Cross Down (Alex Cross #31) (2024)

2.5⭐
Okay...let's pretend the previous Alex Cross, Triple Cross didn't happen.

Is this a new direction for Alex Cross or just one book? The title of the book is a little misleading, it should say: A John Sampson with Alex Cross thriller. Maybe they're testing the waters for a new spin-off. This Alex Cross book is told from John Sampson, Cross's longtime friend and partner perspective.

I've read plenty James Patterson novels and love Alex Cross the most because he exclusively writes them without a co-author. I enjoy a simple FBI-detective storyline with a psycho bad guy. This one with Brenden Dubois is more political-military thriller style which is fine but not a true Alex Cross style. I hope the next one goes back to the usual Cross. Give Sampson his own series, what's another series, am I right?

This shouldn’t be labeled a cross book. It’s about ohm Sanford with a guest appearance of Alex and his family. It was rough to read. I like psychological thrillers. Bring back the old Cross style books. This was a miss for me.

Great book.
Well written & fast paced.
Definitely frightening considering everything happening in the USA & world today.

James Patterson is back with his cornerstone series, bringing Brendan DuBois along for the collaborative ride. Alex Cross has seen a great deal in his years working with law enforcement. His time with Metro PD in Washington has been quite eye-opening, an experience shared with his partner, John Sampson. When a number of terrorist stacks rock the United States, Cross and Sampson begin their investigation. However, Cross is brutally sidelined and left for dead, forcing Sampson to take up the torch alone. With a nuclear attack the threatened final act, Sampson will have to find another partner to help stop things before there is no America to call home. Patterson and DuBois do well with this collaborative effort, allowing another protagonist to take some time in the spotlight.

Detective Alex Cross has a long and storied career working for Metro PD and the FBI. His recipe for success has to be the strength of his partner, John Sampson. Together, they are able to carve out the rules of the game and enforce them at will. This will come in handy for their latest case, when a number of terrorist attacks rock the United States and those apparently responsible hint at something even larger to come.

During the investigation, Cross is brutally attacked and ends up in the ICU, keeping him out of the game. While Sampson wants to see his friend recover, there is no time to wait. Sampson will have to work solo for a time, at least until he can find a partner of his own to help diffuse all that is going on.

While things heat up, Sampson finds himself working with the most unlikely partner and travels to the far sides of the world. There may be a clue to discover the plot to unleash a nuclear blast within the United States, devastating the country as a whole. The US President is not yet ready to concede, but Sampson knows that colouring within the lines is not the only way to get answers, pushing him to write the rules and enforce them, as Alex Cross continues to mend. Will there be enough time to ensure everyone is saved? Patterson and DuBois work well together in this collaborative effort that moves the spotlight off Cross himself.

There have been many collaborative efforts between Patterson and DuBois over the years, but I was surprised to see that this series moved in that direction. Patterson has long held onto this series as his own, working to prove to be that he still has what it takes to pen his own thrillers. With a decent foundation and narrative direction, the book keeps pace throughout and allows the reader to feel connected with all the action. Short chapters, in Patterson’s traditional way, help push things along and keep the reader delving deeper into things as they occur. Characters develop, some recurring and others one-offs, enriching the story in their own ways. Alex Cross has taken a step back, allowing John Sampson to shine and perhaps show his mettle for upcoming novels. Plot lines develop with ease and propel the narrative forward, keeping the reader engaged and wondering where things are headed. I can see a great deal of potential with this new spin to the series, involving John Sampson a great deal more. I await Patterson‘s next move to see what this series has in store for its fans.

Kudos, Messrs. Patterson and DuBois, for a decent addition to the series, which keeps getting new life breathed into it.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com

I’ve been reading James Patterson books for about thirty years now. During that time, like most of his fans, my favorite character has always been Alex Cross. He was Patterson’s first detective series that helped lay the foundation for his kingdom of several bestselling series and stand-alone novels. For me, Alex has remained a fierce, intellectual knight of moral character and the proper use of action. I remember reading the Alex’s first adventure, “Along came a Spider” and almost cried when Alex, then a widower, faced the loss of his new love in an ending twist I would never forget. In the twenty-seven years following, there have been some good (and excellent) adventures and some less-than-stellar outings along the way, but I generally looked forward to the end of each year when another Alex Cross adventure was published.

Now, the 31st book in the series – “Cross Down” – has been read, and it requires a serious warning for readers. One that needs your full attention.

This is not your typical Alex Cross novel. The first clue is that it is co-authored with Brendan DuBois, which is only the second time out of 31 books that Patterson has allowed that to happen. The second clue is that the book cover promotes this book as an “Alex Cross and John Sampson thriller”.

If those two taglines aren’t enough, the inside flap synopsis should clear all doubt that this will be different with its first sentence – “For the first time, John Sampson is on his own.”

