Don't Blink - Softcover

Patterson, James; Roughan, Howard

Softcover

ISBN 10: 044656642X ISBN 13: 9780446566421

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing, 2010

Synopsis

New York's Lombardo's Steak House is famous for three reasons - the menu, the clientele, and now the gruesome murder of an infamous mob lawyer. Effortlessly, the assassin slips through the police's fingers, and his absence sparks a blaze of accusations about who ordered the hit.

Seated at a nearby table, reporter Nick Daniels is conducting a once-in-a-lifetime interview with a legendary baseball bad-boy. Shocked and shaken, he doesn't realise that he's accidentally captured a key piece of evidence. Ensnared in the city's most sensational crime in years, Nick investigates for a story of his own. Back off - or die - is the clear message as he closes in on the facts. Heedless, and perhaps in love, Nick endures humiliation, threats, violence, and worse in a thriller that overturns every expectation and finishes with the kind of flourish only James Patterson knows.

About this title

Review

Don’t Blink is a portmanteau novel, jointly credited to James Patterson and (in smaller font on the jacket) the lesser-known Howard Roughan. And while Patterson has long been one of the most world’s popular thriller writers, there are those who have expressed doubts about his joint writing ventures with other writers such as Andrew Gross. Surely, they argued, we want our Patterson unadulterated, not filtered through the pen of another author? However, the books by Patterson and his various partners have largely succeeded in hitting the bestseller charts as firmly as Paterson's solo efforts; and it’s more than likely that this new book will repeat that success.

This is a Mafia epic, and will inevitably invite comparison with Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, though it’s a different approach to the subject. While Lombardo’s Steak House in New York is celebrated for its food, it’s also notorious for a less salubrious reason: the savage killing of a corrupt lawyer for the Organisation. The killer escapes without leaving a trace, and speculation about his possible employer are rife. At the murder, reporter Nick Daniels was present, interviewing a sports personality at another table. Without realising it, Nick is the recipient of an important piece of information -- but as he becomes further embroiled in the crime and its investigation, he find his own life is on the line -- and the fact that he has fallen in love further complicates an already fraught situation.

While some James Patterson fans might have preferred another Alex Cross novel (or something in one of Patterson's alternate Women’s Murder Club series), there's no denying that Patterson and his less celebrated co-writer (who may have done most of the heavy lifting here) do ensure that we keep turning the pages very swiftly. Patterson's famously cut-to the bone, super-brief chapters are well in evidence, further ensuring that momentum is the name of the game here. --Barry Forshaw

Review

"The prolific Patterson seems unstoppable."
-- USA Today

"The prolific Patterson seems unstoppable."
"USA Today""

"An action-packed, edge-of-your-seat thriller . . . There are twists and turns to the very end that kept my eyes riveted to the pages . . . you won't want to shut your eyes or put the book down until it's finished."--BestsellersWorld.com

"Thrill-a-minute . . . twists and turns . . . another winner for Patterson and Roughan."--BookReporter.com

"Every year, I look forward to Patterson's new releases. DON'T BLINK was no exception . . . There's just something about reading a James Patterson book."--MeMyBookandtheCouch2.wordpress.com

"The prolific Patterson seems unstoppable."
--USA Today

"A page-turner that's perfect for killing an afternoon."--ReflectionswithCoffee.com

Edition details

• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 044656642X
• ISBN 13: 9780446566421
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 384