Private: London by James Patterson and Mark Pearson (Private #4)

Private London by James Patterson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Jacket Blurb:  SOMETIMES WHEN THE NIGHTMARE ENDS - THE TERROR IS ONLY JUST BEGINNING

For Hannah Shapiro, a beautiful young American student, this particular nightmare began eight years ago in Los Angeles, when Jack Morgan, owner of Private - the world's most exclusive detective agency - saved her from a horrific death. She has fled her country, but can't flee her past. The terror has followed her to London, and now it is down to former Royal Military Police Sergeant Dan Carter, head of Private London, to save her all over again.

In central London, young women are being abducted off the street. When the bodies are found, some days later, they have been mutilated in a particularly mysterious way. Dan Carter's ex-wife, DI Kirsty Webb, is involved in the investigation and it looks likely that the two cases are gruesomely linked.

Dan Carter draws on the whole resources of Private International in a desperate race against the odds. But the clock is ticking... Private may be the largest and most technologically advanced detection agency in the world, but the only thing they don't have is the one thing they need - time.

James Patterson's white-knuckle roller coaster has just reached London. Buckle up, it's one hell of a ride!

Read as an audio book.

I found this to be an enjoyable and mostly engaging read; neither overly spectacular nor easily figured out, with a handful of cliches and too many "endings".  Aspects of this were reminiscent of  Private: Games, especially the similarities in the head of London Private personally knowing a Detective Inspector on the police force. And, in both cases, neither man gets along with said DI (an ex-wife and a SIL), which I found to be incredibly annoying.   


Premise of the book is Dan Carter, head of London:Private, is given the responsibility of overseeing the safety of Hannah Shapiro, daughter of a very wealthy American. Dan plants a mole - his goddaughter of same age as Hannah - as someone to keep an eye on Hannah without being an obvious bodyguard. After a night of drinking and partying, Hannah is abducted. The search is on.

Unlike previous books, there weren't three or four additional mysteries being solved - the main case is Hannah, and at the same time, Dan's ex-wife, DI Webb, are looking into the murders of a couple of Jane Doe's who've had their organs removed. The question is batted around, is Hannah being held for her organs? DI Webb believes so, Dan isn't so sure, but Dan has the inside scoop.


My main issue with the book was the multiple endings ala Gotcha! twists. After a while, rather than being, "Oh, that was a neat turn of events..." it became an eye rolling, "Seriously?" muttered under my breath while checking exactly how many more CD's I had to go through to wrap things up.

If you've read any of the previous or following books in the series, you'll know that these are basically brain candy or a white mocha espresso latte with whip,chocolate drizzle and sprinkles. A quick hit of sugar and caffeine and not much in the way of substance. All the guys in the book are good looking and buff, and we know this because they work out. All the women in the book are gorgeous, and we know this because Dan describes the eyes you could get lost in, long trim legs and swaying hips. The not-so pretty and younger women blush prettily.

So if you're expecting something with substance, you're probably going to be disappointed. If you just want a fast paced, semi-mindless book to read during your commute, on the bus, the plane, over lunch or at the beach, this should work perfectly.



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