President Bill Clinton/ James Patterson – The President’s Daughter

President Bill Clinton/James Patterson – THe President’s Daughter

Matthew Keating wanted to serve a second term as POTUS, but his mission against one of the evilest terrorists went disastrously wrong and cost him the presidency. Now, he is doing more or less nothing apart from fishing and not so much enjoying himself. When his daughter Mel is abducted by IS terrorist Asim Al-Asheed who wants to revenge his wife and daughters, ex SEAL Matt takes it personal. Since the official agencies totally fail to rescue the girl, he decides to become active himself to get her back. He is still well-connected and secretly sets up a small team to do what a father has to do.

The second cooperation between former President Bill Clinton and well-known crime writer James Patterson is a fast-paced mixture of political and spy thriller which also gives deep insight in how the different national agencies work with and against each other. The thriller brilliantly shows that politics can be a nasty business where personal agendas at times conflict with national interests and ethics. Also, since the end of the Cold War, the lines between confronting enemies have become blurred and the world is a much more complex place with several stakeholders all acting and interfering simultaneously.

First and foremost, the novel lives on the protagonist Matt Keating who tries to free his daughter. Even though we first meet him in the role of the president, his former occupation as a member of the US SEALs is a much more formative aspect of his character. When he learns of is successor’s unwillingness of helping to liberate his daughter, he reactivates his knowledge and connections to rescue her on his own. Admittedly, I doubt how realistic this might be, however, it certainly makes a good action-loaded plot. The daughter, too, is a tough cookie, even though raised in a rather comfortable position, she is courageous and has a strong will to survive which gives her more power than was to be expected.

What I found most interesting, however, was not just the war between the terrorist and the USA but how China meddles and how conflicting interests endanger civilians which are nothing more than collateral damage. Ironically, it is a private affair that leads to the downfall of the current president – highly likely in our times.

Great entertainment which surely also works quite well on the screen since it incorporates the core virtues of bravery, persistence, teamwork and love.

James Patterson – Gefahr am Airport

James Patterson – Gefahr am Airport

Gemeinsam zwei Wochen in Griechenland ausspannen, den Alltag vergessen und es sich gutgehen lassen. Matt Bates und sein Freund Chaz Shoeman treffen sich am Airport von London, um gemeinsam in den Urlaub zu fliegen. Doch am Terminal kommt ihnen eine Gruppe Scheichs seltsam vor und nur kurz darauf wird der Verdacht der Ex-Militärs bestätigt: eine Gruppe von Islamisten hat einen Anschlag vorbereitet, der mit einer Geiselnahme beginnt und in der Zündung einer chemischen Bombe enden soll. Das Sicherheitspersonal kann nicht mehr eingreifen, Matt und Chaz sind nicht nur auf sich allein gestellt, sondern halten auch das Leben unzähliger Unschuldiger in ihren Händen. Ein Wettlauf gegen die Zeit beginnt.

James Patterson ist eine feste Größe im Krimigenre, seine Serien um Alex Cross oder den Women’s Murder Club sind legendär. Seit einiger Zeit gibt es auch die knackigen Bookshots, Kurzkrimis, die ohne viel Nebenhandlung auskommen und auf guten 100 Seiten in aller Kürze eine spannende Geschichte für zwischendurch erzählen.

War ich bei den bisherige Bookshots begeistert davon, wie es einem Autor, der für komplexe Handlungen bekannt ist, gelingt, sich auch auf das Wesentliche zu konzentrieren und dabei dennoch zu unterhalten, so blieb „Gefahr am Airport“ hinter den Erwartungen zurück. Die beiden Protagonisten Matt und Chaz bleiben mir zu vage, vor allem wird nie klar, was genau in ihrer Vergangenheit vorgefallen ist, dass die unehrenhafte Entlassung veranlasste. Die Handlung an sich ist glaubwürdig, gerade vor den Geschehnissen der vergangenen Tage in Manchester hat man sicher keine Zweifel an der Möglichkeit eines solchen Anschlags in London. Jedoch ist es für mich eher weniger überzeugend, dass zwei Männer sich gegen ein so großes Himmelfahrtskommando erfolgreich durchsetzen. Für Actionfans mögen gerade die letzten Kapitel auf dem Weg zur bevorstehenden Explosion besonders spannend sein, mir hätte hier ein wenig mehr Tiefe besser gefallen als doch recht banale Action.

Alles in allem, ein überzeugendes Grundkonstrukt, jedoch mit einigen Schwächen umgesetzt.

James Patterson – The Witnesses

James Patterson – The Witnesses

The Sanderson family have to hide. Lance and Susan were working in Tunisia when they were suddenly attacked. Now, they are back in the States and together with their two kids and Jason, their bodyguard, live in a small house in the suburbs. Yet, their enemies are on their way and their new neighbour is also suspicious and thinks there is some wrongdoing in their house which he puts under his surveillance. The rules are strict: nobody leaves the house, no cell phone and no Internet connection. When one of the kids gets bored, the family is in real danger.

