The Postcard Killers

It took me no time at all as the characters, locations, and plot drew me in. Very Satisfying read all the way through!

When I read the "free preview" of this book (you can see my old review below) I gave this book four stars. The free preview provided the first 100 or so pages; what turned out to be the most interesting part of the book. The quality of the writing, and the suspense, ebbs and flows substantially throughout the book.The premise of the book is quite interesting: a couple is traveling through Europe murdering a couple in famous cities. Before they commit each murder they send a post-card to a local crime reporter, and after the murder is completed they send pictures of the murder to that same reporter. This is how the authors bring in one of the two main characters: Dessie. Dessie is the crime reporter who receives the post-card in Sweden, thus bringing her in to the center of the action. However, Dessie is not a common crime beat reporter: she is writing her Ph.D. on the social ramifications and systems of petty thieves, which assists her throughout the book. The second main character is Jacob Kannon, who has has personal reasons for chasing the murderers, and will go to almost any extent to find them.The book is entertaining, however, it is horribly cliched. I don't want to give away any of the substantial elements of the plot, but you have the rough and dirty cop, willing to do anything to achieve his ways (who, of course, is a better cop than anyone else around him); the inevitable tension that arises between the main male character and the main female character; and the "I'll have to do it on my own" mentality of the hero. The only original portion of the story is the motivation of the killers, which is indeed quite interesting and alone keeps the book (and the reader) moving along. There is substantially more, but I would have to reveal actual events to relate those cliches. Not only is the plot itself cliched, and frankly very formulaic, but the dialogue is often cliched and juvenile. Take this quote from a moderately intense emotional moment:"You're pretty cool," he said in a quiet voice."You're pretty weird," she said. "Do you know that?"Much of the dialogue is similarly formulaic and un-lifelike. However, despite the formulaic nature and some of the more stilted writing, the book is pretty entertaining. The book would be fun to read by the beach of pool on a Saturday, finishing off the remainder too late at night to discover the ending.A note to Kindle owners: The price is awfully high for the kindle edition, and I probably would not have purchased this book if I had not been hooked by the free preview that is available.++++++++++++++++++++++++++++Review of Free Preview Below++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++"Elevator," Sylvia said. "I'm tired. Murder is hard work, darling."And so begins the latest thriller from James Patterson. This preview contains, roughly, the first 100 pages of the book, introducing the reader to all the main characters: Jacob Kannon, a NYPD Detective chasing two international killers through Europe for personal reasons. Dessie, a small time crime reporter who is suddenly and unexpectedly thrown in to the middle of the case on the arrival of a mysterious post-card. And, of course, the killers, who travel from European country to European country, seeking out new victims.The book is fast-paced, entertaining, and makes for a good "stay up too late trying to finish just one more chapter" book. It is certainly not sophisticated literature or Agatha Christie-style mystery, but I certainly enjoyed the thus-revealed story. As long as you are just looking for a "fun-read," this book should suffice.I found the characters compelling for the most part. The killers motives have yet to be revealed in this preview, and so at times it is difficult to understand the premise for any of their actions; but, I suppose, this is true of most killers!This preview has certainly done its job: I eagerly await the full release of the book in 10 days.

I had never read a single one of James Patterson's books until I ran across Postcard Killers. What drew me in most of all was the name followed by the cover. When you hear Postcard Killers, you cannot help but wonder what exactly the author means by that. I was curious to find out, but I waited. If I have never heard of an author, I usually wait until I receive a gift card before I will purchase the book. I didn't have to wait long, and I was thankful for that.This book was amazing and I have no idea why it has so many bad reviews. I fell in love with it and with Patterson's work. Postcard Killers is an amazing thriller with plenty of twists and turns. Patterson introduces you to the idea of horrific murders happening all over Europe and the killer's mark are different postcards that they mail in to officials. Can you imagine the frustration of trying to find the killers when they are hopscotching all over the world?You have two main characters: Jacob, a cop from NYC who has suffered a loss at the hands of the postcard killers, and Dessie, a reporter who is unknowingly pulled into the postcard killers game by becoming their 'confident' of sorts. They send her postcards and contact her and nobody, not even Dessie herself, can understand why. This sends her roller coaster of a life into a new sort of hell as she struggles to help put an end to the bloody massacres happening across Europe. It isn't easy, though, when you have a hot-headed American who easily loses his temper when people aren't cooperating. Can you blame him, though? He is spending all his time, effort, and resources into hunting down the ones who took something precious from him! He can't help it if he has to skip a bath or two along the way.Hello! That's why they make Febreeze, people!The Killers...I don't want to say too much just in case someone is reading my review as a deciding factor for purchasing; however, I fell in love with the idea of these killers. They are perfect guinea pigs for any psychology class to dissect and put right back together. Their way of thinking and operating is so twisted that you can hardly believe it when you find out who they really are...dun dun dunnnnnnI love the plot and I love the making of this book; however, I will agree with some of the other reviewers by noting that there was a bit of repetition going on during the story; however, Dessie and Jacob are not the only characters! There are others and I love how Patterson gives them life, meaning, and a personality to boot, including Dessie's ex, an official assigned to the most recent case of the most recent Postcard Killer murders, one who isn't ready to let go of her ex-lover completely.The only other thing I would like to note is not solely reflective of this book. I have noticed it in EVERY James Patterson book. His chapters are 2-3 pages long at the max, and that just really annoys me. This is not a reflection on the book, just Patterson's style, which is why this book still receives 5 stars from me. The author receives 3.5 because those 2-3 pages worth of chapters just really bug me completely.Other than that, this book is AMAZING!I hope you enjoy it as much, if not more so, than I did....Happy Reading!

Como preview do enredo é bastante bom. Praticamente é possível ler quase 1/3 do livro eu acho. Eu penso que o enredo é bastante similar a outros casos de serial killers. Pude aprender algumas expressões novas de inglês. Como tenho outros livros não vou adquirir o resto agora, mas certamente voltarei para ver como terminará esta caçada.

Art has told the story of men through the centuries and it did it again in this book where several famous galleries in Europe were visited. The paintings morphed into the work of two artists, though several belonged to the art movement. Cubism was an art movement, this was murder.

Good characterisation. Interesting plot. Bit too fantastical. Ending could have been better. Overall a one time read for sure. Cheers

This was a typical nail biter. Just when you think you have it figured out there is another twist or turn. Exciting right to the explosive conclusion. I learned a lot about Sweden and Finland as well.

So richtig ekelhaft was da passiert. Sehr nachvollziehbar die Verzweiflung der Ermittler an einer Verwaltung die Logik nicht kennt und schwerfällig die Erkenntnisse der Detektive boykottiert. Insgesamt gut.