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Private #5
Berlin
Mattie Engel is one of the rising stars at Private Berlin, and believes she’s seen the worst of people in her previous life with the Berlin police force. That is until Chris, her colleague – and until recently, her fiancé – is found dead, brutally murdered in an old slaughterhouse outside the city.
The slaughterhouse is filled with bodies. But just as Private begin their investigations, the building explodes, wiping out all evidence of the crimes, and nearly killing Mattie and her team.
Mattie soon realises that a masked killer is picking off Chris’s childhood friends, one by one, and destroying the trail. But who wants the past buried so badly? What is the truth about that slaughterhouse? And will Mattie become the killer’s next victim?
The slaughterhouse is filled with bodies. But just as Private begin their investigations, the building explodes, wiping out all evidence of the crimes, and nearly killing Mattie and her team.
Mattie soon realises that a masked killer is picking off Chris’s childhood friends, one by one, and destroying the trail. But who wants the past buried so badly? What is the truth about that slaughterhouse? And will Mattie become the killer’s next victim?
496 pages, Paperback
First published January 21, 2013
1576 people are currently reading
9688 people want to read
About the author
James Patterson
955 books355k followersOfficial US Site
Official UK Site
JIMMY Patterson Books
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James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, and Michael Crichton, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.
Official UK Site
JIMMY Patterson Books
ReadKiddoRead
James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, and Michael Crichton, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,302 reviews
December 23, 2023
Actually this one was a very good James Patterson (& Mark Sullivan) mystery thriller! This series returned back to form with this post-Cold War thriller set in Berlin with the German Private team; a real page turner as ever. 7 out of 12, Three Star read.
2014 read
2014 read
October 10, 2016
wow, another intense book by James Patterson. Falk is a psycho!!! I really hope nothing like this ever happened in real life, so horrific. I did love the very end when Mattie was talking to Burkhart about when he told her to fight and that he loved her over the Bluetooth ear peice in the orphanage, it was really cute.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 2, 2013
I have read all the books in this series and while I thought the story was ok it seemed to be a different style and not in sync with the other books. Maybe its because Patterson uses so many co authors. Two of the other Jack Morgan books were written with Maxine Paetro where this one was Mark Sullivan.
Personally I do feel a little cheated with the mass production of James Patterson books with a team of writers as you are never quite sure how much comes from the man himself. Maybe this is why I have steadily changed my opinion of him as I was a massive fan in the beginning.
That said the story is good with lots of action.
Personally I do feel a little cheated with the mass production of James Patterson books with a team of writers as you are never quite sure how much comes from the man himself. Maybe this is why I have steadily changed my opinion of him as I was a massive fan in the beginning.
That said the story is good with lots of action.
March 20, 2013
On the whole, I enjoyed reading this rather dark, suspense tale. I liked the heroine, Mattie, and liked the journey of her relationship with Burkhart.
Where the story line lost it, for me, was the ending.
SPOILER ALERT FOR THE ENDING!!
The author used every worn out cliched twist in the ending. First, the protagonist (yawn) goes after her young son. Of course, they anticipated this but not well enough. The boy, son of a woman in the protection business, got in the car with a man claiming his aunt was hurt and he would take the boy to him and his mother. (hard to believe. The kid is nine and described as smart)When it's finally realized the boy is missing, they go off to find the killer without backup. Another yawn. And, expectedly, Burkhart arranges to wait in the distance, and also (no big surprise) the killer anticipates it and shoots him.
Although the results of all this is a rather satisfying ending, some of the above would have made me give up on the book had I not wanted to find out what happened to Burkhart and Mattie in the end.
I'd recommend reading this book, unless, like me, you read a lot of books in this genre in which case the ending might hit you the way it did me.
Where the story line lost it, for me, was the ending.
SPOILER ALERT FOR THE ENDING!!
The author used every worn out cliched twist in the ending. First, the protagonist (yawn) goes after her young son. Of course, they anticipated this but not well enough. The boy, son of a woman in the protection business, got in the car with a man claiming his aunt was hurt and he would take the boy to him and his mother. (hard to believe. The kid is nine and described as smart)When it's finally realized the boy is missing, they go off to find the killer without backup. Another yawn. And, expectedly, Burkhart arranges to wait in the distance, and also (no big surprise) the killer anticipates it and shoots him.
Although the results of all this is a rather satisfying ending, some of the above would have made me give up on the book had I not wanted to find out what happened to Burkhart and Mattie in the end.
I'd recommend reading this book, unless, like me, you read a lot of books in this genre in which case the ending might hit you the way it did me.
