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Alex Cross Series

This series follows a brilliant psychologist and investigator as he delves into the darkest corners of the human mind to catch elusive criminals. With each new case, he confronts complex puzzles and personal demons that test his resolve and intellect. The suspense escalates as he closes in on the truth, often at the peril of his own safety. Fans of gripping, psychologically driven thrillers will appreciate this series for its clever plots and compelling protagonist.

Roses are red
Pop Goes the Weasel
Cat and Mouse
Jack & Jill
Kiss the girls
Along came a spider

Recommended Reading Order

  1. Along came a spider

    • 528 pages
    • 19 hours of reading

    Discover the classic thriller that launched the #1 detective series of the past twenty-five years, now one of PBS's "100 Great American Reads" Alex Cross is a homicide detective with a Ph.D. in psychology. He works and lives in the ghettos of D. C. and looks like Muhammad Ali in his prime. He's a tough guy from a tough part of town who wears Harris Tweed jackets and likes to relax by banging out Gershwin tunes on his baby grand piano. But he also has two adorable kids of his own, and they are his own special vulnerabilities. Jezzie Flanagan is the first woman ever to hold the highly sensitive job as supervisor of the Secret Service in Washington. Blond, mysterious, seductive, she's got an outer shell that's as tough as it is beautiful. She rides her black BMW motorcycle at speeds of no less than 100 mph. What is she running from? What is her secret? Alex Cross and Jezzie Flanagan are about to have a forbidden love affair-at the worst possible time for both of them. Because Gary Soneji, who wants to commit the "crime of the century," is playing at the top of his game. Soneji has outsmarted the FBI, the Secret Service, and the police. Who will be his next victim? Gary Soneji is every parent's worst nightmare. He has become Alex Cross's nightmare. And now, reader, he's about to become yours.

    Along came a spider1
    4.2

  2. Kiss the girls

    • 496 pages
    • 18 hours of reading

    As two serial killers terrorize different regions of America, the FBI begins to suspect that the two are competing with each other, and Washington, D.C. police detective Alex Cross embarks on a personal quest to find the perpetrators

    Kiss the girls2
    4.0

  3. Jack & Jill

    Join Alex Cross in a heart-stopping thrill ride as he pieces together the clues of two gruesome murders. Will he find the killers in time? In the middle of the night, a controversial U.S. senator is found murdered in bed in his Georgetown pied-a-terre. The police turn up only one clue: a mysterious rhyme signed "Jack and Jill" promising that this is just the beginning. Jack and Jill are out to get the rich and famous, and they will stop at nothing until their fiendish plan is carried out. Meanwhile, Washington, D. C. homicide detective Alex Cross is called to a murder scene only blocks from his house, far from the corridors of power where he spends his days. The victim: a beautiful little girl, savagely beaten and deposited in front of the elementary school Cross's son attends. No one in Washington is safe-not children, not politicians, not even the President of the United States. Only Alex Cross has the skills and the courage to crack the case, but will he discover the truth in time? A relentless roller coaster of heart-pounding suspense and jolting plot twists, Jack and Jill proves that no one can write a more compelling thriller than James Patterson, the master of the nonstop nightmare.

    Jack & Jill3
    4.0

  4. Cat and Mouse

    • 502 pages
    • 18 hours of reading

    Alex Cross is back-and so is a raging and suicidal Gary Soneji. Out of prison and dying from the AIDS virus he contracted there, he will get revenge on Cross before he dies. In addition, we are introduced to a new pair of rivals whose paths cross that of Alex and Soneji. Thomas Augustine Pierce has been chasing his demon, Mr. Smith, since the savage murder of his fiancee. Mr. Smith is a unique monster, with actions toward his victims so insane-so unimaginable-that he is thought of as "not of the earth." Pierce, known in the business as St. Augustine because of his track record for catching killers and his invaluable status to the FBI and Interpol, may even be better than Cross.When things heat up and Alex is in a near-death coma following an attack in his own home, Pierce goes to Washington to help with the investigation. But just as he begins to piece together the mystery of how Gary Soneji could have mortally wounded Cross after he was believed to be dead, he is summoned to Paris with a postcard from Mr. Smith inviting him to a very special killing.The body count is high, the tension the highest, and the two killers on the loose are watching every move their pursuers make. Who is the cat, and who is the mouse? What and where is the final trap? And who survives?