“Cross Down” begins with Cross and Sampson being pulled into a Presidential task force to deal with a rash of recent attacks that are more than what they first appeared to be. Random car bombings, shootings, and public attacks taking place across the country may actually be connected in a more deadly plot than previously imagined. It appears that they may actually be terrorist planned attacks that are building up to a large assault of some kind in Washington DC in about a week’s time.

Cross and Sampson find themselves sitting in the same room with representatives from the NSA, FBI, CIA, Homeland Security, and the DC Metro Police. When there’s a lot of talk, but not a lot of proactive action to protect the local citizens and their families, Sampson speaks ups, maybe a bit to vocally, upsetting those that he needs support from.

Then, things get even worse. Members of the perceived terrorist group have mapped out Cross and Sampson’s trail and using the precision of a military style mission, they attack the two men outside of their police headquarters, leaving Cross seriously injured and dying while Sampson tries to save his partner and friend.

Cross is rushed into surgery at a nearby hospital, suffering from a collapsed ling and fighting for his life. While Cross fights for his life, Sampson must move forward without his partner’s great intelligence for profiling and hunting down serial killers. Sampson must use his own strengths and experience to hunt down those who tried to kill his partner and best friend. The good news is that Sampson has a strong network of resources, including FBI Supervising special agent, Ned Mahoney, and Bree Stone, Alex’s wife and her employer, the Bluestone Group, an international security firm.

However, as Sampson tries to find those who tried to kill Cross and are members of a shadow force with unbelievable military backing and political power, agent Mahoney’s last words keep lingering in his ears, “Don’t trust anyone…”

So, let’s deal with the elephant in the room. This is really a John Sampson novel rather than an Alex Cross novel. It’s a role reversal, in which John plays the lead role and Alex is the side-kick. I know in looking at a lot of online comments that this seemed to upset a lot of fans, but I am not sure why. It’s about time that John Sampson got his opportunity to shine. I am actually rather surprised that this type of plotting hasn’t been done previously… And it’s about time. As I mentioned earlier, it shouldn’t be a surprise to readers, as the book cover and description were up front about it. No false advertising there, at least not to me.

Another interesting thing that I noted is that the authors kept the same storytelling point-of-view that I thought worked well. In the previous Alex Cross novels, the story was told from Alex’s point-of-view and this one was told from John’s point-of-view, which kept the same rhythm and flow without disrupting the storytelling style. The consistency helped and John’s voice felt authentic and real as the story unfolded.

For me, the real measuring stick was whether or not the story worked. Was it actually good? Did it capture my attention? For me, the answer is yes. Even though Alex was absent from the screen about 80% of the time, that was okay, because the story was good. Well told, enjoyable, and definitely entertaining.

This was a solid thriller recipe, that built on the premise of what would happen if Alex Cross was incapacitated and his partner and best friend, John Sampson had to work on his own without him. But what worked even more was how well the plot was laid out. The tempo was fast moving with lots of drama and action, pulling on the emotional strings of the Cross family and supporting characters that have made the Cross universe a bestselling series that has stood the test of time. In addition, the mystery elements were full of suspense and intrigue.

However, along with my previous warning, there is also one important caveat, and that is, this is entertaining as long as you put aside any expectation of realism. That is a usual expectation with Patterson novels, but it is a requirement with this one. There are so many shootings in public settings that reality is greatly sacrificed. The violence rises to the level of “John Wick” as Patterson and Dubois try to bring their own killer video game into a thriller.

I was also left with some unanswered questions, such as who was the female voice giving the hit squad orders? I think I know who it was, but there was a definite lack of closure, along with some hints of the possibility of more to come…

Over three decades and 31 books, the character of Alex Cross has hunted many serial killers and other villains and bad guys. He has faced many life-threatening moments. He has done his best to keep his family safe and support them. This time it was John Sampson’s turn, and in my opinion, he delivered an entertaining edge-of-your-seat thriller that kept my interest. Maybe once in a while you just got to say to heck with realism and go with the guilty pleasure…

A very enjoyable 4 out of 5 stars, and easily my favorite Patterson novel so far this year.

4 / 5

This book is slightly different to the previous books I’ve read following the Alex Cross series. This book veers away from the suspense thriller of serial acts and it’s more focused on the military/ army aspect, following on John Sampsons history.

The book follows Alex cross and John Sampson called into a meeting held by the US president of concerns over increasing unprovoked attacks on US soil. Following the next day, Alex and John agree to meet at the DC Metro headquarters before the second round of meetings. As Alex starts talking about the number of attacks, and how he thinks it’s all calculated and not random he is severely injured when 3 armed men burst out of an Amazon van shooting up the headquarters. This leaves John to figure out why these attacks are happening and what the connection is between the attacks.