August 13, 2019
i found it quite boring, not really drawn into it as a thriller. a bit artificial. well...not good
June 19, 2022
Patterson at his best! Despite co-writing the books with other authors he keeps his style... :) I've binge read it! :)
Dobar prevod, nemam zamerki :)
Dobar prevod, nemam zamerki :)
April 3, 2013
I received this book as a gift, and as such wasn't completely aware it was part of a series. There's no real reference to being part of a series on the cover.
The story is set in modern Germany, and involves events which took place in East Germany before reunification.
I thought with the contextual setting involving East Germany, the Stasi and a mysterious slaughterhouse with many secrets, that there was a lot of potential for a really great novel. However, I can't help but feel it was squandered at the altar of fast profit - these novels seem to be being churned out ever more quickly. I also couldn't help but note that despite being 431 pages it's a very quick read, then when you realise the font is large, double spaced with large margins it really isn't as large as it appears - just padded.
I was also disappointed with the lack of description as to what 'Private Berlin' is. Yes, one eventually draws the conclusion it's some form of private investigation company yet I'm confused as to why they have corporate jets & forensic labs. A little introduction paragraph to cover off the non-series readers wouldn't have gone astray.
Overall, an average but entertaining read. Doesn't excel, doesn't add anything to the genre, but it will fill your time in.
The story is set in modern Germany, and involves events which took place in East Germany before reunification.
I thought with the contextual setting involving East Germany, the Stasi and a mysterious slaughterhouse with many secrets, that there was a lot of potential for a really great novel. However, I can't help but feel it was squandered at the altar of fast profit - these novels seem to be being churned out ever more quickly. I also couldn't help but note that despite being 431 pages it's a very quick read, then when you realise the font is large, double spaced with large margins it really isn't as large as it appears - just padded.
I was also disappointed with the lack of description as to what 'Private Berlin' is. Yes, one eventually draws the conclusion it's some form of private investigation company yet I'm confused as to why they have corporate jets & forensic labs. A little introduction paragraph to cover off the non-series readers wouldn't have gone astray.
Overall, an average but entertaining read. Doesn't excel, doesn't add anything to the genre, but it will fill your time in.
July 21, 2024
A bit slow to start but once I hit half way I got through it really quickly.
January 14, 2016
Being an avid James Patterson fan and having just read the last lines of this book I have to put my thoughts down quickly. I have to say this is by far the BEST BEST book I've read. The historical information was incredible, gut-wrenching and very informative, and has made me very curious about what actually went on when Berlin was divided and activities in East Berlin, actions of the German secret services, etc as horrific as they sound.
So, for anyone who really wants to read a page-turner full of suspense, twists and turns, this is it. 5 stars all the way! Loved it, loved it. Didn't love all the cruelty portrayed therein, however that makes for a good thriller!! Well done, James Patterson, hope we get more like this.
So, for anyone who really wants to read a page-turner full of suspense, twists and turns, this is it. 5 stars all the way! Loved it, loved it. Didn't love all the cruelty portrayed therein, however that makes for a good thriller!! Well done, James Patterson, hope we get more like this.
February 14, 2018
So glad this one was better than Private London which was a miss for me. The characters and the plots in this books are so entertaining. Complete redemption after Private London. This is one of my favorites so far in the Private Series. Hope for more books in the Berlin office!
My quick and simple overall: enjoyable characters and intriguing plots!
My quick and simple overall: enjoyable characters and intriguing plots!
March 1, 2013
In the newestPrivate readers are introduced to the team of investigators at another branch of the international agency. This time, the team is from Germany, and they find themselves investigating the disappearance of one of their own, Chris Schneider. His former girlfriend, Maddie Engel takes point on the investigation in the hopes of finding out what happened even as the local police seem quite reluctant to include her and her team as a part of the investigation.
Jack Morgan, the owner of Private who makes cameos in all of the novels in the series, arrives in Berlin to help and finds that besides the disappearance of Chris, there is also the case of a Brazilian soccer player who may or may not be throwing games to affect gambling results.
The true interest lies with Maddie, though, who partners up with bomb specialist Burkhardt, whom she seems to think is quite dim and worth little besides his muscles. Maddie finds her team being drawn deeper into a mystery of a serial murder who makes use of a slaughterhouse to dispose of the bodies, and the answers lie with the mysterious past of 6 young orphans who were shattered by the experiences that took their families decades earlier. Maddie can only hope she can find the answers as victims pile up and the murderer, known as the Invisible Man, tries to finish his list of targets before he is captured.
