Murder Games

Serial Killers.

We have all heard about them.

They need for notoriety and the belief that they will be the greatest in the history of murderers. They all have their own mode of operation or MO, and some prefer their methods over what others might choose. For some it is personal. For others simply a way to mete out their own satisfaction for justice in a system that seems to favor criminals while the guilty go free on technicalities. There are also two types of serial killers, those who want to get caught and those who really want to get caught. Some just are seeking publicity and others want to be famous. In the end though, even the very best serial killers make stupid mistakes that get them caught when they aren't even looking.

Enter The Dealer or at least that is the name that the media, the Mayor and the police detectives are labeling the latest serial killer to land on New York City's streets just in the midst of a critical election year so everyone is using this to their own political agenda and the focus is on Dr. Dylan Reinhart, a well known author and college professor who is what some might call the expert on criminal behavior. Perhaps it is the Dealer's decision to invite Dylan into his sick games as the body counts begin to rise and with each is left a cryptic card, one of 52 from a standard deck of playing cards. Only these cards are a message, one that will give a clue to who the next victim is, beginning with Jared Loudin who ran a large hedge fund. It was there that the games began.

It will take a true master who gain access into a serial killer's thought process and perhaps that is why Dylan is chosen. Since it has been somewhat of a personal invitation, he is willing to place his bets he can solve this crime before too many cards have been dealt from the deck. With pressure from the Mayor's office and working with Detective Elizabeth Needham, they will begin the race against a stacked deck to solve this killer's identity. Will he be able to convince the Dealer to lay down his cards or will all bets be off and possibly have his own hands to deal instead.

I received Murder Games by James Patterson and Howard Roughan compliments of Little Brown and Company, a division of Hachette Book Group. In accordance with the new FTC Guidelines for blogging and endorsements, you should assume that every book reviewed here at Reviews From The Heart was provided to the reviewer by the publisher, media group or the author for free and were received, unless specified otherwise. This is another exceptional novel for fans of James Patterson. I mean for fans of anything like Criminal Minds, CSI or any other criminal murder mystery, then you would probable love this novel. It was the idea of the playing cards being left at each of the murders that had me interested. I do need to caution readers about a couple of things. It is a murder mystery so the crime scenes are there but not to graphic. There is some strong language but most of it is implied meaning the words are used with symbols representing the actual words. Thus implied. The main character Dr. Dylan Reinhart is married to his domestic partner Tracy and they are attempting to adopt a child from Africa. Thus another need for disclosure for those that might from on that content. Since book reviews are slated to offer a peek at what's really inside, thus my need for full disclosure on what you will find inside. That being said, I would rate this novel a 4 out of 5 stars in my opinion. Readers also get a sneak peek at his next novel, The Store, at the conclusion of this novel.

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Murder Games by James Patterson and Howard Roughan

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