The only sad part is that we don’t get to see Alex take the reigning spotlight that the series does. In fact he’s not mentioned as much in the book, and the main focus is on Big John. The book delves into the character of John and his history which we wouldn’t have gotten if Alex was not sidelined. But I have to admit it is weird reading a book, part of the Alex cross series and have him sidelined within the first 50 pages. I did enjoy the read, I was glued to my seat reading. It had all the action and build up as a normal Alex cross book had, but John instead. Overall it’s a good read, maybe those that are more familiar with American politics and the history of US presidents. The only annoying thing which I think this book should contain similar to the Cara Hunter series is Acronyms table so that we understand what the hell certain acronyms mean. It’s makes it harder to understand the point, when they are mentioning BDU, JCS.

3.5 Stars for Cross Down: Alex Cross, Book 31 (audiobook) by James Patterson and Brendan Dubois read by a full cast.

I’ve only read a couple of these books and this one seems really different. It was a lot more about John Sampson instead of Alex Cross. I don’t know if this is setting up for another series or what? The story was alright but I should start at the beginning.

Not really an “Alex Cross” book, in so much that Alex is off stage for 95% of the novel. It is also a rarely occurring co- write on a AC universe novel, and it shows in the beginning of the novel ( in my opinion) So many characters, so many characters introduced and killed. Despite the fact that we’re dealing with terrorists, I don’t remember an AC novel with this kind of body count before, which becomes quite numbing. (Which bothers me a bit as I type it.)

Gotta love Sampson on a rampage to defend his country and brother!

Cross Down, by James Paterson & Brendan DuBois, is a wild ride from beginning to end. This book will grab you from the first chapters and take you on a Crack the Whip ride to the end, while you yell for more. Alex Cross and his partner John Sampson are caught in the middle of seemingly random deadly attacks occurring throughout the country threatening the very fabric of our union. The latest attack on the streets of Washington D.C. has taken down Alex Cross. John Sampson, of the Metro P. D. has taken out one of the attackers and driven off and possibly wounding one or two of the others. Alex has sustained a life threatening bullet wound that will put him out of action indefinitely. Sampson takes it as his mission to avenge his critically wounded friend and find who is behind these attacks. Can he put a permanent stop to them? Can he save the nation without the help of his long time friend and partner? Another excellent action packed book from the mind of James Patterson. This book was provided for review by novelsuspectsinsiders and published by Little, Brown & Co.

Fake Alex Cross Thriller

Read all of the Alex Cross books. This was NOT an Alex Cross Thriller. Very disappointed read. Alex Cross and his interesting analysis of criminal behavior was missing. Ghost writers and or Brendan DuBois was sub par to all the other Alex Cross novels. Interesting plot looking at what could happen with all the corruption in American politics today.
Please bring ALEX CROSS BACK!!!!!

First, Patterson has been the Walmart version of an author for a while. I think we all know that when he brings in an additional writer, he’s not writing. At best he is contributing to an outline, and I’m not sure he is even reading the final product. This is his publishing company trying to stretch out their gravy train. So whatever with that. What really pisses me off is that Patterson doesn’t give a sh*t that his once good name as an author is going down the toilet. The Alex Cross series was at least his. So now he doesn’t even have that. I’d have more respect if he just retired the character and quit ‘writing’ all together.

Let’s face it, the Alex Cross books have been declining for a while. What happened to the psychological thriller? Politics is in my face every day, I don’t want to read that crap.

Now for this book. Why are we calling it an Alex Cross book? It’s absolutely NOT. So we don’t have Patterson and we don’t have Cross. Yet I’m supposed to be excited about this??

I was along for the ride, but if you think about it too much it really doesn’t make sense. A lot of suspending reality here. Too many things to point out honestly.

Why are we trying to kill a comatose Alex? Bree shooting the ‘nurse’ was very satisfying though.

The well-funded bad guys have their target in a cabin, but they toss in a flash-bang? Why??

disappointing

So far we’ve had a women’s murder club that obsessed on gun control
And now a cross book strictly focused on insurrections and takeovers of the White House by conservative patriots. I really wish he would go back to serial killers and fbi profiling. This is getting extremely boring. Stop with the political hit pieces and go back to old school Alex cross and Women’s Murder club

2.5🌟

When JP is good, he’s great.

Another Patterson collaboration, but this one works well. Book 31 in the Cross series actually has very little Alex cross in it. The story focuses largely on John Sampson this time (with the regulars of the series appearing here and there).

This instalment has a definite over-the-top bullets flying everywhere feel. Think more White House Down/James Bond/Mission Impossible than traditional Cross investigation.

High on entertainment value, 158 very short chapters and some escapism reading.

