Jack Patterson (1)Critiques

Settling for second best is never fun, and Cal Murphy’s dreams of Pulitzers don’t seem likely to reach fruition in middle-of-nowhere Idaho, working for a former Salt Lake City Tribune editor. But then three teens die in quick succession and Cal’s not sure it’s as accidental as it seems.

With swift brushstrokes, Dead Shot blends the serious themes of drug addiction and athletic stardom together with shallow desires for fame and action-star glory. Cal’s ex-Mormon photographer friend (and possible romantic interest) Kelly helps on the case, as lies and politics combine and truth doesn’t pay. But there’s always the sure hope of “outstanding work” and the big city’s lure if their story ever reaches the front page.

Disclosure: I won a copy and I offer my honest review.

This was a fast read. I'm not too sure Cal Murphy would be my type of protagonist. I understand spilling what he knows to the FBI in the hopes that they could help but then to his editor and then to his friend, Kelly. I wouldn't want to tell him any secrets. I also felt Cal and Kelly were really connected, at least on the surface. Despite his feelings for her even after Kelly confessing at the end of the book she cared about him - the relationship didn't feel true.

The Sea Hawks are going to the Super Bowl and are the favorite to win. Their quarterback's son is kidnapped. The ransom? Noah has to throw the game or his son dies. It was a fluke that Cal found out while interviewing Noah.

Major bets are being placed on the Dolphins and this raises flags with the FBI. So an FBI friend of Cal's calls him to find out if he knows of any rumors about the game being fixed.

What follows is an action packed ride to save Noah's son before the Super Bowl - in 4 days!

I received this book free from the author.

This novel is about two young men caught up in the world of big-time college football recruiting.

Tre'vell Baker and Dominique Martin are life-long friends, and very talented high school football players, from small-town Louisiana. Therefore, all the big southern universities (Alabama, Georgia, Florida State, LSU, among many others) are very interested in recruiting them. They verbally commit to Bryant University in Alabama, then visit the school. It's the sort of school that doesn't just severely bend the NCAA recruiting rules, it outright ignores them. While at Bryant, Tre'vell records something that causes both of them to un-commit, and would bring the NCAA Death Penalty down on the school. A couple of days later, Tre'vell is shot and killed by an unknown assailant.

Cal Murphy is a sports reporter from Atlanta. He is sent to do a story on college recruiting, focusing on Tre'vell and Dominique. He meets several "boosters" for several schools. They are passionate fans, whose unofficial job is to keep an eye on the recruit, and do whatever is necessary to get them to "their" school. One day, a brand new sports car is in Dominique's driveway. Supposedly, it's from his Uncle Bernard (who works as a janitor). Dominique knows that it is from one of these boosters (which is very illegal). He posts pictures of himself with the car online. He suddenly goes from Golden Boy to Radioactive; all the other schools who were very interested in him are no longer interested. As Cal gets closer to uncovering just what is going on, a burlap sack is thrown over his head, he is tossed into the back of a pickup truck, and taken deep into the Louisiana Bayou. Several hungry alligators are very nearby.

This story works on all levels. It works as a thriller. It works as a look inside big-time football recruiting, in a part of America where college football is taken Very Seriously. The author is a sportswriter, so it also feels real and plausible. This is a first-rate piece of writing.

Veteran NFL Seattle Seahawks Quarterback Noah Larson is finally getting a chance to play in the Super Bowl against the Miami Dolphins after ten years in the league. After the Superbowl, Noah will be retiring to spend time with his wife Ellen and six year old son Jake, he hopes to retire as a Super Bowl champion quarterback. But his hopes are dashed when he receives a call that Jake has been kidnapped on his way to the school bus stop, and is being held by a drug cartel in Mexico. The ransom demand is steep: throw the biggest game of his career or Jake will be killed.

The Seattle Times sportswriter Cal Murphy has covered the Seattle Seahawks for years. While watching the team practice for the Super Bowl, he notices that Quarterback Noah Larson isn't prepping for the game like he usually does ... something is wrong and he's going to find out. When Cal learns about the abduction, he and photographer friend Kelly Mendoza go undercover in Mexico for the FBI, to help rescue Jake and save the Super Bowl, only to have their plans go awry and suddenly they find themselves in the middle of a dangerous situation and in need of being rescued too!