    Cat and Mouse4
    3.8

  5. Pop Goes the Weasel

    Detective Alex Cross is in love, but in Washington D. C. he must face a villain he will never forget. Alex Cross is happy, but his happiness is threatened by a series of chilling murders-murders with a pattern so twisted, it leaves investigators reeling. Cross's ingenious pursuit of the killer produces a suspect: a British diplomat named Geoffrey Shafer. But proving that Shafer is the murderer becomes a potentially deadly task. As the diplomat engages in a brilliant series of surprising countermoves, in and out of the courtroom, Alex and his fiancée become hopelessly entangled with the most memorable nemesis Alex Cross has ever faced. Pop Goes the Weasel reveals James Patterson at the peak of his power. Here is a chilling villain no reader will forget, a love story of great tenderness, and a plot of relentless suspense and heart-pounding pace. To read Pop Goes the Weasel is to discover why James Patterson is one of the world's greatest suspense writers.

    Pop Goes the Weasel5
    4.0

  6. Roses are red

    • 416 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    Detective Alex Cross's investigation of a series of bank robberies in Washington, D.C. which have led to the deaths of bank employees and their family members, puts him on a collision course with the mysterious criminal known as "The Mastermind."

    Roses are red6
    4.1

  7. Violets are blue

    The mastermind of ROSES ARE RED is back - and he's hot on Alex Cross's trail. Meanwhile, Alex is drawn in to his most bizarre investigation yet. Two San Francisco joggers are found dead - bitten and hung by their feet to drain the blood from their bodies. Further murders in California, and then on the East Coast as well, completely baffle Alex and the FBI. Is this the work of a cult, of role players, or even of modern-day vampires? Desperate to stop the deaths, Alex teams up with Jamilla Hughes, a savvy woman detective from San Francisco, and the FBI's Kyle Craig. The result is two fantastic mysteries in one non-stop thriller that will have readers furiously turning the pages all over the world.

    Violets are blue7
    4.0

  8. Four Blind Mice

    • 416 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    Detective Alex Cross is on his way to resign from the Washington, D.C., police force when his partner shows up at his door with a case he can't refuse. One of John Sampson's oldest friends, from their days together in Vietnam, has been arrested for murder. Worse yet, he is subject to the iron hand of the United States Army. The evidence against him is strong enough to send hem to the gas chamber.

    Four Blind Mice8
    4.0

  9. The big bad wolf

    • 432 pages
    • 16 hours of reading

    Alex Cross battles the most ruthless and powerful killer he has ever encountered - a predator known only as "the Wolf. "Alex Cross's first case since joining the FBI has his new colleagues stymied. Across the country, men and women are being kidnapped in broad daylight and then disappearing completely. These people are not being taken for ransom, Alex realizes. They are being bought and sold. And it looks as if a shadowy figure called the Wolf - a master criminal who has brought a new reign of terror to organize crime - is behind this business in which ordinary men and women are sold as slaves. Even as he admires the FBI's vast resources, Alex grows impatient with the Bureau's clumsiness and caution when it is time to move. A lone wolf himself, he has to go out on his own in order to track the Wolf and try to rescue some of the victims while they are still alive. As the case boils over, Alex is in hot water at home too. His ex-fiancee, Christine Johnson, comes back into his life - and not for the reasons Alex might have hoped.

    The big bad wolf9
    4.0

  10. London Bridges

    • 416 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    Alex Cross must face the world's most dangerous agents, criminals, and assassins. The fate of the world rests in his hands. In broad desert daylight, a mysterious platoon of soldiers evacuates the entire population of Sunrise Valley, Nevada. Minutes later, a huge bomb detonates a hundred feet above the ground and lays waste to homes, cars, and playgrounds: a town annihilated in an instant. The Russian supercriminal known as the Wolf claims responsibility for the blast. Alex Cross is on vacation in San Francisco with his girlfriend, Jamilla Hughes, when he gets the call. World leaders have just four days to prevent an unimaginable cataclysm. Racing down the hairpin turns of the Riviera in the most unforgettable finale James Patterson has ever written, he confronts the truth of the Wolf's identity, a revelation that even Cross himself may be unable to survive.

