The James Patterson Holiday Gift Guide
James Patterson has written more than 200 books spanning all types of genres. If you’re not sure what James Patterson book to pick for the holiday season, check out our list by genre. Find the best books for each type of reader in your life!
For Fast-Paced Thriller Readers…
The President Is Missing confronts a threat so huge that it jeopardizes not just Pennsylvania Avenue and Wall Street, but all of America. Uncertainty and fear grip the nation. There are whispers of cyberterror and espionage and a traitor in the Cabinet. Even the President himself becomes a suspect, and then he disappears from public view . . .
Set over the course of three days, The President Is Missing sheds a stunning light upon the inner workings and vulnerabilities of our nation. Filled with information that only a former Commander-in-Chief could know, this is the most authentic, terrifying novel to come along in many years.
Kay Willingham led a life as glamorous as it was public-she was a gorgeous Georgetown socialite, philanthropist, and the ex-wife of the vice president. So why was she parked in a Bentley convertible idling behind a DC private school, in the middle of the night, with the man who was the head of that school? Who shot them both, point blank, and why? The shocking double homicide is blazed across the internet, TV, newspapers—and across Alex Cross's mind. Kay had been his patient once. And maybe more.
While John Sampson of DC Metro Police investigates the last movements of Christopher Randall, the educator killed along with Kay Willingham, detective Alex Cross and FBI special agent Ned Mahoney find unanswered questions from Willingham's past, before she arrived in DC and became known in DC society as someone who could make things happen. They travel to Alabama to investigate Kay's early years. There they find a world of trouble, corruption, and secrets, all of them closed to outsiders like Cross and Mahoney.
The First Lady
by James Patterson
With Brendan DuBois
Sally Grissom is a top-secret service agent in charge of the Presidential Protection team. She knows that something is amiss when she is summoned to a private meeting with the President and his Chief of Staff without any witnesses. But she couldn’t have predicted that she’d be forced to take on an investigation surrounding the mysterious disappearance of the First Lady–with strict orders to keep it a secret.
The First Lady’s absence comes in the wake of the scandalous, public revelation of the president’s affair, so at first it seems as though she is simply cutting off all contact as she recuperates at a horse farm in Virginia. What begins as an innocent respite quickly reveals itself as a twisted case when the White House receives a ransom note along with the First Lady’s finger.
Blindside
by James Patterson
by James O. Born
Bennett and the mayor have always had a tense relationship, but now the mayor sees in Bennett a discreet investigator with family worries of his own. Just one father helping another.
The detective leaps into the case and sources lead him to a homicide in the Bronx. The victim has ties to a sophisticated hacking operation—and also to the mayor’s missing daughter, Natalie, a twenty-one-year-old computer prodigy. The murder is part of a serial killing spree, one with national security implications. And suddenly Bennett is at the center of a dangerous triangle anchored by NYPD, FBI, and a transnational criminal organization.
For First-Time James Patterson Readers…
Alex Cross is a homicide detective with a Ph.D. in psychology. He works and lives in the ghettos of D. C. and looks like Muhammad Ali in his prime. He’s a tough guy from a tough part of town who wears Harris Tweed jackets and likes to relax by banging out Gershwin tunes on his baby grand piano. But he also has two adorable kids of his own, and they are his own special vulnerabilities.
Jezzie Flanagan is the first woman ever to hold the highly sensitive job as supervisor of the Secret Service in Washington. Blond, mysterious, seductive, she’s got an outer shell that’s as tough as it is beautiful. She rides her black BMW motorcycle at speeds of no less than 100 mph. What is she running from? What is her secret?
Never Never
by James Patterson
by Candice Fox
Harry Blue is the top Sex Crimes investigator in her department. But even she didn’t see this coming: her own brother arrested for the grisly murders of three beautiful young women. “For her own good,” she’s been sent to a desolate location and assigned to a new “partner.” But is he actually meant to be a watchdog? In her strange new home, Harry vanishes to a place where no one would ever think to look for her.
Three Women Disappear
by James Patterson
by Shan Serafin
A man is murdered in his home. Sarah, his personal chef. Anna, his wife. Serena, his maid, all had access. Now all three women are missing.
Eyes are on Detective Sean Walsh, whose personal connection to the case is stronger than the leads to solve it. Neither the powerful bankroll behind the deceased, mob accountant Anthony Costello, nor Walsh's vengeful superior officer can budge the investigation. Yet as Walsh continues to dig, he uncovers even more reasons the women have to stay hidden -- from the law, and from each other.
For True Crime Readers…
Filthy Rich
by James Patterson
by John Connolly
With Tim Malloy
Jeffrey Epstein rose from humble origins into the New York City and Palm Beach elite. A college dropout with an instinct for numbers—and for people—Epstein amassed his wealth through a combination of access and skill. But even after he had it all, Epstein wanted more. That unceasing desire—and especially a taste for underage girls–resulted in sexual-abuse charges, to which he pleaded guilty and received a shockingly lenient sentence.
