1st to Die (Womens Murder Club #1)

The Womens Murder Club pits four San Francisco women professionals against a serial killer whos stalking and murdering newlyweds in bestselling author James Pattersons newest thriller. Lindsay Boxer is a homicide inspector whos just gotten some very bad news. She deals with it by immersing herself in her newest case and soliciting the personal as well as professional support of her closest friend, who happens to be the citys medical examiner. The two women, along with an ambitious and sympathetic reporter and an assistant DA, form an unlikely alliance, pooling their information and bypassing the chain of command in an engaging, suspenseful story whose gruesome setup is vintage Patterson.

“What is the worst thing anyone has ever done?” the killer muses to himself early in the narrative. “Am I capable of doing it? Do I have what it takes?” Answering his own question, he embarks on a murderous spree that takes him from the bridal suite in a Nob Hill hotel to a honeymoon destination in the Napa Valley and thence to a wedding reception at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. Dispatching his victims on the happiest day of their lives, he purposefully leaves enough clues for his distaff trackers to discover his identity and put him behind bars. But just when the women think theyve got the case all wrapped up, the killer turns the tables on them in a bloody denouement that even the most discerning reader wont see coming. Patterson, author of the popular Alex Cross mysteries, promises future adventures for the Womens Murder Club, which may give him an opportunity to develop his heroines characters more completely and win new fans among those who prefer their detectives in high heels and lipstick. –Jane Adams