See How They Run

by James Patterson

His family has been murdered. His past lover is running for her life. And now, Dr. David Strauss must travel across Europe to track down the killers.Outside New York City, the palatial home of Dr. David Strauss's parents is attacked by gunmen during a glittering party. As he watches helplessly, his wife is murdered. In Los Angeles, Strauss's brother is killed during the Academy Award ceremonies. In Manhattan, his past sweetheart, Alix Rothchild, is running for her life. Dr. David Strauss is soon obsessed with finding the explosive secret behind the murders of his family members. His dangerous odyssey takes him across Europe, and finally to the Olympics, straight to one of the most shattering surprises in suspense fiction.Brilliant and chilling, See How They Run is another stunning story from the world's #1 writer.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Suspense, Mystery Thriller, Crime, Murder Mystery

340 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 27, 1979

About the author

Official 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.

Reviews

[Nancy Shultz]

I am a big James Patterson fan. I had to check the cover of this book several times to confirm I was in fact reading James Patterson. I can say it's his worst book I ever read, but that seems odd, because I've never felt there were any other bad books...This was bad. Disjointed. I felt like there were huge gaps, missing parts. I have given it no stars.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had a really hard time getting into this book. I just read it to finish it because I was already halfway through it. It was not like any of Patterson's other books that I had read and I could definitely tell it was from his early years. The first disappointing book by Patterson that I've read.

[Brett Tompkins · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was dreadfully boring. If I wasn't a completist, I would have stopped reading this one very soon after starting. It was all I could do to get through it. There were a couple twists, but the first one didn't even dawn on me until about 10 pages later because it was so dull. The "exciting" part at the end wasn't even that exciting. No biggie though. With as many books as Patterson has put out over the years, they can't all be great. And as always, I was able to read through it quick because the chapters are so short, which I like.

[Robert Reiner · Rating 2 out of 5]

The nice thing about every Patterson book I’ve read so far is that they are quick reads thanks to the short chapters. In See How They Run I was particularly grateful that the chapters were short and I was able to get it through it fast because it just wasn’t very good. Some decent characters that I found myself interested in but the story itself just felt like a complete mess. It’s one of Patterson’s very early books though so I’m not going to judge his talents based on this dud.

[itchy · Rating 3 out of 5]

teenage robert ludlum comes to mind, when he hasn't learned to abuse the exclamation points yet.

there were a lot of writers referenced, even mentioned a couple of benchley's movie adaptations in one paragraph.

p265: the former israeli paratrooper, former intelligence agent, former commando, was counting down.
"one hundred nineteen. one hundred twenty. blast off!"

[Jenna Perkins · Rating 1 out of 5]

bad. just bad.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This started out as one of the most promising James Patterson novels to date, mostly because it feels so atypical from the rest of his body of work. (I don't know how much more of his formulaic serial killer stuff I can take.)
SEE HOW THEY RUN was originally published back in 1979, when Patterson was still finding himself as a writer and experimenting with various styles. It is obvious that by writing this particular novel, he was hoping to pass himself off as the next Robert Ludlum. Even the book's original title, THE JERICHO COMMANDMENT (which was insipidly renamed to fit in with Patterson's typical nursery rhyme schema) is as Ludlum-esque as you can get.
There are a couple of reasons why SEE HOW THEY RUN is ultimately a big disappointment. First, Patterson gives his lead characters very little to do, apart from flirt with each other and commiserate on past traumas. (And nobody writes flirty dialog as poorly as James Patterson. Anytime he tries to be cute or touchingly romantic, the book practically bursts into flames.) All the interesting stuff is done by faceless characters in the background: characters who never get properly developed and who feel interchangeable. The plot drags so badly during the book's middle section that no amount of fireworks at the end can redeem it.
The second problem is Patterson's terrible dialog, which makes his characters sound phony and dumb. He also tries for the occasional awkward "literary" description, which, in Patterson's case, typically consists of total gibberish masquerading as artistic flair.
As hard as I am on this book, however, it does have its good points. The basic story concept is solid, if rather farfetched, and Patterson obviously did a large amount of research in putting it together. By cutting out much of the middle section and editing down the cringe-worthy dialog, SEE HOW THEY RUN could be fashioned into a great little novella.

[Josh Olds · Rating 1 out of 5]

After two fairly small-scale novels in The Thomas Berryman Number and Season of the Machete, James Patterson crafts a novel about a global conspiracy involving Jewish people which…well, makes the plot not exactly age gracefully, even if David Strauss and Alix Rothchild are the heroes. The Jericho Commandment takes readers into secret society of code-named militant Jews who are working against a likewise secret society of neo-Nazis. How do they do this? First, they pose as neo-Nazis and kill a prominent Jewish woman. Second, they intend to hijack the 1980 Moscow Olympics and turn it into revenge for the Holocaust. It’s more than a bit awkward to watch Patterson, white and Christian, write a story about Jewish terrorists. He also undermines real and valid concerns of anti-Semitism by painting it in such an outlandish fashion.

