Review: Cross Fire by James Patterson

First line: It had been months since Kyle Craig had killed a man.

From the inside cover: Detective Alex Cross and Bree Stone’s wedding plans are put on hold when Alex is called to the scene of the perfectly executed assassination of two of Washington DC’s most corrupt: a dirty congressman and an underhanded lobbyist. Next, the elusive gunman begins picking off other crooked insiders, sparking a blaze of theories – is the marksman a hero or a vigilante?

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 the killings are the work of a professional who has detailed knowledge of his victims’ movements – information that only a Washington insider could possess.

As Alex contends with the sniper, Siegel, and the wedding, he receives a call from his deadliest adversary, Kyle Craig. The Mastermind is in DC 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.

My thoughts: This is the 17th Alex Cross story and it was quite an action-filled read. The tale has depth, the characters are well-developed, and the suspense is riveting. I was hooked from page one!  Alex works against the clock to figure out who is killing high profile white criminals. On top of that, we find out Alex’s nemesis, Kyle Craig, has escaped from prison; Alex and Bree are trying to plan their wedding; and Alex receives an unexpected visit from someone he thought long out of his life – Alex certainly has his hands more than full! There are a few threads left dangling to keep this series going for a while and the hint dropped at the end indicates that there may be some type of crossover story between the Alex Cross series and another popular Patterson series. The twists and turns throughout this book keep you guessing what will happen next and with his trademark short chapters, it is very easy to fly through this book. My only complaint is that we have to wait another year to see what happens next with Alex Cross.

(I purchased this book.)

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8 Comments

  1. Anonymous
    September 15, 2011 / 6:04 am

    is this crossfire suppose to be related to double cross cuz i read in the book of the list of the series and it goes double cross and then it says cross is cross fire the same?

  2. Kristin
    September 15, 2011 / 12:29 pm

    @Anonymous No they are separate books. Cross is #12 in the series; Double Cross is #13; Alex Cross Trial is # 14; I, Alex Cross is #15; Cross Country is #16; Cross Fire is #17; and the latest one that is coming out this fall is Kill Alex Cross, which is #18. Hope this helps!

  3. Anonymous
    April 6, 2012 / 2:28 am

    So I know I'm a little late on this but I just finished the book today… I was a little disappointed! I expected more of a fight from KC.

  4. Laura K
    April 15, 2012 / 4:00 pm

    I'm sure at the end of one of the books, Alex gets a call from a certain San Francisco Detective Lyndsey Boxer. Where is the crossover? Is there one? Or is he just teasing us?

    • Kristin
      April 15, 2012 / 8:07 pm

      It was at the end of this book that the call happened. I don't know if there will really be a cross-over. It didn't happen in the next Alex Cross book – Kill Alex Cross. Maybe in the next Women's Murder Club book which comes out next month!

  5. Unknown
    April 7, 2013 / 4:08 pm

    have finished reading both merry Christmas Alex cross and 12th of never and there is still nothing mentioned about the phone call at the end of cross fire….. i have also started reading run alex run and so far nothing….. disappointed have been addicted to james pattersons books and a crossover between series would be great hopefully something to look for in the near future…… HINT HINT MR PATTERSON LOL

    • Kristin
      April 7, 2013 / 11:27 pm

      I keep holding out hope that one of these days there will be a cross-over…

  6. beeruggieri
    January 18, 2021 / 10:04 pm

    It's 2021 and I'm wondering if there has been a crossover book. I've read many of James Patterson books in both the Alex Cross and Women's Murder Club, but have never heard of Alex following up on the phone call at the end of Cross Fire. Has there been a crossover book? Would love to read it.