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FOUR BLIND MICE’ again stars Detective Alex Cross, a black police officer in Washington DC. Cross has seen numerous serial killers and criminals so far throughout the series and in this novel, he and his best friend, John Sampson, go up against another serial killer. This time, one of Sampson's old army friends is facing the death penalty for murder, but he swears his innocence. He asks Sampson and Cross to try to help him, but will they be able to find the true killer in time? As usual, FOUR BLIND MICE’ contains Patterson's trademark short chapters, action and excitement, with little character development. The pace is just as fast as ever, but FOUR BLIND MICE’ feels like a fast-food snack. It is satisfying whilst you read it, but at the end, you are left unfulfilled and wanting more. The identity of the perpetrators is revealed in the second chapter, so it is no spoiler to mention it here. However, although the reader is privy to their thoughts throughout, this adds little to the narrative and the climax, where Patterson throws in a twist, is disappointing. Patterson is clearly capable of maintaining suspense and writing an interesting plot, but there is nothing outstanding in this novel and essentially, nothing new. It would be nice if, for a change, Alex Cross could go up against someone other than a serial killer. Fans of James Patterson will no doubt enjoy this, but there are many better authors out there that have written deeper serial killer novels. Patterson's next novel,THE BIG BAD WOLF’ takes Cross away from the Washington Police Department and into the FBI, but it seems doubtful that there will be any change in the quality of the novels. When he burst onto the market with ALONG CAME A SPIDER’ and KISS THE GIRLS, Patterson was a major phenomenon, but now he just seems tired.
Reviewed by Luke Croll, November 2003
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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