Double Cross

Double Cross (Unabridged)

Just when Alex thought his life was calming down into a routine of patients and therapy sessions, he finds himself back in the game--this time to catch a criminal mastermind like no other.

A spate of elaborate murders in Washington, D.C. have the whole East Coast on edge. They are like nothing Alex Cross and his new girlfriend, Detective Brianna Stone, have ever seen.

With each murder, the case becomes increasingly complex. There's only one thing Alex knows: the killer adores an audience.

As victims are made into gruesome spectacles citywide, inducing a media hysteria, it becomes clear to Alex that the man he's after is a genius of terror--and he's after fame.

The killer has the whole city by its strings--and he'll stop at nothing to become the most terrifying star that Washington ,D.C. has ever seen.

Formerly the chairman of advertising company J. W. Thompson in the early 1990s, James Patterson came up with the slogan "Toys R Us Kids". Shortly after his success with Along Came A Spider, he retired from the firm and devoted his time to writing. The novels- featuring his character, Alex Cross, an African-American forensic psychologist formerly of the Washington, D.C. Police Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation, now working as a private psychologist and government consultant- are the most popular books among Patterson readers.

In 2006, James Patterson sold more than 12 million books in North America alone. In total, Patterson's books have sold an estimated 130 million copies worldwide. He has won awards including the Edgar, the BCA Mystery Guild's Thriller of the Year, and the International Thriller of the Year award. James Patterson was named "the man who can't miss" in Time Magazine. He is the first author to have #1 new titles simultaneously on the New York Times adult and children's best sellers lists, and to have two books on NovelTracker'stop-ten list at the same time. In 2005 alone, James Patterson had five consecutive #1 New York Times bestselling original hardcover books - a record held by no other author to date. He broke that record again in 2006. He even made an appearance on the Fox TV show The Simpsons as himself.

Patterson is also well known for sharing the spotlight with different co-authors such as Maxine Paetro and Andrew Gross and has often said that collaborating with others brings new and interesting ideas to his stories.

He also founded the James Patterson PageTurner Awards, now in its third year. Patterson has personally given away over $600,000 to reward "people, companies, schools, and other institutions who find original and effective ways to spread the excitement of books and reading."

Patterson's bestselling Women's Murder Club series is now a TV show starring former Law & Order star Angie Harmon, that premiered in the fall of 2007 on ABC television. Other movie deals are currently in the works with various Hollywood studios.

Patterson received his bachelor's degree from Manhattan College.

He lives in Palm Beach, Florida with his wife, Susan, and son, Jack. source

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