    London Bridges10
    4.0

  11. Mary, Mary

    • 403 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    FBI agent Alex Cross is on vacation when he gets a call from the Director. An actress has been shot outside her home in Beverly Hills. Afterward, an editor for the Los Angeles Times receives an e-mail recounting the murder in shocking detail, signed Mary Smith. Her calling card - The authorities fear this is only the beginning. Mary Smith is targeting Hollywood stars and power brokers, and she is getting better every time. This case is like nothing Alex has ever confronted before. Could this be the plan of an obsessed fan or a spurned actor, or is it part of something much more terrifying? And how could a woman be capable of these vicious crimes?

    Mary, Mary11
    4.0

  12. Cross

    Alex Cross was a rising star in Washington, DC, Police Department when an unknown shooter killed his wife, Maria, in front of him. Years later, having left the FBI and returned to practising psychology, Alex finally feels his life is in order... Until his former partner, John Sampson, calls in a favour. John is tracking a serial rapist in Georgetown and he needs Alex to help find this brutal predator. When the case triggers a connection to Maria's death, could Alex have a chance to catch his wife's murderer? Will this be justice at long last? Or the endgame in his own deadly obsession. From the man the Sunday Telegraph called 'the master of the suspense genre', CROSS is the ultimate, high-velocity, high-emotion thriller, and the one Alex Cross's fans waited years to read.

    Cross12
    4.0

  13. Double cross

    • 420 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    Detective Alex Cross rejoins the police force in the wake of a series of murders in Washington, D.C., and finds himself working to outmaneuver the killer's penchant for inducing hysteria with increasingly sensational killings

    Double cross13
    4.0

  14. Cross Country

    When Detective Alex Cross is called to investigate a massacre-style murder scene, he is shocked to find that one of the victims is an old friend. Angry, grieving, and more determined than ever, Cross begins the hunt for the perpetrators of this vicious crime. He is drawn into a dangerous underworld right in the heart of Washington DC that leads him on a life-threatening journey to the Niger Delta, where heroin dealing, slave trading and corruption are rife. At the centre of this terrifying world, Cross finds the Tiger - the psychopathic leader of a fearsome gang of killers who are not what they seem. As Cross tracks the elusive Tiger through Africa, he must battle against conspiracy and untold violence. Alex Cross is in a heart-stopping chase that takes him across a vast and uncompromising landscape and finds him not only hunting for a horrific killer, but also fighting for his own survival.

    Cross Country14
    3.7

  15. Alex Cross's trial

    From his grandmother, Alex Cross has heard the story of his great-uncle Abraham and his struggles for survival in the era of the Ku Klux Klan. Now, Alex passes the family tale along to his own children in a novel he's written - a novel called Trial. As a lawyer in early-twentieth-century Washington DC, Ben Corbett represents the toughest cases. Fighting against oppression and racism, he risks his family and his life in the process. When President Theodore Roosevelt asks Ben to return to his hometown to investigate rumours of the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan there, he cannot refuse. Arriving in Eudora, Mississippi, Ben meets the wise Abraham Cross and his beautiful daughter, Moody. Ben enlists their help, and the two Crosses introduce him to the hidden side of the idyllic Southern town. Lynchings have become commonplace and residents of the town's black quarter live in constant fear. Ben aims to break the reign of terror - but the truth of who is really behind it could break his heart. Written in the fearless voice of Detective Alex Cross, Alex Cross's Trial is a gripping story of murder, love, and, above all, bravery.

    Alex Cross's trial15
    3.9

  16. I, Alex Cross

    • 374 pages
    • 14 hours of reading

    Determined to capture the psychopath responsible for murdering his niece, Alex Cross discovers that the young woman was among a dangerous group of people and was not the only one to have disappeared, a case that draws Alex into the heart of an underworld fantasy club, in a book by a best-selling author.