I really enjoyed this one. At first, some of the writing came across as quite awkward and even unrealistic in the way some of the characters spoke and behave, but that seemed to smooth out as the story started to really develop. Maddie is quite an interesting character and one of the few female detectives that seem to be a part of James Patterson's books. She is strong, good at her job, and a caring mother to a young boy. I would definitely be interested in more books that centered around this branch of Private.
Jack Morgan, the owner of Private who makes cameos in all of the novels in the series, arrives in Berlin to help and finds that besides the disappearance of Chris, there is also the case of a Brazilian soccer player who may or may not be throwing games to affect gambling results.
The true interest lies with Maddie, though, who partners up with bomb specialist Burkhardt, whom she seems to think is quite dim and worth little besides his muscles. Maddie finds her team being drawn deeper into a mystery of a serial murder who makes use of a slaughterhouse to dispose of the bodies, and the answers lie with the mysterious past of 6 young orphans who were shattered by the experiences that took their families decades earlier. Maddie can only hope she can find the answers as victims pile up and the murderer, known as the Invisible Man, tries to finish his list of targets before he is captured.
I really enjoyed this one. At first, some of the writing came across as quite awkward and even unrealistic in the way some of the characters spoke and behave, but that seemed to smooth out as the story started to really develop. Maddie is quite an interesting character and one of the few female detectives that seem to be a part of James Patterson's books. She is strong, good at her job, and a caring mother to a young boy. I would definitely be interested in more books that centered around this branch of Private.
August 9, 2016
I absolutely loved this book!!
I loved the setting, the characters, and the plot was phenomenal! It was so cool to see the modern setting but with a plot that took you back to the communist era in Berlin.
It was suspenseful and twisted and so so very good! I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!
I loved the setting, the characters, and the plot was phenomenal! It was so cool to see the modern setting but with a plot that took you back to the communist era in Berlin.
It was suspenseful and twisted and so so very good! I cannot wait to read the next book in the series!
May 30, 2013
Patterson redeems himself in this PRIVATE installment. While most others have been lugubrious and highly annoying, this one jumps off the page and keeps the reader wanting more. The story is nothing unusual, but the plot flows nicely and the characters are realistic. A tri-forked storyline converges just at the right moment to keep the reader guessing who might have murdered the fellow PRIVATE member, with time running out. With a jam-packed closing section, the reader WILL sacrifice a good night's sleep to finish this book. Told from two angles (a la Alex Cross series), the reader must piece together the story together as they flip from chapter to chapter. With a great culmination, Patterson may have redeemed past PRIVATE flops with this, the second European PRIVATE story.
I have a love/hate relationship with Patterson, as some will know from my past reviews. Patterson super-saturates the market with books and sells based on his name. Should he stick to some of his successful ones (Cross, WMC, Bennett), he would surely create quality over quantity and keep his readers happy. That said, who am I to say how Patterson chooses to brand himself? He is still rolling in the cash and making appearances to rooms full of fans. I wonder, unless that violates some contract, if he would ever stitch together a series using two or more of his protagonists in a spill-over mystery. I am sure they would sell well and really keep readers pulling his books off the shelf.
Well done, Mr. Patterson, for a positive blip on the PRIVATE radar. I was sure I would not have such glowing reviews for this series, but you proved me wrong. What’s next on the PRIVATE scene?
I have a love/hate relationship with Patterson, as some will know from my past reviews. Patterson super-saturates the market with books and sells based on his name. Should he stick to some of his successful ones (Cross, WMC, Bennett), he would surely create quality over quantity and keep his readers happy. That said, who am I to say how Patterson chooses to brand himself? He is still rolling in the cash and making appearances to rooms full of fans. I wonder, unless that violates some contract, if he would ever stitch together a series using two or more of his protagonists in a spill-over mystery. I am sure they would sell well and really keep readers pulling his books off the shelf.
Well done, Mr. Patterson, for a positive blip on the PRIVATE radar. I was sure I would not have such glowing reviews for this series, but you proved me wrong. What’s next on the PRIVATE scene?
December 10, 2012
Private is an international detective agency operated and owner by Jack Morgan in L.A. This new novel from James Patterson and Mark Sullivan is from the Berlin branch in Germany.
Chris Schneider has been waiting for someone for nearly 30 years since he was a child. Growing up in an orphanage he has a deep, dark secret that is now rising again and as a detective with Private Berlin he starts to investigate a very painful past. His investigations take him back to an abandoned slaughterhouse where he comes face to face with his past and The Invisible Man or The Mask.
Mathilde “Mattie” Engel is the ex-fiancé of fellow detective Chris Schneider. Once Chris is reported missing Mattie and Private Berlin launch their investigation to find him. Once the investigation gets underway and Chris’s body is found with lots more in the slaughterhouse the killer feels they are getting to close so blows it up along with all the evidence.
