Title: The 19th Christmas
Author: James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
Pages: 368
Genre: suspense, mystery, detective
Is this part of a series? Yes #19 of The Women’s Murder Club.
Published: October 7th, 2019
Buy it here.
Just because it’s Christmas time doesn’t mean crime will slow down, and so neither can Lyndsay Boxer. When she and her partner, Rich Conklin, nab a thief they are pulled into a crazed story. Someone is planning something huge- no one knows who or what, but it’s going to be insane. All they have are leads and false starts… and the name Loman. This is a name whispered through the underworld. Good at what he does, whip smart and heartless, this man is linked to several past crimes; but no one has ever seen him. Chasing leads, the entire force feels like they’re running in circles waiting for Loman’s end game…. Because how can you stop a crime when you don’t know what’s going to happen?
At the same time Cindy has been given a piece for the paper talking about what different cultures do for the holidays in town. What should be a fluffy, feel good piece goes sideways when she’s approached by a woman who claims her husband is in prison, wrongfully accused of murder and has been incarcerated for two years. Can this be believed? It’s going to take all her investigative skills and some good friends to get to the bottom of this one.
I have always had a soft spot for Patterson’s longer running series. Lyndsay and her crew are among my favorite characters and I love being able to revisit them. The plot here was interesting. Seriously, how do you stop an unknown crime or move against a man that’s basically a ghost in the underworld? How do you decide which of a dozen tips are legitimate? Who’s word do you trust? I could feel the team’s pain and frustration, as well as the toll it was taking on their relationships. I also got time with the criminals, getting insight into their minds, which I always enjoy.
The use of several different narratives through the book worked really well and the authors were able to piece together a concise story- well written with a good pace to it. It was easy to follow and allowed for better insight into characters. I enjoyed the fact that we got to spend more time with Yuki and Cindy this time around, as well as getting a bit of time with Rich. For me, this is a four star book. 
On the adult content scale, there’s language and violence. I would give it a seven, I think. This one is definitely geared toward adults. 
The book is out! Have you read it?
This one was a difficult one for me to get into. Like you, the Women’s Murder Club Is one of my favorite book series… so I don’t want to disparage it too much.
Thanks for putting in your effort of reading this book. I appreciate that! 👌
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Yeah, I thought there were others in the series that were better, but I really liked this one.
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