ALEX CROSS's TRIAL: MY REVIEW and GIVEAWAY

GIVEAWAY ENDED
ALEX CROSS'S TRIAL
BY
JAMES PATTERSON
AND RICHARD DILALLO

ABOUT THE BOOK

Separated by time
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.

Connected by blood As a lawyer in turn-of-the-century Washington D.C., Ben Corbett represents the toughest cases. Fighting against oppression and racism, he risks his family and his life in the process. When President Roosevelt asks Ben to return to his home town to investigate rumors of the resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan there, he cannot refuse.

United by bravery When he arrives 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.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

James Patterson is one of the bestselling writers of all time, with more than 160 million copies of his books sold worldwide. He is the author of the two most popular detective series of the past decade, featuring Alex Cross and the Women's Murder Club. He has won an Edgar Award--the mystery world's highest honor--and his novels Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider were made into feature films. His lifelong work to promote books and reading is reflected in his new Web site, ReadKiddoRead.com, which helps parents, grandparents, teachers, and librarians find the very best children's books for their kids. He lives in Florida.

Richard DiLallo is a former advertising creative director. He has had numerous articles published in major magazines. He lives in Manhattan with his wife.

MY REVIEW

For those of you who wonder how James Patterson writes so many novels, this book may help with that question. ALEX CROSS'S TRIAL's "author" is Alex Cross himself as he tells the reader in the beginning of the book how he came to write this one. While writing his latest book in the Cross series, CROSS COUNTRY, he found himself recalling how Nana Mama often told about his favorite part of their family history. So Alex decided it was about time that he told that story to his readers and for himself.

ALEX CROSS'S TRIAL is different from all the other Alex Cross books in that it takes place in the early 1900's during a time in our country when we were facing the end of slavery but still facing prejudice and hatred and racial discrimination.

The story takes place in Washington,D. C. and the main character is a young lawyer named Ben Corbett. He is married father of twin daughters who he loves dearly, and a lovely wife who is not happy in their marriage. Ben stands up for the poor man and often takes on pro bono cases and his wife thinks he has a lack of ambition. She pictured them as being wealthy and prominent in their community and wants to leave him because of him chasing these noble causes and not the high priced influential cases. Ben seems to have let down not only his wife, but his father as well. They think he is wasting his talents on these poor and thankless cases.

One day, however, Ben Corbett is summoned to the White House as President Theodore Roosevelt himself has chosen Ben to help look into the rumors that are flying about the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan back in Eudora, Mississippi, where Ben is from. Lynchings and the Klan, once outlawed, seem to be back in this small town and the President wants it looked into and stopped before things get worse. Ben is given the name of a man to help him there when he accepts the assignment. The man is Abraham Cross, the great-uncle of Alex Cross, who also brings into the story Abraham's granddaughter, Moody.

As Ben looks into what is going on back in this normally quiet little Southern town, people let him know that it is not the popular thing to be doing. But Ben truly believes in what he is doing and as he tries to fight for rights and justice, he endangers himself and may lose not only old friends, but his family and even his own safety is jeopardized.

Ben takes on the most important trial of his life as he fights for what is right while his enemies want things kept the same and don't want to see change. Fresh with images that Abraham has shown him of a hanging body, Ben forges ahead despite his father's warnings and sends a report to the White House on what he has found out. As Ben waits to hear from the President on how to proceed, more and more he is targeted even by those he called friend in his hometown years ago. All these things culminate with Ben fighting the good fight in the hardest case he has ever handled.

How Ben manages this case and its results will explain so much about Alex Cross that it could be the way James Patterson along with co-author Richard DiLallo finally end the Cross series... all tied up in a nice little bow. But can that be true? I know I thoroughly enjoyed this book as it is still written in typical fast-paced, short chapter form that keep you from putting the book down even though it is not technically an Alex Cross novel. I think it is one of the best Cross books to come out in several years. Can I see it as the end of the series? Well, it could as it fits but I know it can't be true as fans would be up in arms themselves. You read the book and judge for yourself but I say that the author, Cross or Patterson or DiLallo, all did a wonderful job.

THE GIVEAWAY

THANKS TO MIRIAM AND THE
HACHETTE BOOK GROUP, I
AM ONCE AGAIN ABLE TO REVIEW
AND GIVEAWAY MY FAVORITE
AUTHOR'S NEWEST BOOK DUE
OUT AUGUST 24!

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