    I, Alex Cross16
    4.0

  17. Cross Fire

    • 372 pages
    • 14 hours of reading

    Wedding bells ring Detective Alex Cross and Bree's wedding plans are put on hold when Alex is called to the scene of the perfectly executed assassination of two of Washington D.C.'s most corrupt: a dirty congressmen and an underhanded lobbyist. Next, the elusive gunman begins picking off other crooked politicians, sparking a blaze of theories--is the marksman a hero or a vigilante? A murderer returns The case explodes, and the FBI assigns agent Max Siegel to the investigation. As Alex and Siegel battle over jurisdiction, the murders continue. It becomes clear that they are the work of a professional who has detailed knowledge of his victims' movements--information that only a Washington insider could possess. Caught in a lethal cross fire As Alex contends with the sniper, Siegel, and the wedding, he receives a call from his deadliest adversary, Kyle Craig. The Mastermind is in D.C. and will not relent until he has eliminated Cross and his family for good. With a supercharged blend of action, deception, and suspense, Cross Fire is James Patterson's most visceral and exciting Alex Cross novel ever.

    Cross Fire17
    4.1

  18. Kill Alex Cross

    • 384 pages
    • 14 hours of reading

    The President's son and daughter are abducted, and Detective Alex Cross is one of the first on the scene. But someone very high up is using the FBI, Secret Service, and CIA to keep him off the case and in the dark. A deadly contagion in the water supply cripples half of the capital, and Cross discovers that someone may be about to unleash the most devastating attack the United States has ever experienced. As his window for solving both crimes narrows, Alex makes a desperate decision that goes against everything he believes - one that may alter the fate of the entire country. Kill Alex Cross is faster, more exciting, and more tightly wound than any Alex Cross thriller James Patterson has ever written!

    Kill Alex Cross18
    3.9

  19. Merry Christmas, Alex Cross

    • 417 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    The 19th novel in the bestselling Alex Cross seriesDetective Alex Cross is called into action on Christmas Eve - and he'll be lucky to see the New Year...Celebrating Christmas with his family, Alex Cross knows that his phone ringing means this won't be a Merry Christmas.

    Merry Christmas, Alex Cross19
    3.9

  20. Alex Cross, Run

    • 401 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    Detective Alex Cross arrests renowned plastic surgeon Elijah Creem for sleeping with teenage girls. Now, his life ruined, Creem is out of jail, and he's made sure that no one will recognize him--by giving himself a new face. A young woman is found hanging from a sixth-floor window, and Alex is called to the scene. The victim recently gave birth, but the baby is nowhere to be found. Before Alex can begin searching for the missing newborn and killer, he's called to investigate a second crime. All of Washington, D.C., is in a panic, and when a third body is discovered, rumours of three serial killers send the city into an all-out frenzy. Alex's investigations are going nowhere, and he's too focused on the cases to notice that someone has been watching him--and will stop at nothing until he's dead. With white-hot speed, relentless drama, and hairpin turns, ALEX CROSS, RUN is James Patterson's ultimate thrill ride.

    Alex Cross, Run20
    4.0

  21. Alex Cross - 19: Cross My Heart

    • 419 pages
    • 15 hours of reading

    James Patterson raises the stakes to their highest level, ever-when Alex Cross becomes the obsession of a genius of menace set on proving that he is the greatest mind in the history of crime. Detective Alex Cross is a family man at heart--nothing matters more to him than his children, his grandmother, and his wife Bree. His love of his family is his anchor, and gives him the strength to confront evil in his work. One man knows this deeply, and uses Alex's strength as a weapon against him in the most unsettling and unexpected novel of James Patterson's career.When the ones Cross loves are in danger, he will do anything to protect them. If he does anything to protect them, they will die.CROSS MY HEART is the most powerful Alex Cross novel ever, propelled by the ever-ingenious mind of James Patterson, the world's #1 bestselling writer.

    Alex Cross - 19: Cross My Heart21
    4.1

  22. Hope to Die

    • 512 pages
    • 18 hours of reading

    Detective Alex Cross is being stalked by a psychotic genius, forced to play the deadliest game of his career. Cross' family - his loving wife Bree, the wise and lively Nana Mama, and his precious children - have been ripped away. Terrified and desperate, Cross must give this mad man what he wants if he has any chance of saving the most important people in his life. The stakes have never been higher: What will Cross sacrifice to save the ones he loves? Widely praised by the greatest crime and thriller writers of our time, Cross My Heart set a jaw-dropping story in motion. Hope to Die propels Alex Cross' greatest challenge to its astonishing finish, proving why Jeffery Deaver says nobody does it better than James Patterson.

