Worst Case: Good Book | Worst Case | James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge ...

Just so so! | Worst Case | James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge

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	• Worst Case James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge Little, Brown and Company, 2010 - 368 pages average customer review:based on 96 reviews view larger image
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Good story

Perhaps gives a little insight to our immigration situation. Seen from the eyes of a child new to the US. Coping at school. Sweatshop labor. First love. Peer pressure. Culture clashes. All handled with a sweetness, and clear vision. Good beach read.

Worst Case: Good Book

Worst Case by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge is the third in a series featuring New York Police Detective Michael Bennett. In this book, Bennett goes up against a kidnapper who snatches the children of New York City's wealthiest elite. The kidnapper doesn't ask for ransom, however. Instead he quizzes his victims about social issues. If they fail the test, he beats them and kills them. In a dash to save more kids from being killed, Bennett must use his profiling skills and join forces with an FBI specialist, Emily Parker, to try to outwith the killer.

I read this book almost in one sitting. While the disclosure of the killer's identity and explanation of his motives at the end of the book seemed a tad bit rushed, that in no way lessened my enjoyment of the novel. The interplay between Bennett and the FBI specialist was fun to watch as Bennett initially bristles at what he views as an intrusion in his case, then reluctantly comes to admire Parker's abilities, and finally genuinely partners with her to bring the case to a close. He also is unable to overcome the physical attraction between them, although there is a twist at the end that anybody who has been with the series since the beginning has probably seen coming.

I enjoyed Bennett's interplay with his kids and his priest/father. Patterson/Ledwidge, uses a light touch with the family scenes and manages to avoid having them take over the novel, but still emphasizes that this is an important part of Bennett's life, and has the family interludes maintain relevance to the mystery by having Bennett gain some insight that helps him in dealing with the kidnapper.

I find the Michael Bennett novels a refreshing change from the Alex Cross series which has become very old and tedious, or even the Women's Murder Club series which has also shown signs of aging. It's great to get to know another Patterson character and to see the page turning plots for which Patterson is known. Give me Michael Bennett over Alex Cross any day!

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Just so so!

I had given up reading Patterson when he started mass producing books at a rate of 5-8 each year, however, I recently won this audio book and, since it was book #3 in a series of which I had read books #1 and #2, I decided to listen to it.

If you are not familiar with the series, NYPD detective, Michael Bennett is widower with 10 adopted children (his wife passed away in book #1 of this series). Bennett is the lead detective who goes head to head in a game of cat and mouse with a serial killer. He is working with and attractive single mother who is an abduction specialist by the name of Emily Parker. In this novel the killer is targeting the children and young adults of the wealthy in NYC. There is never a request for ransom, instead each victim is asked a series of questions, and a wrong answer results in a their death. The killer is a lawyer with a twisted mind, who has a grudge against the wealthy and their conspicuous consumption. He thinks that all of us should be doing more for those people in need, and those who are suffering. After several killings, one of the victims outwits the killer by getting all of the questions right, and she is released.

The audio book is read by (3) individuals ,Bobby Carnavale, Orlagh Cassidy, and John Glover who all do a great job. It's just that the story started out interesting enough, but the end result was disappointing. In case you are curious about the earlier (2) books in this series, they are: Step on a Crack (UGH), and RUN FOR YOUR LIFE (so so). Overall I would rate this audio book a 3/5 stars.

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My least favorite of this series...

WORST CASE is the third book starring the fictional character, NYPD Detective Michael Bennett. This series sort of chronicles his life, which includes ten adopted children, a nanny, and a hilarious priest who is Bennett's father. In each installment, Bennett must track down a killer. This time, he's not alone. Agent Emily Parker from the FBI assists in catching a killer who is targeting children of N.Y.'s wealthiest families.

One of my favorite parts is Bennett's chaotic personal life which I didn't see enough of in this book. The little thrown in seemed a bit confusing. For instance, Mary Catherine's (the nanny) reaction to Bennett and Parker and then later when Bennett kissed Mary Catherine. I also found it hard to believe after two years, Bennett didn't know how old Mary Catherine was. Maybe more about Bennett and his female relationships will be revealed in the next book. (I'm rooting for Mary Catherine.)

