Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Review: Sail by James Patterson

The latest book by James Patterson, Sail, is another good one! As with most of the James Patterson books I've read, it is very plot driven, with some character development but not much. This formula makes for a quick, interesting read - kind of like heavy 'mind candy'. One difference in this book is that the 'whodunit' is not unknown, but rather what actually happens and how the story unfolds is the adventure.

Katherine Dunne and her three children have not been much of a family since her husband/their dad died a few years ago when sailing with his mistress. Katherine decides to go on a two month sailing trip with the children and her former brother-in-law, Jake, to bring them all together. The adventure begins with Jake checking out the boat that hasn't been used since his brother's death. While next to him at the marina, the 'accident man' is watching to be sure all goes according to plan - meaning the family all arrives and takes off. Between flooding, some fires, and sharks, the family has quite an adventure. While the family is experiencing what should be their deaths, the 'accident man' and his client are enjoying life in the city.

I think while this is a good book as are all of James Patterson's, it did leave me wanting a bit more. He's definitely a good writer who doesn't write bad books, but I think this one could have had a bit more character development, a bit more suspense and it would have been an excellent book. If you are a Patterson fan, you will enjoy it. If you've not read one of his before, I suggest you skip this one for now.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

2 comments:

Traci said...

I think I got in sort of a Patterson rut a year or so back. I read all the Alex Cross novels and the Women's Murder Club series up to that point, and it started to feel like I was just reading the same book over and over again. That or like in the 5th book of the WMC, the writing started to feel really careless. At some point, I am sure I'll go back to him, but I don't think I'll read this one just yet.

Anonymous said...

You think so? I just loved this book. Of course, I don't have much to compare to since I have recently become a fan.