Likened to a "young Muhammad Ali," Alex Cross, the Porsche-driving profiler, doctor, detective, and father of two has seen his fair share of vicious killers. From a bloodthirsty butcher who came after his family (Cat and Mouse) to a devilish duo working cross-country (Kiss the Girls), Cross has managed to outmaneuver all of his enemies. Until he meets the Weasel.

A series of killings in the forgotten, crime-infested ghettos of southeast D.C. has sent Cross and his 6'9" 250-pound partner, John Sampson, in search of the "Jane Doe" killer. However, their racist, tyrannical boss George Pitman orders them to stay out of the southeast and investigate the high-profile murder of a wealthy white man. Cross already has suspicions that the murders are linked, but when Sampson's ex turns up in an abandoned southeast warehouse kicked to death, the two detectives carry on with their original investigation. Meanwhile, Cross's longtime love, Christine (Cat and Mouse), has taken prominence in his life, and it looks as if the two will finally get hitched--with one glitch: Cross puts everything he loves in jeopardy as he obsessively goes after the Weasel.

Akin to a slick Hollywood action flick, Pop Goes the Weasel doesn't have time for meaningful character development or thoughtful moral analysis. And it doesn't need to. Its winning formula is based on short scenes (chapters average about 3 pages), addictive plot progression, and mean dialogue: "Sampson sighed and said, 'I think her tongue is stapled inside the other girl. I'm pretty sure that's it, Alex. The Weasel stapled them together.' I looked at the two girls and shook my head. 'I don't think so. A staple, even a surgical one, would come apart on the tongue's surface.... Crazy glue would work." --Rebekah Warren

Likened to a "young Muhammad Ali," Alex Cross, the Porsche-driving profiler, doctor, detective, and father of two has seen his fair share of vicious killers. From a bloodthirsty butcher who came after his family (Cat and Mouse) to a devilish duo working cross-country (Kiss the Girls), Cross has managed to outmaneuver all of his enemies. Until he meets the Weasel. A series of killings in the forgotten, crime-infested ghettos of southeast D.C. has sent Cross and his 6'9" 250-pound partner, John Sampson, in search of the "Jane Doe" killer. However, their racist, tyrannical boss George Pitman orders them to stay out of the southeast and investigate the high-profile murder of a wealthy white man. Cross already has suspicions that the murders are linked, but when Sampson's ex turns up in an abandoned southeast warehouse kicked to death, the two detectives carry on with their original investigation. Meanwhile, Cross's longtime love, Christine (Cat and Mouse), has taken prominence in his life, and it looks as if the two will finally get hitched--with one glitch: Cross puts everything he loves in jeopardy as he obsessively goes after the Weasel. Akin to a slick Hollywood action flick, Pop Goes the Weasel doesn't have time for meaningful character development or thoughtful moral analysis. And it doesn't need to. Its winning formula is based on short scenes (chapters average about 3 pages), addictive plot progression, and mean dialogue: "Sampson sighed and said, 'I think her tongue is stapled inside the other girl. I'm pretty sure that's it, Alex. The Weasel stapled them together.' I looked at the two girls and shook my head. 'I don't think so. A staple, even a surgical one, would come apart on the tongue's surface.... Crazy glue would work."--Rebekah Warren

Things are looking great for Alex Cross. He is in love with a very special woman, and even a series of ghastly murders he's investigating can't diminish his happiness. Cross's pursuit of the killer quickly produces a suspect-a British diplomat named Geoffrey Shaffer. However, proving that Shaffer is the murderer is a difficult challenge. The diplomat engages in a brilliant series of surprising countermoves, in court and out, and Cross and his fiancee become the targets of a deadly cabal of killers masterminded by Shaffer.Pop Goes the Weasel is James Patterson at the peak of his power. It's his most dynamic and powerful psychological thriller to date. Here is a villain no reader will forget, a love story of great tenderness, and a plot of relentless suspense and heart-pounding pace.

Once again, Patterson knocks it home with another great book. I really enjoyed this fast paced page turner. It was almost difficult for to not look forward in the book to see how things were going to turn out. The plot and the character development in this book is amazing.

To sum up with out spoiling, Cross is on the hunt again for a killer who is playing a game called the Four Horseman. The killer calls himself Death and is quite bi-polar to say the least. The twists and turn were great. I was a little concerned when half way through the book turned in to a Law and Order type of feel, but have no fear Patterson made to keep the thrill alive throughout the duration.

Once again, another fun read. Also, some people seem to mistake the order of the books. Its helpful (maybe not completely necessary) to read the Cross series in a particular order. Here is a link to a List i put together, hope you find it helpful.

http://www.amazon.com/Alex-Cross-Series-In-Order-James-Patterson/lm/RPDN9G1NBTS3Q/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full

Like the previous 4 books in the Cross series, this Kindle edition must have been converted using character recognition scanning software, because it is riddled with the kind of typos you get that way, (e.g. "n" instead of "r" and vice versa etc.) This book is particularly bad. Usually it is just annoying, but a few times I had to re-read the sentence to figure out what it what supposed to say. (Doesn't anyone edit/proof these things-)

As for the novel itself, I'm a bit tired of the cute kiddies and grandma; will probably have to take a break before deciding whether to go on with the series.

I also agree with other reviewers that the ending was a bust, scarcely believable and too much of a teaser for the next in the series. These are not stand-alone novels. (Incidentally, I was intoduced to Alex Cross with the recent "Double Cross" volume, and maybe I'm a bit dense, but it took me half the book to tumble to the fact that Cross is African American. You need to read them in order.)

After working my way through the Women's Murder Club series and the first 5 of Alex Cross, I rank Patterson (and his et al. co-authors) as a mystery/thriller "mill" that produces a modestly entertaining read for those times when you're either desperate for a one night "junk" book, or waiting for the next really good read from the many outstanding authors.

I read Kiss the Girs, a serial killer. Then Spider, aha, another serial killer. Now Pop Goes the Weasel, well he popped and we got that krap all over us. This book is for those who have a choice, Nancy Drew or Pop Goes the Weasel. Patterson uses quantity instead of quality. Forget this one.

This is a great book, fast read. Thanks again James Patterson, and thank you Amazon for a good price and your usual fast shipping

I skipped most pages of this book and I dont' feel like I missed anything. The weasel would kill someone and that would be that, no character development of the victim. I'm done reading the Alex Cross novels. Lifeguard was great, you would have thought a different author wrote it.