Women's Murder Club Series, Book 3)

Books Completed: 35
Completion Date: Feruary, 2009
Pages: 368
Publication Year: January 1, 2005

Reason for Reading: Next in the series.

Detective Lindsay Boxer and Assistant District Attorney Jill Bernhardt are enjoying a quiet afternoon in San Francisco when a townhouse across the street explodes in flames. A sinister note signed "August Spies" is found at the scene of the disaster, and the body of an infant who was asleep in the house at the time of the explosion cannot be found. Soon a wave of violent incidents, all with links to political terrorism and involving "August Spies," sweeps through the city. An upcoming economic summit of the world's most powerful nations will surely be a target. And it's up to the Women's Murder Club to get to the bottom of the violence before it's too late. Delivering the breakneck pace and never-saw-it-coming plot twists that have made James Patterson the most addictive writer at work today, 3rd DEGREE is another searing and unforgettable thriller from the nation's #1 bestselling suspense writer.

Okay, so I for some reason started this series last year. I really should go read my review (if I wrote one) of the first book, because I still have no idea what possessed me to start this series! James Patterson is not an author that has ever really interested me. Last weekend, though, I was feeling like I was starting so many series and not working on ones that I had already started, so I picked up this book in the end so I could feel like I was accomplishing something.

The thing about this series is that they are a dime a dozen. That's not to say that I don't like the books, but time goes by and I find that I can't really remember who the characters are and what the books were about. This book will stay with me hopefully at least long enough to review it, but I only started to remember what happened in the previous two books when I was reading this one. So, no offense to the James Patterson fans of the world, but this is my brain candy. I pick up one of the books in the series, I read it, and then I largely forget about it. There are a few moments that stick in my mind, but largely these are not very memorably written. I do like this series enough to carry on with it, though.

The main character in this series is Lindsay Boxer. She is a police detective who is in charge of some really brutal crimes. This book is no exception. I also read book four in the series last weekend, which I plan to review tomorrow, but book three is probably my favourite so far in the series. I actually felt something for the characters, which I guess means the series is growing on me! The Women's Murder Club is four women that work together (unofficially) to solve Lindsay's cases when she finds that she doesn't know where to go next. It is a really good idea, and you can feel the friendship between the women in the little things. That is captured in the storyline. I think that is why I like the series, it reminds me of my group of friend. There are five of us, and only two live in the same place anymore. We get together once in a while, but it has been years since all five of us managed to coordinate time together.

Anyway, the book description says a breakneck pace and that you wouldn't know what's coming. I didn't really find the book moved that fast, really. It was just a quick read. As to the mystery, I often have the cases solved well before the characters in the books do. I watch NCIS and used to watch CSI and often found it was the same. So, maybe Patterson surprises others, but he really doesn't surprise me!