The 5th Horseman

by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

Grand Central Publishing
Paperback
421 pages

San Francisco Police Department Lieutenant Lindsay Boxer and friends formed.

the Women’s Murder Club in 1st to Die. In this fifth series installment, the group still meets for friendship and support at their favorite eatery. This time, the spotlight is on Yuki Castellano, the newest member of the club.

Yuki’s mother is a patient at San Francisco Medical Center at the same time the hospital is being sued in a massive malpractice case. Several patients who were expected to fully recover died suddenly and inexplicably. Coins were then placed on the eyes of these patients, suggesting that an Angel of Death is responsible.

While Yuki follows the malpractice suit, Lindsay tackles a case where young women are killed, dressed up and placed in parked luxury cars. Though Patterson and Paetro move smoothly between the two stories, Lindsay’s luxury car serial killer case doesn’t get the development or thrilling resolution it deserves.

The 5th Horseman is a classic Patterson page-turner. The premise is exciting, but the cases are rushed. This novel is like a placeholder in the series, re-positioning certain characters so they’ll be ready to make an impact in the sixth installment. Read this novel so you can keep up with the developments in the Women’s Murder Club, and then anxiously await another thrilling investigation in Lindsay Boxer’s 6th adventure.