While Mattie is determined with the help of Jack Morgan and Private Berlin to find out about Chris’s past and catch his killer somebody is very busy erasing the past and killing Chris’s childhood friends.
Overall, a fast-paced, breath-taking read from the master of thriller writers. Your attention is grabbed from page 1 and doesn’t stop until the final page making it very hard to put down. A very impressive read with lots of tense situations, sub plots and twists and turns. If you haven’t read any James Patterson thrillers before or you are already a fan you will not be disappointed.
Rating: 5/5
Chris Schneider has been waiting for someone for nearly 30 years since he was a child. Growing up in an orphanage he has a deep, dark secret that is now rising again and as a detective with Private Berlin he starts to investigate a very painful past. His investigations take him back to an abandoned slaughterhouse where he comes face to face with his past and The Invisible Man or The Mask.
Mathilde “Mattie” Engel is the ex-fiancé of fellow detective Chris Schneider. Once Chris is reported missing Mattie and Private Berlin launch their investigation to find him. Once the investigation gets underway and Chris’s body is found with lots more in the slaughterhouse the killer feels they are getting to close so blows it up along with all the evidence.
While Mattie is determined with the help of Jack Morgan and Private Berlin to find out about Chris’s past and catch his killer somebody is very busy erasing the past and killing Chris’s childhood friends.
Overall, a fast-paced, breath-taking read from the master of thriller writers. Your attention is grabbed from page 1 and doesn’t stop until the final page making it very hard to put down. A very impressive read with lots of tense situations, sub plots and twists and turns. If you haven’t read any James Patterson thrillers before or you are already a fan you will not be disappointed.
Rating: 5/5
March 7, 2013
After the first chapter I thought this was written by a fourteen year old boy with a torture porn fetish. By the end of the book, i realised he must be slightly older - if only to have a the years to collect all those cliches and hack formulas (Actually he gets one star for writing "blown to smithereens" - I don't think I've ever encountered that phrase in print before!)
This was seriously one of the worst books I have read in a long while. I picked it up because it was on the New York Times best sellers list ... and the blurb said it was similar to "The girl with the dragon tattoo". Honestly I can't understand how something like this gets into print let alone becomes a best seller. There must be a lot of very silly people out there. Alas all of the above guarantees this trash will no doubt be made into a top rating Hollywood film about yet another serial killer. If you have more than one brain cell - avoid this nasty rubbish like the clap.
This was seriously one of the worst books I have read in a long while. I picked it up because it was on the New York Times best sellers list ... and the blurb said it was similar to "The girl with the dragon tattoo". Honestly I can't understand how something like this gets into print let alone becomes a best seller. There must be a lot of very silly people out there. Alas all of the above guarantees this trash will no doubt be made into a top rating Hollywood film about yet another serial killer. If you have more than one brain cell - avoid this nasty rubbish like the clap.
June 27, 2016
Honestly, having read all the other Private books before this one, I have to say that this was the one I was the least interested in. Something about the synopsis of this book made me think it was going to be boring, full of personal feelings of regret and loss and not a lot of gripping thriller action. I couldn't have been more wrong. This book was fantastic and easily Patterson's best of the series so far. I don't say that lightly though because you all know how much I loved the Olympics edition.
I loved the character of Mattie Engel; she was hard-hitting, ballsy while still having emotions and feelings about her ex-fiance, Chris. She didn't feel like a character you needed to pity and I feel like if she knew you pitied her, she'd probably punch you in the face. She knew what she wanted, she was an amazing mother and she just wanted to find out the mystery and determine who the bad guy was.
I will say, the slaughterhouse vibe and environment gives me the creeps. It always does though, no matter if it is in a book/film or anything else, if something has a setting of a slaughterhouse, I am immediately creeped out. I feel like that really helped in this book because the environment and the setting helped to create this sense of foreboding as soon as we learn of Chris's ending.
One thing which I am never sure about with Patterson's books, is the inclusion of the 'killer' talking about what they are doing and their reasoning. Often, it frustrates me because I almost don't want to know until the solution has been figured out by the main character. In this book though, the opposite was true; the killer was completely concealed but you got an insight into just how troubled they were. This amped up the tension and the apparent confusion as to whodunnit?
Overall this book was excellent and I would recommend it to anyone who has read any of the Private series and loved it. This book was well above the others and should be read by everyone.
I loved the character of Mattie Engel; she was hard-hitting, ballsy while still having emotions and feelings about her ex-fiance, Chris. She didn't feel like a character you needed to pity and I feel like if she knew you pitied her, she'd probably punch you in the face. She knew what she wanted, she was an amazing mother and she just wanted to find out the mystery and determine who the bad guy was.
