NYPD Red 2 by James Patterson and Marshal Karp

NYPD Red 2 by James Patterson

My rating: 4 of 5 stars




Jacket Blurb - When NYPD Red arrives at a crime scene, everyone takes notice. Known as the protectors of the rich, famous, and connected, NYPD Red is the elite task force called in only for New York City's most high-profile crimes. And Detective Zach Jordan is the best of the best, a brilliant and relentless pursuer of justice. He puts professionalism above all, ignoring his feelings for his partner, Detective Kylie MacDonald, the woman who broke his heart when they first met in the academy.

But even with their top-notch training, Zach and Kylie aren't prepared for what they see when they're called to a crime scene in the heart of Central Park. They arrive to find a carousel spinning round and round, its painted horses grinning eerily in the early morning dark. There is only one rider: a brutally slaughtered woman, her body tied up and dressed in a Hazmat suit, on display for the world to see.

The victim, a woman of vast wealth and even greater connections, is the fourth in a string of shocking murders that have hit the city. As the public pressure mounts, and political and personal secrets of the highest order hang in the balance, Zach and Kylie must find out what's really behind the murderer's rampage. But Kylie has been acting strange recently--and Zach knows whatever she's hiding could threaten the biggest case of their careers.

Read as an audiobook.  An engaging and interesting plot that kept me popping the next disk in.  I would have ranked this an outstanding book, but unfortunately I can't.  My main complaint with the book was a) every woman in this book is stunningly, drop dead gorgeous and b) our protagonist has a stunning drop dead gorgeous woman in his bed and he's lusting after his stunningly drop dead gorgeous partner and ex-wife. 

Seriously?  My eyeballs got lots of exercise as they kept rolling back into my head in disbelief as I was reminded over and over and over how stunningly gorgeous every woman was and his unrequited love for someone else.

The strength of this book was the plot and the character development.  The plot is well constructed, moved along and, in my opinion, simply delightful.  I loved the twists and turns everything kept taking.  The story doesn't get bogged down in the details, no long expository lumps, and just the right amount of action.  The characters are fairly well rounded (with the exception of what I noted above).  The returning characters are fleshed out a bit more, the supporting characters stay supporting,  and I like how everyone meshes together.

I'm off to reserve book number three.  Recommended.



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