This is already the fourth bookshot by James Patterson, this time without any link to one of his many crime series. As in the other short crime novels of this series before, I really liked the format. Less than 150 pages make it a really quick read but at the same time it does not lack any suspense or logic. We have story which is narrated with a clear focus on just the one plot, not side plots divert from it. In this case here, I found the idea of a family locked away for their own protection quite interesting. How they slowly struggle more and more with the situation and how they, at one point, cannot stand it anymore. I didn’t count on any real big surprises, but I was wrong, there are twists and turns which give the story another perspective. All in all, I enjoy this type of crime novel and James Patterson obviously also has a knack for the quick stories.

James Patterson – Chase [BookShot]

Ein Mann, zwei Verfolger. Er scheint die Oberhand zu behalten, doch nur kurze Zeit und er fällt vom Dach eines New Yorker Hotels und ist tot.  Mike Bennett muss den fall untersuchen, der zunächst wie ein Selbstmord aussieht. Doch die fehlende Identität, das leer Hotelzimmer und schließlich ein mysteriöser Fund in seinem Magen erhärten den Verdacht auf Mord. Nur: der Mann ist schon einmal gestorben, bei einer Geheimaktion im Irak kam er ums Leben. Mike Bennett muss wohl oder übel nach Washington und hoffen, dass die die Armee kooperiert, was natürlich nicht der Fall ist. Eine geheimnisvolle Nachricht führt ihn auf die Spur der Täter und bringt ihn in Lebensgefahr.

Der dritte BookShot von James Patterson kann leider nicht mit den anderen mithalten. Zum einen weil konstruierte Zufälle und nicht saubere Nachforschungen den Detective voranbringen. Kommissar Zufall mag ich schlichtweg nicht, da wird vieles zu beliebig. Zum anderen haben wir es hier weniger mit einem Krimi im klassischen Sinne zu tun, sondern eher mit einer Militär-Kriegs-Thematik, die mich nur sehr bedingt ansprechen kann. Denke und Verhalten der Armeeführung sind mir fremd und können mich auch in Romanen nur selten begeistern, somit war thematisch hier leider vieles verloren. Zudem befindet sich die Handlung im letzten Drittel fast nur noch im Schieß- und Draufschlagmodus, das mag im Medium Film gut und unterhaltsam sein, in Bücher ist es eher weniger spannend. Zwar wird der Fall gelöst und auch durchaus glaubwürdig motiviert, aber letztlich fällt das Fazit eher verhalten aus. 

James Patterson – The Trial

Another legendary Women’s Murder Club meeting is disturbed: drug cartel boss Kingfisher has risen from the dead and caused a shooting in a night club. Detective Lindsay Boxer rushes to the crime scene and finds the man who tormented her for months arrested.  Yet, the police have to set up the case quickly, before the FBI can take over. But the witnesses are scared, nobody has seen anything. An anonymous video brings relief. But shortly before the trial can start, the prosecutor is murdered. Kingfisher and his men will do everything to prevent the case from taking place and whoever gets in their way has to fear for his life.

Another quick read from the bookshots series. The characters from the Women’s Murder Club series are quickly introduced at the beginning and their relationship is explained. However, in my opinion, this bookshot can easily be read without knowing anything about the series, it is only loosely linked and it is mainly Lindsay starring. Due to the limited number of pages, the plot moves at a high pace and renounces any side plots.  I like the focus on just one story and a straight way from the beginning to the end.  There are some interesting twists and some surprise at the end, but not too much suspense this time. Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading it and it fulfilled my expectations.

James Patterson – Cross Kill

Handing out breakfast at a church school kitchen, Alex Cross and his partner John Sampson are surprised by shots coming from behind them. When they have a look, the cook and a nun are already wounded. Just seconds later, Alex and his partner are also under fire und John is seriously hurt. Alex got to see the assailant but cannot believe his eyes: Gary Soneji is back. A murderer he saw burn to death more than 10 years ago. This is just impossible. With his partner fighting for his life, Alex has to hunt him down on his own and is soon confronted with a whole army of Soneji fans who support their idol.

“Cross Kill” is a story from the new bookshots serious starring a well-known character in a short and fast-paced novella. Just like all the long crime novels by James Patterson, we have a thrilling story with Alex Cross under fire and at the edge. However, no side stories keep you from following the main story and you can simply enjoy in one sitting. Albeit the focus is on the story here, Patterson does not forget his characters and what I liked especially about this story is the fact that Alex Cross is not the ice-cold policeman here, he gets quite emotional and makes mistakes which nearly cost him his life. He seems to be much more human under those circumstances than we know him. All in all, I like the idea of the crime novellas and look forward to reading more of them.