I will say, the slaughterhouse vibe and environment gives me the creeps. It always does though, no matter if it is in a book/film or anything else, if something has a setting of a slaughterhouse, I am immediately creeped out. I feel like that really helped in this book because the environment and the setting helped to create this sense of foreboding as soon as we learn of Chris's ending.
One thing which I am never sure about with Patterson's books, is the inclusion of the 'killer' talking about what they are doing and their reasoning. Often, it frustrates me because I almost don't want to know until the solution has been figured out by the main character. In this book though, the opposite was true; the killer was completely concealed but you got an insight into just how troubled they were. This amped up the tension and the apparent confusion as to whodunnit?
Overall this book was excellent and I would recommend it to anyone who has read any of the Private series and loved it. This book was well above the others and should be read by everyone.
February 1, 2017
The writing style where the antagonist speaks in the first person is a style that is difficult when you are trying to support the protagonist and the supporting subplots. I had a hard time to follow this story and did not find it as involved as say Private #1 (with Morgan himself involved) or his other series of books.
James Patterson loves graphic to get you involved, but the start of the book had me feeling that if the whole first section (and it is in sections) is going to be like this, I will put it down. I read to escape and fantasize not to be brought into a world of depravity.
If you like horror and intrigue, this is your book.
James Patterson loves graphic to get you involved, but the start of the book had me feeling that if the whole first section (and it is in sections) is going to be like this, I will put it down. I read to escape and fantasize not to be brought into a world of depravity.
If you like horror and intrigue, this is your book.
January 30, 2013
I actually like this one better than I have the last few Patterson titles I have read. I used to think his short chapters were great but I have come to think that it keeps him from having to write much dialogue or develop characters deeply. This one focuses on the Berlin office of Private. One of Private's own has gone missing, Chris Schneider, and Mattie, his ex-fiancé, is determined to find out what happened to Chris and what created the empty space in her his life.
February 9, 2024
*The face of a Killer*
This instalment sees us in the Private’s German offices in Berlin. The main character Mattie Engel in her role as an investigator has seen many heinous crimes. She is not prepared for this killer. He is a man of many faces so finding his identity is going to be a tough task. This case becomes personal when someone very close to her is murdered in the most horrific of ways. He is discovered in a slaughterhouse. She happens upon a boneyard. Many victims have been killed and their bodies are left for the rats to devour.
The killer seems to be one step ahead of them and often times they have walked past him, such is his clever disguises.
The killer has a list and the people on his list know his true identity and he is picking them off one at a time
Mattie is gaining in on him but when he takes a precious person that means the world to her she is at risk of being his last victim…..
This instalment sees us in the Private’s German offices in Berlin. The main character Mattie Engel in her role as an investigator has seen many heinous crimes. She is not prepared for this killer. He is a man of many faces so finding his identity is going to be a tough task. This case becomes personal when someone very close to her is murdered in the most horrific of ways. He is discovered in a slaughterhouse. She happens upon a boneyard. Many victims have been killed and their bodies are left for the rats to devour.
The killer seems to be one step ahead of them and often times they have walked past him, such is his clever disguises.
The killer has a list and the people on his list know his true identity and he is picking them off one at a time
Mattie is gaining in on him but when he takes a precious person that means the world to her she is at risk of being his last victim…..
March 1, 2013
I keep reading these "Private" books, but still feel that something has been lost since the focus has been taken off of Jack Morgan and the original Private crew. The international books seem to lose something in the telling, having a disjointed feel to them that comes across disingenuine to the country and people they are trying to protray. Though Jack was in this book more than in "Games", it still felt like he was just thrown in there because people like me have expressed that he was missed. I know there is another one on the way soon (Down Under?), but really feel it would be nice to have a return to what worked. Much of this, I'm sure, has to do with the authors who do the actual writing. As I mentioned in my review of "Games", no matter how good a story Patterson comes up with, the books themselves will only be as good as the authors who do the actual writing. With all due respect to Mr. Sullivan, the original two Private books were writen by Maxine Paetro, who has written the lion's share of the Women's Murder Club series. Her writing style is what captured me with the Jack Morgan books, and is probably why I'm having such trouble with these later books. Note: I believe I saw that the first two books are being listed as the "Jack Morgan Series" where the more recent books are the "Private Series". Still, I don't see why they had to change something that wasn't broken. I would have rather seen Jack and his friends travelling the world and solving these cases, rather than the rather forgetable characters that are being launched at us and then dropped as though they never existed.
January 25, 2013
Personally I am not a fan of James Patterson for the most part. Here and there he will have a decent book, but they are no comparison to many other authors of similar novels.
