Lindsay Boxer has two cases to deal with this time. A female cat burglar is in the midst of robbing a well known celebrity of her jewels. Things go awry and the celebrity is left for dead. At the same time, a ruthless killer is targeting mothers and their children and callously killing both. Seemingly disparate story lines that come together in a very coincidental manner.
I listened to this novel in abridged audio format. I'm not a big fan of abridged versions as I always sense that I've missed part of the story. That may account for some of my thoughts on The 9th Judgment.
I found the 'villains' to be almost caricatures of 'bad people'. The plot line involving the cat burglar (nicknamed Hello Kitty by the press) is somewhat unbelievable. I found the ending for this story line unsatisfactory as well. The last couple of books in this series have left me feeling somewhat indifferent to a few of the main characters, namely Cindy and Yukio. When all was solved and wrapped up, the added epilogue seemed awkward and forced.
The reader was Carolyn McCormick, who has read numbers 4 through 9 in the series. She has a no nonsense tone of voice which works well for the Boxer character. She also has very clear enunciation - a big plus for a reader, but I must admit I found it slightly annoying after awhile.
Those looking for a light entertaining listen will find it here and fans of Patterson will be thrilled. But if you're after a serious police procedural, look elsewhere. Time for this reader to give Patterson a rest.
Listen to an excerpt of The 9th Judgment.
Want a chance to listen and judge for yourself? Enter the giveaway - open until Jun 30th.
Thanks for the review, i enjoy James patterson books when i want something light and fluffy (if murders can be classed as that)
ReplyDeleteI enjoy the womans murder club series
I am just about "this close" to putting James Patterson aside and not reading him anymore. I've had the feeling that the Women's Murder Club series is petering out. I still read Alex Cross books, but I don't rush to them anymore. I think this is an author that I just can't quite let go of, but I'm on the way there. Sigh.
ReplyDeleteJenny - they are good for a fluff read or listen, but they seem to be all too similar lately.
ReplyDeleteKay - I'm glad I'm not the only one feeeling this way!
I wasn't crazy about the abridged version of this one either.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the honest review. I have a paper copy of the book, and I keep reading this series because I've read all of them so far and don't want to stop now. However, it seems as though the newer books aren't as good as the earlier ones in the series.
ReplyDelete--Anna