Published in 1979 and set in 1980, Patterson obviously intended for the real-life tension of having the Olympics in the Soviet Union bleed into his novel. Patterson also cribs from the real-life 1972 Munich Olympics terrorist attack, where members of the Palestinian terrorist organization Black September murdered two members of the Israeli Olympic team. Patterson really thought about a time that Jewish people were victims of a terrorist attach and thought “ah, but what if they were the terrorists?” In real life, both the US and Israel (along with 64 other nations) would boycott the 1980 Olympics due to the Soviet-Afghan War.

The Jericho Commandment may be one of Patterson’s worst novels and compounding that is that, eighteen years after its 1979 release, he re-edited and re-titled it, releasing it under the name See How They Run. Not even his newfound fame from Alex Cross could save this novel and it became his first but by no means his last complete flop.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

He writes In fragments so it was hard to find the flow of his thoughts and plot. It was good enough for me to read the whole thing.

[Precious Sagbodje · Rating 2 out of 5]

I failed to heed my own advice not to read any of James Patterson's books.
This guy took a great plot and made it as extremely bland as possible.

[Chris · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay for an easy bedtime read. The plot is suspenseful, yet also predictable. Hmm. But it’s too sketchy, due to Patterson’s typical style, which consists of a multitude of very short chapters that can’t possibly fully develop the defining features of good literature. It goes down easy, but leaves nothing behind. At least you are able to finish a chapter before nodding off. Hey, it’s Patterson, and I didn’t expect anything more.

[Shelley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Plot Summary: Outside New York City, the palatial home of Dr. David Strauss's parents is attacked by gunmen during a glittering party. As he watches helplessly, his wife is murdered. In Los Angeles, Strauss's brother is killed during the Academy Award ceremonies. In Manhattan, his past sweetheart, Alix Rothchild, is running for her life. Dr. David Strauss is soon obsessed with finding the explosive secret behind the murders of his family members. His dangerous odyssey takes him across Europe, and finally to the Olympics, where one of the most shattering surprises in suspense fiction will take place.

aka Jericho Commandment

This book wasn't James best effort. The plot line seem a wee bit contrived at times. Even though the beginning was pretty good, the rest of the book was medicore at best.

[JD Waggy · Rating 3 out of 5]

"An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." Ghandi

This is a definite departure for Patterson and his Cross detective fare; his characters feel the same, but the situation is much harder-hitting, in some ways. Having not been born by the time of any of the events in this book, I think that they were less horrifying or enveloping to me than they perhaps could have been to someone who can recall what actually happened, but they were nevertheless powerful. The best part of the book, I think, in terms of the most impact and attention-grabbing insanity, is chapter 24. I won't tell you what it is, as the shock of it is half the point, but I stopped reading at that point to feel the suckerpunch of it; that was Patterson's pinnacle in this book.

[Gary · Rating 3 out of 5]

The usual formula fast paced short chapters but I did not have the same feeling as I often do reading James Patterson's books.
It was an ok read but did not thrill me.

Synopsis:
Outside New York City, the palatial home of Dr. David Strauss's parents is attacked by gunmen during a glittering party. As he watches helplessly, his wife is murdered. In Los Angeles, Strauss's brother is killed during the Academy Award ceremonies. In Manhattan, his past sweetheart, Alix Rothchild, is running for her life. Dr. David Strauss is soon obsessed with finding the explosive secret behind the murders of his family members. His dangerous odyssey takes him across Europe, and finally to the Olympics, where one of the most shattering surprises in suspense fiction will take place.

[Shari Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know why this book received so many negative reviews...I found it fascinating. This was the second time I had read it, and I liked it just as much as the first time. True, it is not a "bowl-me-over" book...but it definitely shows the potential that Patterson has most assuredly fulfilled. Suspenseful, twists and turns, a little romance, all qualities that he improved upon with each subsequent book. Now the one thing that did baffle me, and probably always will, was the reasoning behind the terrorist's actions. One might say "Oh PLEASE! Too far-fetched!" But is the reasoning behind any of the real terrorist actions any LESS far-fetched? Any less baffling?

A quick and entertaining story. Enjoy!

[Ty Hutchinson · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a bit confusing in the beginning for me. I actually thought it was the Germans who did all the killing in the beginning not the Jewish peeps. I found most of the story hard to follow. David, the main character was sort of a bore. Alix should have been developed more or David should have done more with her to make him more exciting.

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to enjoy this more than I did since I seem to remember enjoying Patterson quite a bit but I had a hard time following parts of it. Like I never really quite got fully in to the story and it all felt a bit disjointed to me. I honestly thought with the subject matter this would be a for sure favorite for me but I just couldn’t sink my teeth into it.

[Dee Cyr · Rating 1 out of 5]

Read 21 chapters and just couldn't get into it. Not going to continue.

[jaylynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an okay book. It was very slow at the beginning and hard to get into. I feel like the main characters weren't developed very well and the plot didn't seem to pick up as much as I wanted it to. It also confused me a lot. I still have unanswered questions. I've read a lot of James Patterson's books and this is probably one of my least favorites, if not my very least. I didn't have an affinity for David very much so it made it hard to relate to him. He spends a lot of the book hunting the Nazis that killed his family. Underdeveloped detectives also play a part in figuring out this mystery. A lot of the things he did seemed pointless. The dialogue could have been a lot better as well - it was a bit cheesy at times. This was one of his earlier books so it's easy to understand why it wasn't that great. I will continue to read his books but just keep this one out of my top recommendations.

[Mark Mindel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book to get you thinking during the Covid-19 pandemic. Life isn't the same for Dr. David Strauss after his grandmother Elena, brother Nick and wife Heather are murdered apparently by a new group of neo-Nazis hell bent on re-creating the Holocaust. After all, Elena and Nick were members of a secret Jewish society out to get revenge on the Nazis. The story takes place in 1980, and changes history somewhat by having the Moscow Olympics take place without a boycott. Strauss begins to reevaluate his life and reconnects with superstar actress and model Alix Rothchild, born Rothman, a childhood friend whose parents were killed in Dauchau, from where she actually escaped as a young child. Former lovers, they take up where they left off (so much for the memory of Heather!) but things get a little twisted as to who is whom with the Nazis and the Jewish underground movement, when a terrorist group attacks Moscow. Builds to a climatic ending you won't want to miss.

[Boremomsn.Com · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe back in 1979 when this was written, using resurrected Nazi beliefs as the motivation for the bad guys worked. I doubt it, because even back then, the idea had already worn thin. It was a tired trick then and even more tired now. This is typical Patterson, short chapters, fast reading, keep the reader slightly off balance, but the change on this one is that the author is getting better at his craft. If this was the first Patterson book I read, I might have bought another. It would depend on what else was available that I'd rather read. In other words, probably not for many years. Even so, it was an okay book and if you like Patterson, read it. If you don't know if you like Patterson, don't start with this one as your first of his books.

[Indie Book Reviews · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did complete and finish this book in full. It is based on a second bout of Nazi/Jewish issues. I really didn't enjoy this book at all. I think it is mostly the subject. I have read many James Patterson novels and enjoyed them but this one just didn't work for me. There was action in it at the end. The majority if the book was rather boring. It was, however, easy to read, so that is why I went ahead and finished it. The story just didn't mesh for me and there were parts that I feel were not well explained and did not make much sense with other parts of the story.

Overall I feel like this is a personal issue and I just really didn't like the book or the subject matter.

[Mikayla Carroll · Rating 3 out of 5]

"See How They Run" by James Patterson started off with an intriguing premise, diving into a world of political intrigue and danger. The plot, centered around a conspiracy involving Nazis and a secret government, initially grabbed my attention with its fast pace and suspenseful twists. However, as I progressed, I found myself gradually losing interest. The characters felt a bit underdeveloped, and some of the plot twists seemed far-fetched. Despite Patterson's skillful writing, the story didn't hold my attention, and I ultimately decided to stop reading before finishing the book. It's not a bad read, but it just didn't resonate with me as much as I had hoped.

[Geoff Battle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Patterson's trademark short chapters were still present way back when he wrote this novel. In fact it's that easy to digest format that keeps 'See How They Run' from becoming dull. There's not really much content in this retribution tale and even the grand finale never lives up to the potential. The characters are rather two dimensional and inconsistent too. What's left is a thankfully short tale about an interesting terrorist plot around the 1980 Olympic Village. There's not really much to recommend since Patterson has gone on to produce considerably better work.

[Pranav Deshpande · Rating 1 out of 5]

A Jewish revenge story that takes us back to the Holocaust and the Nazis. A thriller in the style of James Patterson but certainly not one of his better ones. Very few surprises and a lot of violence. Unless you are a die hard glutton for Nazi war crime novels, nothing much of interest here. And unlike Forsyth or Ludlum or Le Carre, who could create the atmosphere, it’s lacking in this one..

[Jacqueline S. Hemminger · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am a great believer in the holocaust and its tragedy . My heart aches when I think of what they must have gone through and seen. I can see why they'd want Acknowledge mint but its history and you can't rewrite it. This book was a bit confusing and not nearly as good as the writer usually does.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a very interesting read. The plot line was always consistent and compelling. A first time foray into the world of Nazi Hunters- this was extremely engaging. Book is divided in very easy to follow small chapters. Benjamin Rabinowitz- what a character! Or perhaps Alix Rothschild deserves higher praise. Very captivating read. Would definitely re-read and recommend.

[Joan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was THE hardest book to get into, but it was James Patterson, so I kept trying! I started to make sense, and it started to get better, and then it just kind of fell apart! An all around unenjoyable book to read!

[Patti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different

Usually I give Patterson 5 stars. Only 4 this time because even though the book was very good, it was so far off base from his usual stuff. I enjoyed reading the book but much less Paterson's series books. Guess he wanted to try something new

[Eydie · Rating 2 out of 5]

My review is not quiet accurate; I read about 1/3 of the book and had to stop. In today's climate of anti-semitism this book upset me and I did not want to read further. Knowing James Patterson, (and owning almost all his books) I am sure it is written up to his excellent standards.