This novel begins slowly and with many diverse stories to keep the reader both confused and intrigued enough to keep reading. The pace picks up toward the middle and it either becomes hard to put down to know what happens or it may seems at some points just to finish.
This was the first of the Private series that I read. Regardless of the obvious heartbreak and predictable infatuation/romance to ensue. I will admit I was thoroughly impressed at my tenacity to finish a book of this size in 2 days; no personal record of mine by any means. Probably a James Patterson personal best for me though.
Unfortunately, the book did not really have enough action to keep you on the edge of your seat. Overall the book was very readable and enjoyable if not playing to so many many stereotypes. Recommend to Jack Reacher fans or other fans of quasi-police investigation novels.
My opinion may be a bit skewed as I have not read any of the previous novels in the series. However, I plan to rectify that to complete the collection and truly see if James Patterson has elevated the caliber of his character invention and development or if this novel has only given me a false boost of confidence in Mr. Patterson.
This novel begins slowly and with many diverse stories to keep the reader both confused and intrigued enough to keep reading. The pace picks up toward the middle and it either becomes hard to put down to know what happens or it may seems at some points just to finish.
This was the first of the Private series that I read. Regardless of the obvious heartbreak and predictable infatuation/romance to ensue. I will admit I was thoroughly impressed at my tenacity to finish a book of this size in 2 days; no personal record of mine by any means. Probably a James Patterson personal best for me though.
Unfortunately, the book did not really have enough action to keep you on the edge of your seat. Overall the book was very readable and enjoyable if not playing to so many many stereotypes. Recommend to Jack Reacher fans or other fans of quasi-police investigation novels.
My opinion may be a bit skewed as I have not read any of the previous novels in the series. However, I plan to rectify that to complete the collection and truly see if James Patterson has elevated the caliber of his character invention and development or if this novel has only given me a false boost of confidence in Mr. Patterson.
December 3, 2020
This installment of the series takes readers to Berlin and the branch of Private run by Chris Schneider. As the top earner Chris takes most of the difficult cases and likes to work alone. Recently he has been working on three high profile assignments: an influential but very secretive billionaire named Hermann Kruger whose wife Agnes suspects him of infidelity and who has mysteriously disappeared; a talented football player named Cassiano who is the top striker for the Hertha Berlin Sports Club but whose erratic play of late has led to suspicions he may be throwing games and night club owner Maxim Pavel who owns the drag queen club Cabaret, is associated with the Russian mafia and rumoured to be ex-KGB. But there is another project Chris became involved in after he was visited by an unknown woman at the office. Shortly afterwards, Chris requested some personal time off but has not returned as expected. No one has heard from him or knows his whereabouts. His colleagues have become worried and set out to find him, looking into the cases he was working to see if they are connected to his disappearance. Jack Morgan flies in from L.A. to help as the team works together to try and locate Chris. While searching his files to get details of his cases, the team discovers their state-of-the art firewall has been breached and their computer system hacked. A visit to Chris's apartment comes with another shock. It has been ransacked, his personal computer has been smashed and the hard drive is missing.
Mattie Engel is a top agent at the company and was once engaged to Chris. She still cares for him but called off their engagement when she found he never fully opened up to her. She knows his parents were killed in an automobile accident when he was eight and he grew up in an orphanage somewhere in the countryside southeast of Berlin. But he shared little with her about his childhood and she knew there was something from that time that haunted him. He had terrible nightmares in which he would scream for his mother but would not discuss them with her. It was what eventually had pulled them apart. Mattie felt she cold not marry a man who had so much inside him he could not share, no matter how much she loved him.
Mattie throws herself headlong into the search for Chris and finds that in each of the cases he left behind there are people that may have wanted him dead. She teams up with Tom Burkart, Private Berlin’s latest hire who until recently had been a top operator with Germany’s elite counterterror unit. The two are drawn into a macabre case of a monster who calls himself the Invisible Man. He has a penchant for plastic surgery, make-up, costumes and masks which allows him to move about in plain sight but still be anyone he chooses to be. He loves to kill and uses an abandoned slaughterhouse as a dumping ground for bodies. When they discover the slaughterhouse, they learn the case may also involve the fate of six orphans from east Germany who had a mysterious past.
As Mattie works the case, she is held back by Hauptkommissar Hans Dietrich, a high commissioner for Kripo where she once worked. The commissar has an excellent reputation for solving crimes but he is very private, moody and likes to work alone. He is not happy with Mattie carrying out a shadow investigation and refuses to cooperate with her. He has secrets of his own and with the recent death of his father he becomes even more reclusive.
