Hide and Seek By James Patterson

                                                    

I agree I did a mistake when I picked "Hide and Seek" thinking that it was an Alex Cross novel. One page into the book and I realized my mistake. But being the adamant, voracious reader that I am, I ploughed on despite my disappointment.

The first chapter has the main character of the book, Maggie Bradford, murdering her husband Philip. Maggie kills him in self-defense to protect herself and her daughter Jennie- that’s right, Philip is an abusive husband, so he deserved to be shot (Don’t roll your eyes and ask me which husband does not). As the story moves on, we get to know that Maggie has killed not one but two of her husbands. Maggie is a singer and with the help of her friend Barry Kahn, she becomes a celebrity singer with a cult status, adored and loved by everyone. Her second husband, Will Shepherd is a famous football player. But when he loses an important goal for a crucial match, his career goes kaput and he's reduced to being Mr. Maggie Bradford. We also come to know that Maggie had a third lover called Patrick Malley with whom she had a son, Allie. The last few chapters reveal how Maggie proves that she is a victim and not the murderess in the death of her husband, Will.

Any James Patterson book generates a high level of expectation, since most of his books have been part of the bestseller list for months. This book from any other author would have been good, but coming from Patterson- this is just mediocre. Maggie's character is made out to be this cool, successful and loveable person. But except for her interactions with her kids and her buddy, Barry, her character comes out cold and not well-defined. The climax is typical James Patterson but otherwise the whole book has a kind of Sidney Sheldon-ish feel to it. I will go with 3 out of 5 for "Hide and Seek" by James Patterson.