The People vs. Alex Cross

Alex Cross finds himself suspended from the force, awaiting trial for murder following the debacle at the old factory involving Gary Soneji’s followers. He knows he shot only in self-defense, but he worries that the jury might not believe him.

Meanwhile, John Sampson brings him a gruesome video tied to the mysterious disappearance of several young women. Despite the suspension, Alex, not kept terribly busy with his private counseling business, can’t help but become involved. But where are the young women and how does the dark web tie into their case?

This narrative, following the story spun out in the BookShots story “Cross Kill,” intertwines with the story of the missing blondes. At the same time, there are some interesting bits show more involving Jannie, Ali, and the rest of Alex’s family and the patients who come to him for counseling. As always, things tie up rather nicely by the end, but with the ever-building suspense ratcheting up the tension, readers will be perched on the edge of their chairs as they race through the story.

Recommended. show less

I really enjoyed this book - it reminded me of early James Patterson books in the Alex Cross series. I am so glad, because I read the most recent Private series installment "Count to Ten" and I really disliked it. Likely because Patterson has just given his name to the book and left the writing to someone else.
In The People vs. Alex Cross, Alex is on leave from Metro Police while awaiting trial for the murder of Soneji cultists. Meanwhile, blonde girls are getting kidnapped. Alex has returned to counseling while awaiting trial, and has many interesting patients visit him.
John Sampson involves Alex in the missing blondes case. The case gives Alex an opportunity to stay busy and do some detective work. Bree is not happy when she show more discovers what Alex is doing. She wants Alex to focus on his trial.
During the book, there is a lot of interaction with a strange character, Krazy Kat, who is a consultant for the FBI, who is able to break into the dark web of the Internet. Ali Cross also plays a big role in deciphering what is going on with video tapes.
Jannie Cross continues her running career. Nana Mama continues her amazing cooking skills.
Alex and Sampson work together to find the blondes, and the evil people that are torturing the blondes to sell the work on the internet. All in all, very fast paced, and very true to the Alex Cross series. show less

This book was too long with too much happening. I liked Alex Cross as a protagonist and I enjoyed following his murder trial, but I wish it had been the major focus of the book. The multiple subplots were frustrating and I often found myself skipping chapters. Thankfully, Patterson always writes short chapters so I was quickly back in the action and everything was neatly resolved by the end.

Overall, a good book but not a great one. However, in true Patterson style The People vs Alex Cross was a quick, fast paced read with an enjoyable, but implausible plot line.

I was fortunate to have purchased a Barnes & Noble Exclusive Edition of this book, which happened to contain the "Cross Kill" short story at the end. B&N should have put this ahead of the main novel, as it sets up Alex Cross's killing of two people wearing Gary Soneji masks and maiming of a third, for which he is being tried. An aggressive prosecutor is trying to use Alex as a scapegoat for police killings nationally, and even Alex is shocked at the statistics for how many times he has used his gun with deadly consequences. More damaging is videos collected at the scene, showing the victims being unarmed, when Alex saw nickel-plated weapons. Personally, I was much more interested in the story of kidnapped blondes and the videos released show more of their being terrorized, leaving the viewers uncertain as to their survival. Alex and John Sampson investigate despite Bree's order to stop. The mystery of the videos is solved by a clever, but unexpected person, with technical support from a cool and unorthodox FBI consultant. To anybody that gave up on this series, they should read the two most recent books: they're quite good. show less

Now I know why I started reading everything James Patterson writes. A number of his recent books have been really hit and miss and disappointment in both story and writing. Then I start this one and could feel the stronger story line building with significantly better writing. Seldom if ever does Patterson write a so - so Alex Cross book and this one was very well written, his character development was good and the story very solid. James Patterson has written about Alex Cross so in depth and frequently to those of us who have read this series since the start he is like an old friend. And this book is just another adventure with an old friend and his family.

If you are a Patterson fan, this is a must read. Pretty well James Patterson at show more his story telling and thrilling peak. Thank you James Patterson. All your so so stories are forgiven. show less

In this 25th book in the Alex Cross series, Alex confronts a past archenemy, Gary Soneji! Actually, there are three! But isn't this guy dead? Is Alex delusional? After being lured to a warehouse to face his past, Alex kills two and wounds a third unarmed Gary Soneji look-alike, and Alex is now on trial for murder. And the irrefutable proof is on video. While Alex's lawyers prepare his defense, he and Detective John Sampson investigate evil computer hackers that are kidnapping blondes to make snuff films, then posting them on the dark web. This engaging thriller has abundant suspense, non-stop action, and hi-tech computer skills. Also included is a bonus Cross Shot story, "Cross Kill," which provides an in-depth background of this book.

Love this series and The People vs. Alex Cross did not disappoint.

There are two plots in this book. The major one being Alex Cross accused and tried for excessive violence. Killer Cop. Second plot which ends with a major thrilling action was the missing of six blonde women. Chapters are short, the story is fast and overall a page turner.

With dozens of book out annually, I find it difficult to follow James Patterson and so I stop. Almost all the books are published with a coauthor and they are so so books. I decided to stick with the ones I really liked: Alex Cross, Women's Murder Club, RED, and Michael Bennett. Some standalone books were good but not all depending on who the coauthor was.