    Hope to Die22
    4.2

  23. Cross Justice

    • 448 pages
    • 16 hours of reading

    The toughest cases are the ones that hit close to home. When his cousin is accused of a heinous crime, Alex Cross returns to his North Carolina hometown for the first time in over three decades. As he tries to prove his cousin's innocence in a town where everyone seems to be on the take, Cross unearths a family secret that forces him to question everything he's ever known. Chasing a ghost he believed was long dead, Cross gets pulled into a case that has local cops scratching their heads and needing his help: a grisly string of socialite murders. Now he's hot on the trail of both a brutal killer, and the truth about his own past - and the answers he finds might be fatal.

    Cross Justice23
    4.3

  24. Cross the Line

    • 400 pages
    • 14 hours of reading

    Homicide Detective Alex Cross teams up with his wife to beat a D. C. criminal at his own game. Washington, DC, has never been more dangerous. After shots pierce the tranquil nighttime calm of Rock Creek Park, a man is dead: what looks at first like road rage might be something much more sinister. But Alex has only just begun asking questions when he's called across town to investigate a new murder, one that hits close to home: his former boss and the beloved mentor of Alex's wife, Bree. Now there's a killer on the loose, a long list of possible suspects, a city in panic, and nobody in charge of the besieged police force. . . until Bree gets tapped for the job. As Bree scrambles to find her footing and close two high-profile cases, new violence stuns the capital. What should be a time for her to rely on Alex for support and cooperation is instead a moment of crisis in their marriage as well as their city when their investigative instincts clash and their relationship reaches a breaking point. And the fiendish mind behind all the violence has appointed himself judge, jury, and executioner, with a terrifying master plan he's only begun to put in motion. To beat him at his own game, Alex and Bree must take the law back into their own hands before he puts them both out of commission . . . permanently.

    Cross the Line24
    4.1

  25. The People VS Alex Cross

    Detective Alex Cross has never been on the wrong side of the law. Charged with murdering followers of his old nemesis Gary Soneji, Alex Cross becomes the poster child for trigger-happy cops. He's the only one who knows that there's a real murderer watching from the shadows, one Cross must stop - even if it means he can't save himself

    The People VS Alex Cross25
    4.1

  26. Target: Alex Cross

    • 448 pages
    • 16 hours of reading

    Alex Cross and his family join men and women from across the nation lining the streets of Washington, DC to mourn the unexpected death of the President. With the country still in shock, the assassination of a prominent Senator strikes another devastating blow to the heart of the nation's capital. The new President calls on Cross to lead an unparalleled FBI investigation to help capture America's most wanted criminal. But what follows will plunge the country into chaos, and draw Cross into the most important case of his life.

    Target: Alex Cross26
    3.9

  27. Criss Cross

    • 432 pages
    • 16 hours of reading

    Could a ghost from his past take everything away from Alex Cross? Mere hours after witnessing the execution of a killer he helped put behind bars, Alex Cross is called to the scene of a copycat murder. A note signed 'M' rests on the corpse- 'You messed up big time, Dr. Cross.' Was an innocent man just put to death? As the executed convict's family launch a vicious campaign against Cross, his abilities as a detective are called into question. The enigmatic 'M' lures Cross out of Washington, DC to the sites of multiple homicides, all marked with distressingly familiar details that conjure up decades-old cases and Cross family secrets. Details that make it clear M is after a prize so dear that - were the killer to attain it - Cross's life would be destroyed

    Criss Cross27
    4.2

  28. Deadly Cross

    • 448 pages
    • 16 hours of reading

    A scandalous double homicide in the nation's capital opens the psychological case files on Detective Alex Cross. Until Kay Willingham's shocking murder inside a luxury limousine, the Georgetown socialite, philanthropist, and ex-wife of the sitting vice-president led a public life. Yet few, including her onetime psychologist, had any inkling of Kay's troubled past in the Deep South. Murdered alongside her is Randall Christopher, a respected educator whose political ambitions may have endangered both their lives. While John Sampson of DC Metro Police tracks Randall's final movements, Alex Cross and FBI Special Agent Ned Mahoney travel to Alabama to investigate Kay's early years. They discover that although Kay had many enemies, all of them needed her alive. Alex is left without a viable suspect, even as he faces a desperate choice between breaking a trust and losing his way, as a detective, and as the protector of his family

    Deadly Cross28
    4.2

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