Book Review Monday

Beach Road – James Patterson & Peter De Jonge

Ok, I’ve read a lot of James Patterson’s books and I am always entertained, intrigued and made to use my brain a bit.  But this one….this one….well, this one was good and it annoyed the crap right out of me!!  I generally read those little review snippets on the back or inside cover of books, but I take them all with a grain of salt.  Some reviewers tend to make books sound immensely better than they really are; some are the opposite.  Indeed, these reviews were right on target.  Here are some examples:

“Gripping…races toward a conclusion so shocking that even longtime Patterson devotees won’t see it coming.” – Booklist

“There is a doozy of a twist at the end.” – Newsday

“This story has it all…the ending will leave you caught by surprise and astonished at the deceit that was hidden throught the entire book almost right in front of your face.” – Nightsandweekends.com

Seriously.  None of those are incorrect.  AT ALL.

I generally cannot re-read books – for whatever reason, I remember them too well and it takes the fun out of it for me.  There are some exceptions…Harry Potter, some classics, Nora Roberts/JD Robb…but for the most part I don’t re-read.  Even if it’s been years, I remember the book.  I don’t have much of a memory for most things, but for books, I seem to.

Anyway, here’s the synopsis:

Tom Dunleavy has a one-man law firm in legendary East Hampton. But his job barely keeps him in paper clips. His principal clients make a living serving the rich. The billionaires and megacelebrities swarming the beaches already have lawyers on their payroll.

EXPENSIVE
Then a friend of Tom’s is arrested for a triple murder near a movie star’s mansion. Tom knows in his gut that Dante Halleyville is innocent. Dante asks him to represent him in what could be the Trial of the Century.

EXCLUSIVE
Tom recruits Manhattan superlawyer Kate Costello to help. She’s a tough hire, because Kate is his ex-girlfriend-but she agrees. In their search to find who really executed three locals, Tom orchestrates a series of revelations to expose the killer-and what emerges is staggering.

EXPLOSIVE
The final scenes of Beach Road unveil a truth that will leave readers gasping in shock. Written with the precision that has made James Patterson America’s #1 suspense writer, Beach Road is his most thrilling novel ever.

 

So there you have.  I’m going to have to re-read this one to see if I can see it coming this time.  I’m usually good at figuring things out in novels, but this one got me.  A good read – pretty quick, great beach read (or deck or porch or couch….)

😀