THE 18th ABDUCTION by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

THE 18th ABDUCTION

by

James Patterson

& Maxine Paetro

            The 18th Abduction, the latest installment in James Patterson’s Women’s Murder Club series, begins at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague with the impending prosecution of war criminal Slobodan Petrovic. It quickly flashes back to five years earlier, when Lindsay Boxer is investigating the disappearance of three school teachers. At this same time, her husband, Joe Molinari, meets Anna Sotovina and becomes involved in an investigation into crimes allegedly committed by Petrovic in San Francisco. And, of course, their cases dovetail.

            Most of the book takes place in this flashback to five years earlier, and I found this to be troubling. I was left feeling like I found a book from earlier in the series that I had missed. I do not like the fact that Patterson has now gone back and added to, or modified, Lindsay’s and Joe’s backstories. Not all of what has been added fits with my recollection of the history of either character.

            The parts of The 18th Abduction pertaining to the ICC and war criminals being set free are interesting. However, using one continual flashback as the vehicle for this feels lazy and does not work for me. I continue reading the Women’s Murder Club series as I like the characters and the idea behind the club, and I will likely read The 19th Christmas, the next book in the series. Nonetheless, I am not enamored with the latest, eighteenth, installment.