Step on a Crack

Michael Bennett, Book 1

By: James Patterson

Narrated by: John Slattery

First came Alex Cross. Then the Women's Murder Club. Now meet Detective Michael Bennett, NYPD ¿ and his 10 children.

The nation is mourning after the death of a beloved former first lady, and the most powerful people in the world gather in New York for her funeral. Then the inconceivable occurs. Billionaires, politicians, and superstars are suddenly trapped within one man's brilliant and ruthless scenario. Detective Michael Bennett is pulled into the fray. He's just lost the love of his life and faces raising his children alone ¿ and rescuing 34 hostages.

As the world watches and the tension boils to a searing heat, Bennett has to find a way out ¿ or face responsibility for the greatest debacle in history.

©2007 James Patterson; (P)2007 Headline Audiobooks

A truly great read

Another brilliant book by James Patterson. What an imagination! I was engaged after the first few minutes.

A Strange mixture of Patterson mayhem and pathos

The switch between the usual Patterson violence intermingled with the unbelievability of a busy detective having 10 children AND a dying saintly wife PLUS helpful father/grandfather, then being sent an even saintlier au pair and still keep his act together, was just too much for this usually gullible listener to swallow.

I dislike background music/sound effects in any audible book but even though the sad scenes were so eloquently expressed, the soulful music intruded, particularly when the listener was immediately jolted into the next unreal vicious actions of the villains.

Part of Patterson's et all's successful writing strategy is to make you quickly turn the page at the end of each chapter to find out 'what happens next' The narrator paused before announcing each one, which made me feel he also found the discontinuity between action and family tragedy, hard to handle.

A good listen, but not a super listen

In general the story starts off with the death of Caroline Hopkins, a former First Lady and her funeral is attended by the cream of the crust, consisting of the most influential and wealthiest individuals at the Saint Patrick's Cathedral. Unfortunately, a group of men take them hostage and will do anything to meet their private objectives. I thought Mr. Patterson developed the hostage characters very well. He had a knack for dropping little traits about these characters until after awhile I found myself really caring about what will happen to these people.

Enter Michael Bennett, a detective for NY Police Department, and he is forced into the role of negotiator. Meanwhile, his personal life is in turmoil. His beloved wife is terminally ill with cancer and he is left caring for their ten children. Ten Children? Yes that's correct 10 children! At this point I thought Patterson was strettttching the Brady Bunch a bit too much to enhance the devotion of this character, but I read on. As I read on I found that Patterson was able to weave Michael's love for his wife, Maeve, and their children into many sensitive, believable scenes. There was Michael dealing with the chaos at home, while at the same time dealing with the hostage situation. Still I couldn't connect to this super father and hero.

STEP ON A CRACK by James Patterson is good read, but not a super read. The characters a little exciting but I had wished that there was a good dose of some thriller scenes. If you want an easy listen then I recommend this book.

A must read as usual

If you could sum up Step on a Crack in three words, what would they be?

Fascinating new line.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Step on a Crack?

Christmas

What about John Slattery’s performance did you like?

Just the right amount of expressive story telling for each situation.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Not to be missed.

Any additional comments?

As alway a wonderful way to spend my spare time with a James Patterson thriller wonderfully read. Thank you.

Will definitely look for more in this series.

What made the experience of listening to Step on a Crack the most enjoyable?

Intriguing story that had you wondering to the end.

Any additional comments?

Enjoyable and fast paced, difficult to put down.