Up front disclosure. I read most of James Patterson’s books and have for several years. Some might ask why and that’s another whole discussion best saved for another day. I have really enjoyed some, liked some, and didn’t really care for others. On a personal level, I must admit that his Women’s Murder Club series – focused on the professional and personal lives of four women in San Francisco - has been very hit and miss over the last couple of years with more weak outings than not. He needs to slow down and pay attention to the people he has created in these stories instead of treating them like two dimensional paper dolls he takes out to play with.

This series has been one of the more reliable collections with Patterson’s name affixed, leaving readers able to predict that something good will come of it. The premise is simple and the delivery quite accurate, especially when there are usually numerous plots taking place in a single novel. Patterson and Paetro offer up some decent writing and keep the characters progressing nicely, something that is surely difficult this far into the series. I’m always eager to see what is to come with Lindsay Boxer and her Women’s Murder Club. This novel solidified that for me. In addition, to the primary plots, Dr. Claire Washburn, SF’s chief medical examiner has been called in to help autopsy the dead body of a six-year-old girl, found dead under mysterious circumstances in a small rural town a short flight from SF. Before Claire knows it, she finds herself discovering awful secrets that are heartbreaking.

It would seem that there are crooked cops all through the shipment’s route, turning head or greasing wheels to ensure these illegal items make their way onto the streets. As Boxer and her husband, a veteran of various US Agencies, work to discover the truth, they come to the realisation that they could be putting themselves and their family at risk. The plot has a bit of everything, shootouts, a cunning plot, double crosses, tension and even a tug on the heartstrings. The other characters of the Women’s Murder Club, Cindy, Claire and Yuki, do get a mention, although Claire’s story is unrelated and obviously included to give her a voice but this is very much the Lindsay and Joe (Molinari, her husband) show. He’s consulting with the FBI on an extradition warrant and she’s investigating the gun smuggling rumours and a series of potentially related murders.

I own and have read every single Women's Murder Club books. I was disappointed in the last one because the writing was and characters were flat and formulaic. One more, this just might be my last one, if I could return it I would, that is how disappointed I am.And now for the bad news. There were some things that I didn’t like, and I spent some time really thinking and asking myself why I don’t get as jazzed up when I read this series as I used to. It took me a little bit and then I figured it out what it was that was bothering me. The answer was subtle, but it was right in front of me.

Boxer and her team of detectives. someone is killing cops in the San Francisco and Oakland area and attaching a mysterious note that reads “You Talk, You Die”.

Summary

At the same time, Cindy Thomas is working on her true-crime thriller about Evan Burke, a high-profile killer that was caught in the previous book of the series. Kudos, Mr. Patterson and Madam Paetro, for another decent addition to the series. Where will you take these ladies from San Fran next, I can only wonder. There is a new law in California, limiting firearms availability and legality and certain sections of the populace are protesting. At the same time law enforcement is hearing rumours of a large smuggling operation bringing in illegal drugs and guns.