The Trial: A BookShot: A Women's Murder Club Story (Women's Murder Club BookShots, 1)

Just finished this book, it was great and action packed. I love these little books because they only take a couple hours to read which is nice. They also fit great in your purse for on the go.

James Patterson's books are exciting and keep your attention.

I would have liked to have read more involvement by the other murder club members. This book was too short. I had fictionalized more things to that could have happen to make this book more authentic but I did enjoy reading this book

This entry in the Bookshot series of mini books was my first introduction to The Women’s Murder Club. I liked it well enough to want read some of the more well-fleshed books in that series, as this Bookshot entry only whet my appetite.Here, a notorious drug kingpin and murderer finds himself captured, arrested, indicted, and on trial. From his cell he has managed to cause untold mayhem, unleashing violence the likes of which the city has never seen. Even The Women’s Murder Club is at a loss. Then, someone who is mad as hell and is not going to take it anymore does the unthinkable. Clearly, there is a new sheriff in town.This is a fast-paced, wholly plot driven book in which the action is pretty much nonstop. Though there is very little character development, the plot is engaging enough that it withstands this deficit. Besides which, the book is over almost before the reader knows it.

I like the Women’s Murder Club series

I'm still on the fence when it comes to the concept of BookShots, the project spearheaded by very prolific author James Patterson. The intent, I've read, is to produce thrillers that sell for around $4.99 and are no longer than 150 pages. Some are standalones, while others are rooted in some of Patterson's popular series including Alex Cross and, like this one, the Women's Murder Club.My mugwump attitude isn't because I want to see the concept fail; in fact, as authors struggle to make anywhere near decent amounts for their writing efforts, I think it's a clever idea that has merit. The books are affordable and perfect, I'd think, for something to do while waiting in the doctor's office or catching a red-eye flight. But I've never been much of a short story fan - and when stripped down to the nitty gritty, that's pretty much what these are - so my personal enthusiasm isn't very high.For the record, I read one, a standalone titled "The Witnesses," back in July (it earned 4 stars from me as well). After I finished and had a better idea of how these books would play out, I first said that for me it would be one and done; later, I changed my mind and decided to someday try one involving my personal favorites just to test those waters. A few months later, I spotted this one, and away I went.As I already knew, it's way too short for my liking - I polished it off in just under an hour (actually, just 85% of the book is the actual story; the remainder is a four-chapter "special excerpt" of another BookShots entry featuring Detective Alex Cross). Besides that, any sort of balance among the four Women's Murder Club members (San Francisco Medical Examiner Claire, attorney Yuki, hot-shot crime reporter Cindy and Detective Lindsay) is pretty much nonexistent. While Lindsay usually takes the center front stage, the others typically get fairly strong supporting roles; but here, not so much - hardly at all, in fact.On the other hand, as short stories go, I have to say it's pretty good. As regular series readers already know, Lindsay and her husband Joe have separated, although they still love each other and share a love for their young daughter Julie. When club members gather for one of their regular restaurant meetups, Lindsay gets a phone call from her partner Rich, who tells her the notorious Mexican gangster dubbed the Kingfisher is back in town. That's especially disturbing since, as far as the police are concerned, he's dead.But surprise - he's not only very much alive, but apparently has committed two murders. He's then charged and is awaiting trial - a process that quickly goes to hell in a handbasket, turning the entire city upside down.Because it's so short, there's little more I can say without giving away too much (except that unlike a few other reviewers, I thought the ending was great). So for those who like a shorter format and Patterson's work, I'd say this one is worth a try. As for me, though, it's over and out.

This book is spellbound reading and you can’t put it down. As a resultI read it to the end. A must read to the end.

TOO GIRLIEThis male reader likes female characters because they are more fun to imagine for a male reader (know what I mean?), yet, still, this book used a female lead character who was a police officer, yet she made herself sound like an uptown model, or some other type of "yuppie" character. In fact, her and her friends all talked in uptown "yuppie" language--they all shortened their words in "hipster"-style (like "tats" for tattoos, and "Chron" for Chronicle, which was a newspaper, et cetera), and the lead female made herself appear to girlie. She imagined herself slow dancing with her ex-husband in a fancy dress, she "cuddled with her adorable baby daughter" (I didn't phrase that exactly like James Patterson but close), she drinks fancy cocktails, and eats stylish sandwiches, and meets her female friends in an "art deco"-style cocktail lounge.But, here's the worst part, the lead female (who was supposed to be a "police sergeant") acts so huggie-wuggie-huggie and so kissie-kissie-kissie that she seemed like a cross between a Vogue fashion model and a kindergarten teacher. I can't believe an author as experienced as James Patterson would really think that his female "police sergeant" could be believable when she kisses and hugs and "needs a hug badly," and, then, kisses, and hugs, and kisses, her female friends some more. After the case wraps, the lead female "policewoman" will need to cuddle below her soft warm blankets, snuggle with her baby daughter, enjoy a glass of warm cocoa, and give herself a few gentle huggie-wuggie-hugs to feel better. (Can you hear the sarcasm in my tone?)So, the storyline sounded good (most James Patterson does), but (and I complain about Jeffrey Deaver in the same manner) the characters were supposed to be police officers yet they sounded like rich fancy "yuppies," and very girlie-girl ones, too, and NEVER like cops.

This book provided a good quick read for fans of the Women's Murder Club, including what I thought was a surprise ending.

Um livro pequeno da série a Women's murder club, muito bom, como todos os outros. Nível do inglês para leitura: Básico 3.

These stories are well written and move along well, slightly repetitive but still great to read. What more can I say?

Patterson hooks you from the first page, a great read, read in a couple of hours. May be quick but as addictive as ever.

I always enjoy the women's murder club series. This is a short version but hits the spot really well.A good little read.