Book Review - 1st to Die

1st to Die by James Patterson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

1st to Die is the lead title in a series dubbed "The Women's Murder Club" about - surprise surprise - a group of women who get together to solve crimes. When I first heard about the premise, I pictured a bunch of blue haired old biddies into everyone's business - sort of like Murder She Wrote x 4, but I was pleasantly surprised to discover that these were younger women - a cop, a coroner, a journalist and a DA - who are smart and funny, and who seem to share my taste in music (at least the cop does!).

There is a serial murderer on the loose who takes his victims during what should be the happiest times in their lives - their wedding nights. His crimes are brutal and savage and have the whole city stumped, until one intrepid police inspector pulls together her girlfriends to solve crimes over hot wings. In the meantime, she gains a hot and charming new partner, and an illness that threatens to destroy her career and take her life.

I found the characters compelling, but I had most of the plot twists figured out from very close to the start, which is why I only rated this one three stars. This happens to me a lot; I read so many mysteries I get a feel for it early on, but I always still hope for surprises. Despite that, I enjoyed getting to know the characters and following their chase of their suspect. I think I'll be checking out the next one of these soon.

View all my reviews