I had never read one of the Michael Bennett thrillers, but, of course when my cousin told me I was a character in Paranoia, I had to pick up the book. James O. Born, James Patterson’s co-author, asked me quite a while ago if he could make me a cat-loving character in one of the books, but I never even knew what book I’d appear in. Thanks to Carol Jeanne for the heads-up!
Following a cop’s funeral, NYPD Homicide detective Michael Bennett is at the wake at a local cop’s pub when Inspector Celeste Cantor asks him for a favor. There has been a series of deaths of four cops. Although they appear to be accidents or suicides, all four cops were once members of the Land Sharks, a group of narcotic cops who were successful in their work. Cantor was once a Land Shark, and she’s aware of the deaths, and deaths of dealers who were once targeted by the group. But, she’s about to retire and run for local office, and wants to keep her interest off-the-radar.
While Bennett is supposed to keep his investigation secret, he does keep his young partner in the loop, and recruits help from Walter Jackson, an expert in Internet searching and finding hidden information. And, it turns out there’s quite a bit of information to be found, including a clue that leads to a powerful opponent.
There are several interesting elements to the story. The Michael Bennett thrillers also skillfully blend in information about Bennett’s personal life with his ten adopted children and his second wife who is now pregnant. The dinners, the stories that concentrate on several of the children, are all relief from the unrelenting tension of a thriller. And, since the reader follows the story of the hired killer, the man behind a number of deaths, there is tension.
I admit I “caught” the opponent, the person behind the killer, long before the police did. But, that’s part of the fun of reading a crime novel, pitting yourself against the detectives. And, the other part was the librarian named Lesa Holstine. Just fun! (Thanks, Jim Born!)
James Patterson’s website is https://www.jamespatterson.com/
James O. Born’s website is https://www.jamesoborn.com/
Paranoia by James Patterson and James O. Born. Little,, Brown & Company, 2025. ISBN 9780316403689 (hardcover), 384p.
FTC Full Disclosure – I bought a copy of the book.
How fun to be a character in a book. I’ve had that honor a few times, and it’s always a thrill.
Congrats! And glad you enjoyed the book overall.
Thank you, Mark. And, congrats to you as well. It was fun to see it in print!
Wow! I have not read a James Patterson, so now I guess I will have to!
This one was good, Jeanne, and you don’t have to have read previous ones.
This is just too too fun!
It was, Kaye!
Wow, what an hour, you and Mark share!
It was an honor, Carol, and I didn’t even die as a character!
Glad you didn’t die in the book, Lesa!
Being a character is my idea of the summit for a reader. How thrilling. I read chapter 30 over several times, it was so exciting đŸ¥³
Lesa,
Oh, What fun! I’ve just placed my hold !
Thank you, Linda! Good to hear from you. It was fun.
Why did NYPD Inspector Celeste Cantor ask Detective Michael Bennett to investigate the deaths of the former Land Shark narcotics officers when she was having them killed by her cousin, Kevin Doyle?
Why is the title of the novel Paranoia? Who was paranoid?
Why is the cover of the novel a young woman running in a red trench coat? This woman is not any of the female characters in the book.
All good questions, Michael. Either Celeste Cantor or Kevin Doyle was paranoid.
But, I have no answers for your other two questions. So many thrillers don’t provide all the answers.