As Mattie’s investigation being her closer and closer to the truth, she risks her own life and that of all those dear to her.
The narrative is told from two points of view, Mattie’s as she searches for Chris and the shadowy figure known as the Inviable Man. Like many stories set in Germany, readers get a sense of the madness during the time of the East German Republic and the fallout experienced by its people before the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was a time of nasty political intrigue, dreaded secret police, horrible torture methods and dank, rat infested prisons. It was a time when mad men carried out heinous crimes but also a time when a few heroes tried to stop the corruption and brutality.
Patterson has been known for creating some great villains in the past and many who have read his many books will remember The Weasel Geoffrey Shafer, The Mastermind Kyle Craig and the Son of Lindberg Gary Soneji as well as others from the Alex Cross series. After reading this book, readers will have another to add to the list of people they will not soon forget.
This gruesome, terror filled narrative moves at a quick pace and readers hardly have a chance to catch their breath as the tension and horror mount with every page they turn, and those short brief chapters Patterson is known for just keep pulling them on. When the Invisible Man senses the authorities closing in, he knows he must disappear, but before he does, he must erase every connection to his past including incriminating documents and people who could identify him. He likes to have things cleared away before he moves on to something new and although he likes to plan things carefully, this time he has a limited time to complete everything that needs to be done.
I am pleased to see there are references to past cases, events and relationships in these books, making it a true series rather than a group of distinct separate novels cobbled together with a cameo appearance of Jack Morgan in each installment. Readers are brought up to speed on the relationship between Jack and Justine and there is a reference to the London Olympics. I hope to see more and more of that in each new book as readers watch the evolution of Jack Morgan as the lynch pin of the series.
This is an especially intense, violent, fast paced crime thriller with several tense scenes and some unexpected twists and turns. But it turns out to be one of the better books in the Private collection and raises hopes that the series will continue on this high note.
Mattie Engel is a top agent at the company and was once engaged to Chris. She still cares for him but called off their engagement when she found he never fully opened up to her. She knows his parents were killed in an automobile accident when he was eight and he grew up in an orphanage somewhere in the countryside southeast of Berlin. But he shared little with her about his childhood and she knew there was something from that time that haunted him. He had terrible nightmares in which he would scream for his mother but would not discuss them with her. It was what eventually had pulled them apart. Mattie felt she cold not marry a man who had so much inside him he could not share, no matter how much she loved him.
Mattie throws herself headlong into the search for Chris and finds that in each of the cases he left behind there are people that may have wanted him dead. She teams up with Tom Burkart, Private Berlin’s latest hire who until recently had been a top operator with Germany’s elite counterterror unit. The two are drawn into a macabre case of a monster who calls himself the Invisible Man. He has a penchant for plastic surgery, make-up, costumes and masks which allows him to move about in plain sight but still be anyone he chooses to be. He loves to kill and uses an abandoned slaughterhouse as a dumping ground for bodies. When they discover the slaughterhouse, they learn the case may also involve the fate of six orphans from east Germany who had a mysterious past.
As Mattie works the case, she is held back by Hauptkommissar Hans Dietrich, a high commissioner for Kripo where she once worked. The commissar has an excellent reputation for solving crimes but he is very private, moody and likes to work alone. He is not happy with Mattie carrying out a shadow investigation and refuses to cooperate with her. He has secrets of his own and with the recent death of his father he becomes even more reclusive.
As Mattie’s investigation being her closer and closer to the truth, she risks her own life and that of all those dear to her.
The narrative is told from two points of view, Mattie’s as she searches for Chris and the shadowy figure known as the Inviable Man. Like many stories set in Germany, readers get a sense of the madness during the time of the East German Republic and the fallout experienced by its people before the fall of the Berlin Wall. It was a time of nasty political intrigue, dreaded secret police, horrible torture methods and dank, rat infested prisons. It was a time when mad men carried out heinous crimes but also a time when a few heroes tried to stop the corruption and brutality.
Patterson has been known for creating some great villains in the past and many who have read his many books will remember The Weasel Geoffrey Shafer, The Mastermind Kyle Craig and the Son of Lindberg Gary Soneji as well as others from the Alex Cross series. After reading this book, readers will have another to add to the list of people they will not soon forget.
This gruesome, terror filled narrative moves at a quick pace and readers hardly have a chance to catch their breath as the tension and horror mount with every page they turn, and those short brief chapters Patterson is known for just keep pulling them on. When the Invisible Man senses the authorities closing in, he knows he must disappear, but before he does, he must erase every connection to his past including incriminating documents and people who could identify him. He likes to have things cleared away before he moves on to something new and although he likes to plan things carefully, this time he has a limited time to complete everything that needs to be done.