In the second book of the Cal Murphy Thriller series, author Jack Patterson weaves an intriguing tale of suspense with a football twist that keeps the reader sitting on the edge of their seat guessing what will happen next. This fast-paced action packed thriller is written in the third person narrative featuring the adventures of the dynamic duo of Seattle sportswriter Cal Murphy and photographer Kelly Mendoza, as they attempt to help rescue an NFL quarterback's son from a dangerous Mexican drug cartel. With the Seahawks favored to win over the Dolphins in the Super Bowl, a father's dream of retiring as a champion quarterback is dashed when the ransom demand is for him to throw the biggest game of his ten year career. This riveting story takes the reader on an adrenaline rush of an adventure as they get drawn into the dangerous situation that awaits Cal and Kelly. With short chapters that engages the reader to continue reading; the drama, suspense, twists and turns will satisfy diehard thriller fans as the story unfolds. And if that isn't enough, adding the Super Bowl element to the storyline is a bonus that any football fan will enjoy!

Even though this is the second book in a series, it can be read as a stand alone story. But if you enjoy this one so much, go back and read the first book, Cross Hairs, for the introduction to the crazy adventures that beckons Cal Murphy and Kelly Mendoza!

With a quirky cast of characters, witty dialogue and interactions, a richly detailed and descriptive plot and settings, Cross The Line has enough drama and suspense to make this one hell of a thrilling read!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the author / publisher in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours.

http://jerseygirlbookreviews.blogspot.com/2013/03/cross-line-by-jack-patterson-a...

Cross the Line is the second in the Cal Murphy series of thrillers. I haven't read the first one but that posed no problem in my enjoyment of this novel which would have had me chewing my nails, if I had any, worrying about the characters involved particularly a boy and his family.

The reason for this Partners in Crime blog tour is that the story is set during the week leading up to the Super Bowl. Quarterback Noah Larson of the Seattle Seahawks will, according to most people, lead his team to Super Bowl victory over the Miami Dolphins and their decidedly second-rate quarterback. That quarterback is a blowhard who would never admit it was their defense that got them to the Super Bowl. He thinks it's all his doing. Larson is of course thrilled that his career will end this way; he has promised his wife that he will retire after the game. His six-year-old son Jake will finally have his dad home. Dad can watch him play the game he loves - soccer.

Then Jake is kidnapped on his way to the school bus and Larson is told that unless he loses the game, Jake will be killed. He is warned not to tell the police, etc. and tries to keep it quiet, only telling his wife. Another aspect is that the FBI is informed by Las Vegas casinos about wild bets being placed on the Dolphins.

Will Jake be treated well or killed? Can Larson save his son? Will he throw the biggest game in his career? Cal Murphy, sportswriter for the The Times in Seattle knows Larson well enough to see something is very wrong. Murphy's former college roommate, an FBI agent, gets in touch with him, and suddenly Murphy is right in the middle of this dangerous hostage situation.

I really like Cal Murphy and I will certainly find the first in the series, Cross Hairs, and then settle in to wait for the third book. It helps if you're a football fan like me, but if you aren't, no worries. It's just a heck of a good thriller that just happens to be about football's biggest game. There are also issues that will be very interesting to journalists. Ethical issues that will give a journalist pause.

Highly recommended reading.
Source: Author through Partners in Crime Tours

Book Tour Review & Giveaway: We’re delighted to be part of Partners in Crime’s Super Bowl Book Tour for Cross the Line by Jack Patterson! This is the first time we’ve reviewed a book that ties in with the Super Bowl. In fact, it’s the first time we’ve reviewed a book that features football. I love a good thriller and couldn’t resist one that features the Seahawks and the Dolphins head-to-head in the Super Bowl. Whoot! This one is obviously for all your football fans but it’s also a good thriller whether you’re into football or not. Want to win a copy? Read the rest of my review & enter to win at http://popcornreads.com/?p=5352.½