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Step On a Crack | 
| Authors: James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge
Publisher: Vision
Category: Book
List Price: $9.99
Buy Used: $0.01
You Save: $9.98 (100%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  185 reviews
Sales Rank: 125810
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 400
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.4 x 4.2 x 1.2
ISBN: 0446199273
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780446199278
ASIN: 0446199273
Publication Date: June 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Help save a tree. Buy all your used books from Green Earth Books. Read -> Recycle -> Reuse!
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Product Description
During a state funeral for a beloved former First Lady in New York City's largest cathedral, the unthinkable occurs. Armed men disguised as monks seize the church and seal themselves inside, along with more than one hundred of the most powerful people in America. The captives include world leaders, actors, TV stars, athletes, and politicians, and the kidnappers are armed with enough C4 explosives to blow a crater in the middle of Manhattan.
NYPD officer Michael Bennett is pulled into the standoff as lead negotiator. Despite the escalating danger, Michael faces an even more terrifying crisis at home. His wife has been diagnosed with a devastating disease, and Michael faces the prospect of losing the love of his life and having to raise their ten children alone. With his own life teetering and the lives of thousands suddenly his responsibility, Michael struggles to diffuse the tense situation fast. Yet the kidnappers' moves are impossible to predict, and they block every attempt to break into the cathedralmost as if they are privy to their deliberations.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 180 more reviews...
 Step On A Crack October 9, 2008
I will grit my teeth and give this novel a 2 star based on the rules of reviewing. However, the story is unbelievable and not too compelling.
Patterson introduces his new detective, Michael Bennett with 10 children. Ouch. Plus, his wife is sick and dying of cancer and this is the most "moving" part of the book. The story seems real here and is touching.
I was disappointed because I saw the ending before it was revealed, one of my pet peeves. Placing my opinion to the side, you have a funeral for the former First Lady. This is part of a terrorist plot. The terrorists uses the death of the former First Lady to carry out their plot to extort lots of money from the rich. They hold the richer celebs hostage, releasing the somewhat less richer celebs.
It's obvious that the terroists will make a perfect escape, leaving you nowhere to turn to wonder. Michael Bennett sure does take a lot of breaks while a serious hostage situation is taking place, but...he does have to go see his wife. It's unbelievable that he would be able to leave the crime scene at the particular times that he does though.
Patterson introduces the "Neat Man." I am shocked to think that this is the only name he can come up with, but, this is what the man is revealed as. It's obvious that the "Neat Man" is a cop and helping and the terrorists, but poor Michael Bennett has not figured this out yet.
After a long, drawn out process, the terrorists do in fact escape. This leads to a chase and in the end, guess what? Michael Bennett gets the man and the "Neat Man." This is very predictable in Patterson's novels and I would like to see for once - that maybe some of the bad guys could get away. Leaving more room for more series and plus, leaving the reader shocked a little.
 Awful! October 1, 2008
I picked this book from the bookshelf of an apartment we were renting in Europe because it was the only one in English and I was out of reading material.
What dreck! People actually read this kind of stuff and consider it to be good writing? Short chapters and very simplistic writing - perhaps sixth-grade level.
In my future travels, I will throw an extra book or two into my luggage so I am never this desperate again...
 thin, anaemic, malnourished, under-developed etc October 1, 2008
The title sums it up. It shows some promise as an idea but the plot, characters, conflict and resolution are all massively under-developed. It all seems to happen so quickly that nothing is examined in any detail and its all over almost before it has begun. As others have mentioned, it seems to read a bit like a screenplay. There are really two stories interwoven, one intensely personal, the other all business, but neither is very well developed which makes the personal story seem tacked on, unnecessary and a cheap manipulative move. The aspect that is least satisfying however is that the solution comes all too easily. Perhaps this is what happens in most police-work (and thank goodness for that) but after the set-up where the baddies are supposed to be super organised and smart, planning every detail, it seems all too simple.
In all, it is an interesting idea and a quick, easy read - but it leaves the reader unsatisfied and with a bit of an unpleasant aftertaste.
I Liked It, But.... September 26, 2008
I Thought There Was Alot Of Excitement In This Book And I Went Through It With Ease. It Is Kind Of Hard To Believe That A Man, Micheal Bennett, With 10 Kids And A Dying Wife Would Be Working Such A High Powered Situation. But I'll Grant That One To Mr. Pattersons Sensationalism. The Story Of The First Ladys Murder And The Taking Of Hostages At Her Funeral Was Interesting. The High Profile Hostages Rivaled Alot Of Current Stars. Being A Retired NYS Corrections Officer At Sing Sing Correctional I Am Flattered That The Hostage Takers Were NYS Correction Officers. But I Do Have A Few Facts To Add, There Is No Such Thing As A Shift Foreman. Police Special Units Would Not Be Utilized To Quell A Disturbance In A NYS Prison, Anybody Remember Attica? Corrections Has CERT(Corrections Emergency Response Team) For That. The Setup Of A Block(The Most Populated Housing Block In The World) Is Incorrect. However I Did Like The Book And Look Forward To Another With Micheal Bennett.
 I like the main character in this book! September 15, 2008
I don't understand why so many people are trashing the title character simply because he has 10 kids. Is that common? No. Possible? Yes! I have a neighbor with 6 kids, who's always volunteering to babysit others, she loves kids. But, I digress. I thought this was a very good read, and I really liked the hero...I hope to see him re-appear in more books. No, he's not Alex Cross, but Alex Cross has begun to grow a bit stale if you ask me. I love the Alex Cross books, but I just don't think there's much more "new" material that he can see or do; we've seen it all. I imagine Patterson is a bit weary of coming up with new, fresh Alex Cross stories.
This book got my interest & kept it throughout! I finished the book in 2 sittings, and am looking forward to the next book!
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