I am pleased to see there are references to past cases, events and relationships in these books, making it a true series rather than a group of distinct separate novels cobbled together with a cameo appearance of Jack Morgan in each installment. Readers are brought up to speed on the relationship between Jack and Justine and there is a reference to the London Olympics. I hope to see more and more of that in each new book as readers watch the evolution of Jack Morgan as the lynch pin of the series.
This is an especially intense, violent, fast paced crime thriller with several tense scenes and some unexpected twists and turns. But it turns out to be one of the better books in the Private collection and raises hopes that the series will continue on this high note.
March 16, 2021
this wasn't James Patterson's worst book, but it's not very good either.
on the bright side, there are only 2 storylines in this book (in comparison to 3-4 in his books), one them being 80% of the book. the secondary plot was mediocre and if I recall correctly, he already used it in one of his books.
on the other hand... the names of the characters are extremely funny. you cannot eliminate a letter and then all of a sudden the name sounds German. for instance, you don't eliminate the h in Arthur and you get the German name Artur. it doesn't work like that. or put an ä instead of e. Cäcelia doesn't exist in German. otherwise, you have the standard one dimensional character, the absurd motivation of the killer and the over the top ending. typical so to say. but this is a quick read, great when you are in a reading slump.
on the bright side, there are only 2 storylines in this book (in comparison to 3-4 in his books), one them being 80% of the book. the secondary plot was mediocre and if I recall correctly, he already used it in one of his books.
on the other hand... the names of the characters are extremely funny. you cannot eliminate a letter and then all of a sudden the name sounds German. for instance, you don't eliminate the h in Arthur and you get the German name Artur. it doesn't work like that. or put an ä instead of e. Cäcelia doesn't exist in German. otherwise, you have the standard one dimensional character, the absurd motivation of the killer and the over the top ending. typical so to say. but this is a quick read, great when you are in a reading slump.
August 23, 2013
A bit predictable, like most Patterson novels, BUT...
Likes:
lots of tension that keeps you reading
a likeable heroine who suffers. A Lot.
a bit of history and geography lesson mixed in
Dislikes:
The first 50 pages or so are SLOW...I almost gave up on it. Glad I didn't.
A few minor characters who should've had a stronger role.
A plot element that seemed out of place: the killer gets rid of everyone who gets in his way, yet he lets ONE person go and only ties up said character? I didn't buy this part of the story.
Likes:
lots of tension that keeps you reading
a likeable heroine who suffers. A Lot.
a bit of history and geography lesson mixed in
Dislikes:
The first 50 pages or so are SLOW...I almost gave up on it. Glad I didn't.
A few minor characters who should've had a stronger role.
A plot element that seemed out of place: the killer gets rid of everyone who gets in his way, yet he lets ONE person go and only ties up said character? I didn't buy this part of the story.
May 13, 2013
A quick read for a novel that is over 400 pages.
Patterson has slipped with this Private.
I have been to Berlin. I know the historic references.
I just do not accept the characters nor the major plot line.
Subplots are different. They are rather good, but there is too much chaff for a few bits of wheat.
If you have read this book, you know that I should write there is too much fat for just a taste of bacon.
Patterson has slipped with this Private.
I have been to Berlin. I know the historic references.
I just do not accept the characters nor the major plot line.
Subplots are different. They are rather good, but there is too much chaff for a few bits of wheat.
If you have read this book, you know that I should write there is too much fat for just a taste of bacon.
May 22, 2015
I picked up this book hoping it could give me a good sneak-peak to Berlin, but nah. It's just a novel version of Criminal Minds (which I loved) that emphasized psycho antagonist and other Law&Order or NCIS-ish gadgets and gizmos. It was breakneck fast, not dragging but there are just some parts when you just can't help but say, "Oh really, now?" All in all, a good read. First James Patterson book, surely not the last.
April 23, 2019
Like many of James Patterson books,this is fast moving and quick to read. This one involves uncovering horrors from East Germany prior to the collapse of communism. There is a psychotic killer who is a product of the Stasi and is now killing anyone with a link to his past. The background is dark and horrifying for his victims. The Private Berlin group gets involved because one of their own is a victim. Patterson wrote this but the author is also Mark Sullivan.
February 5, 2020
A thriller that keeps you riveted to the book. Very compelling and full of action, suspense, mystery, and an enjoyable read.
June 22, 2021
Can not say I loved this one it was well ordinary. I am guessing it has something to do with who James Patterson writes the books with.
I love this series so I will be continuing with it. Lets hope the next one is a little better.
I love this series so I will be continuing with it. Lets hope the next one is a little better.
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