Cross Down is another page turner from James Patterson. This is probably my favorite series that he writes & I care about the characters. Alex gets injured & it’s up to his best friend John Sampson to figure out who is behind the terror attacks going on around the country. No one can be trusted, not even those who are supposed to protect the country. John Sampson isn’t even sure if he can trust people he is close to.

This book was a John Sampson novel rather than an Alex Cross novel since it only featured him briefly but it did feature Bree & his family as they try to protect themselves. I was ok with that & enjoyed getting to see John work on his own.

Though Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Jack Carr’s James Reece, Stephen Hunter’s Bob Lee Swagger and many more have written better novels, with their heroes confronting sub Rosa, Deep State efforts to end our Republic, Patterson’s effort here, is decent, with characters we really care about…With Alex out, John Sampson carries the load in this thriller…Good Stuff!

My husband and I listened to this on a road trip. We enjoyed it thoroughly, the drive flew by!

I grabbed it with my big hand. I kicked it with my big foot. At 6 ft 9 inches I (insert phrase here.)(Repeat often.)
OK John, we get it.

3.5 stars

Cross Down is a thriller co-written by James Patterson and Brendan DuBois. While this story has thriller elements, I felt it was leaning more towards suspense. As with any Patterson novel, you can expect a fast pace and short chapters.

This book is different in the sense that it focuses more on John Sampson and his investigation, while Alex Cross is man down. There are reports of military attacks across the country and John Sampson needs to find the mastermind as well as save his friend before it's too late.
It's interesting to see how Sampson works on his own and how he handles the entire situation.
In this installment, Sampson is carrying the weight of justice on his own and I feel we see how he develops.
While this is not my favourite of James Patterson's books, I still felt it was enjoyable.

As the cover suggests, an original series is coming to Amazon Prime soon, and I'm quite curious to watch it. I always find it interesting to watch the series after reading the book, especially with thrillers as it helps me to see the book in a new perspective.

I do not want to go into too much detail as a lot happens in this book, but if you're a fan of action films, then you'll enjoy this book.

Thank you Penguin Random House SA for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As a long-time fan of the Alex Cross series, I was surprised to see a collaboration with this one as it has normally always been a James Patterson standalone series. However, as I got reading it - I understood the collaboration as though this is Book #31 in the Alex Cross series, it is more a book focused on John Sampson which was pretty neat for a change as he has always been a side character - an extension of Alex Cross and his family. The book also featured Ned Mahoney from the FBI who we have also seen in other Alex Cross books. Cross Down starts with a group of tops in the law field getting together with the President as a series of random terrorist attacks are wreaking havoc on the US. Alex of course knows that they aren't random but the day he goes to share, he and John find themselves amid gunfire and Alex is shot - hence the title "Cross Down". Alex ends up in ICU and fighting for his life, John does what Alex normally would have done and heads to save the day and find out what is happening. Turns out that John was the target, not Alex, and that someone is killing off the members that were involved in a secret CIA military operation in Afghanistan years ago. John teams up with a couple of people from the operation to learn what happened over there. Will John be shocked at what he discovers? As the book goes along, John realizes that he can't trust anyone except for Alex and their FBI friend Ned Mahoney. Can the three of them save the day and save the President from making a big mistake and trusting the wrong military to save America from utter chaos? Find out in another action-packed adventure of the Alex Cross Saga. As always, I love reading the Alex Cross series as I get snippets of the other Cross family members who I have read and seen grow up from Books #1 to now Book #31 including John's daughter Willow.

This is a highly unusual Alex Cross book; makes me wonder if Alex Cross is on his way out and John Sampson is on his way in.

This is a big first in the series; Alex Cross was shot at the beginning of the book; and hospitalized in critical condition. John Sampson is left to his own wits to solve the dilemma and get justice!

A series of random domestic terrorist attacks have been occurring across the U.S.; now they are heading for the White House. It's up to John to figure out the clues and end the chaos before it's too late for America.

I received a copy of this book from NovelSuspects and Little, Brown in exchange for an honest review.

Alex Cross book number 31 doesn’t disappoint! This one is fast-paced, and really features John Simpson in a rush to save the country from a looming threat. I appreciated that Patterson made politics approachable to the average person, of course taking literary license with what would and would not be feasible. If you like an action-driven plot, this may be the book for you! And while it’s obviously part of a bigger series, this one can stand alone as it’s own book (I’m an Alex Cross series newbie myself). Basically, Patterson has done it again and has put out another great book!

Cross down was a very enjoyable book to read. Having read a couple of books by James Patterson. I was very impressed by the way the characters came together and how much nonstop action there was in the story.

Awesome read

1.5 stars??

Pretty good read...got a little bogged down in the beginning but ended up being a good book.

Another classic Cross book with the focus on John Sampson which I enjoyed

Very entertaining!

Standard jp, always good