Patterson's books, at least to me, are better experienced on audio. Three narrators made up the cast: Bobby Cannavale, John Glover, Orlagh Cassidy. Normally, I like only one narrator, but when done well as in this case, it's an extraordinary experience.

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The Ends Justify any Means

THE TEASER: Typically, a teaser is a loathsome device intended to catch bookstore readers (or superficial reviewers) with up-front action. Usually, teasers only serve to confuse the reader. In this case, the "prolog" is relevant. It introduces the protagonist "bad guy", establishes his alledged motives, and that he is mentally disturbed. THANK YOU JAMES PATERSON AND MICHAEL LEDWIDGE .

THE SETUP: Francis Mooney is kidnapping and murdering rich kids. Police detective Michael Bennett is teamed with FBI behavioral analyst Emily Parker, to stop the murders. Bennett is a widower with 10 multiracial adopted children, helped by nanny Mary Kathryn and his grandfather priest Father Shamus Bennett. Parker is a divorcee with a young daughter.

CAVEATS: Some elements seem a bit far fectched. For one thing, the Bennett-Parker "task force" is formed before the first kid is killed.

Ultimately we discover that Mooney was actually acting rationally. That makes his mistreatment of the young people unnecessary. His "testing" of them is equally unnecessary---the logical course would have been to anonymously kill them in ways that looked like unrelated accidents. Mooney's baiting of Bennett particularly makes no sense in retrospect.

CUDOS: Bennett and Parker are interesting appealing characters, reasonably developed for a crime novel. The few characters are easy to remember, and so, the plot is easy to follow

Mooney actually develops as an interesting multifaceted character, rather than as a typical crime novel psychopath. Initially he is sympathetically presented as a sick old man re-living the idealistic radically leftist beliefs of his youth. But we are also presented with the other-side of the coin---the self-righteous belief that the ends-justifies-any-means in "doing good" and only the do-gooder is qualified to judge relative "goodness". That's the creedo of tyrants, whether the tyrant is the Catholic Church, the King of England, or the Communist Party. We also find out that (like most self-righteous do-gooders), Mooney himself is from highly privileged background and much of his motivation stems from his resentment and envy of richer, harder working, more talented, prep-school classmates who once humiliated him. I suspect that many of the 1-star votes are from narrow-minded self-righteous leftist who do not desire to be confronted with the nature of their own motivations.

All of us are humiliated by parents, classmates, bosses, or spouses sometime in our lives. All of us are less rich, less motivated, and less talented than some of our associates. Envy and resentment are among the greatest of sins, because they are acids which destroys their owners. Revenge is unworthy, never honorable, and rarely justifiable. Cloaking personal revenge as "class justice" is a mean-spirited, nasty, detestable lie.

The novel also confronts the legitimate question of whether the sons and daughters of the rich truly deserve to be made rich by inheritance. Although unanswered in the novel, the answer is that no-one deserves unearned wealth. But no-one has the right to (directly or indirectly) confiscate anyone else's unearned wealth. If not voluntary, charity is an ugly, dirty, vicious thing.

VERDICT: A good read with plenty of action, some mystery, and interesting characters. The audiobook is very well done.

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Best case: survival

The son of one of New York's wealthiest families is snatched off the street and held hostage. His parents can't save him, because this kidnapper isn't demanding money. Instead, he quizzes his prisoner on the price others pay for his life of luxury. In this exam, wrong answers are fatal.

Worst case: death

Detective Michael Bennett leads the investigation. With ten kids of his own, he can't begin to understand what could lead someone to target anyone's children. As another student disappears, one powerful family after another uses their leverage and connections to turn the heat up on the mayor, the press--anyone who will listen--to stop this killer. Their reach extends all the way to the FBI, who send their top Abduction Specialist, Agent Emily Parker. Bennett's life--and love life--suddenly get even more complicated.

This case: Detective Michael Bennett is on it

Before Bennett has a chance to protest the FBI's intrusion on his case, the mastermind changes his routine. His plan leads up to the most devastating demonstration yet--one that could bring cataclysmic devastation to every inch of New York. From the shocking first page to the last exhilarating scene, Worst Case is a non-stop thriller from "America's #1 storyteller" (Forbes).

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