Included here are police interviews with girls who have alleged sexual abuse by Epstein, as well as details of the investigation against him.
In Murder, Interrupted, rich, cheating financier Frank Howard wants his wife dead, and he’s willing to pay Billie Earl Johnson whatever it takes: $750,000, to be exact. When his bullet misses the mark, Billie Earl and Frank will turn on each other in a fight for their lives . . .
Mother of All Murders is the story of local celebrity Dee Dee Blancharde. Television reports praise her as a single mother who tirelessly cares for her wheelchair-bound, chronically ill daughter. But when the teenaged Gypsy Rose realizes she isn’t actually sick and Dee Dee has lied all these years, Gypsy Rose exacts her revenge . . .
Related: James Patterson's Investigation Discovery Thrillers In Order
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For a Quick Getaway…
The Coast-to-Coast Murders
by James Patterson
by J. D. Barker
A detective and FBI agent join forces on what seems like an open-and-shut case—but a new rash of killings sends them on a pulse-pounding race against time in this intense thriller.
The Inn
by James Patterson
With Candice Fox
The Inn at Gloucester stands alone on the rocky shoreline. Its seclusion suits former Boston police detective Bill Robinson, novice owner and innkeeper. As long as the dozen residents pay their rent, Robinson doesn’t ask any questions. Neither does Sheriff Clayton Spears, who lives on the second floor.
Then Mitchell Cline arrives, with a deadly new way of doing business. His crew of local killers break laws, deal drugs, and bring violence to the doors of the Inn. That’s when Robinson realizes, with the help of journalist Susan Solie, that leaving the city is no escape from the reality of evil—or the responsibility for action.
Teaming up with Sheriff Spears and two fearless residents—Army veteran Nick Jones and groundskeeper Effie Johnson—Robinson begins a risky defense. The solitary inhabitants of the Inn will have to learn, before time runs out, that their only choice is between standing together—or dying alone.
The Summer House
by James Patterson
by Brendan DuBois
When seven murder victims are found in a small town, the homicide investigation shakes a small-town sheriff to her core in James Patterson’s tense thriller.
For Sports Enthusiasts…
A year ago, unknown golfing amateur Travis McKinley shocked the world by winning the PGA Senior Open at Pebble Beach. Now he’s famous, he makes his living playing the game he loves, and everything should be perfect. Still, Travis can’t shake the feeling that he’s a fraud, an imposter who doesn’t deserve his success-and after a series of disappointments and personal screw-ups, he might just prove himself right.
A shot at redemption arrives in an unexpected form: a teenage outcast with troubles of his own . . . and a natural golf swing. As this unlikely duo sets out to achieve the impossible on the world’s most revered golf course, Travis is about to learn that sometimes the greatest miracles of all take place when no one is watching.
Private Games
by James Patterson
by Mark Sullivan
Private, the world’s most renowned investigation firm, has been commissioned to provide security for the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Its agents are the smartest, fastest, and most technologically advanced in the world, and 400 of them have been transferred to London to protect more than 10,000 competitors who represent more than 200 countries.
The opening ceremony is hours away when Private investigator and single father of twins, Peter Knight, is called to the scene of a ruthless murder. A high-ranking member of the games’ organizing committee has been killed. It’s clear to Peter that this wasn’t a crime of passion, but one of precise calculation and execution.
For Love Story Lovers…
Katie Wilkinson has found her perfect man at last. He’s a writer, a house painter, an original thinker-everything she’s imagined she wanted in a partner. But one day, without explanation, he disappears from her life, leaving behind only a diary for her to read.
The Christmas Wedding
by James Patterson
by Richard DiLallo
The tree is decorated, the cookies are baked, and the packages are wrapped, but the biggest celebration this Christmas is Gaby Summerhill’s wedding. Since her husband died three years ago, Gaby’s four children have drifted apart, each consumed by the turbulence of their own lives. They haven’t celebrated Christmas together since their father’s death, but when Gaby announces that she’s getting married—and that the groom will remain a secret until the wedding day—she may finally be able to bring them home for the holidays.
But the wedding isn’t Gaby’s only surprise; she has one more gift for her children, and it could change all their lives forever. With deeply affecting characters and the emotional twists of a James Patterson thriller, The Christmas Wedding is a fresh look at family and the magic of the season.
James Patterson is the world’s bestselling author, best known for his many enduring fictional characters and series, including Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Michael Bennett, Maximum Ride, Middle School, I Funny, and Jacky Ha-Ha. Patterson’s writing career is characterized by a single mission: to prove to everyone, from children to adults, that there is no such thing as a person who “doesn’t like to read,” only people who haven’t found the right book. He’s given over a million books to schoolkids and over forty million dollars to support education and endowed over five thousand college scholarships for teachers. He writes full-time and lives in Florida with his family.
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Jamie Canavés is a Book Riot contributing editor and Tailored Book Recommendations coordinator who always has a book in one hand. She writes the Unusual Suspects mystery newsletter, never says no to chocolate or ‘80s nostalgia, and spends way too much time asking her goat-dog “What’s in your mouth?!” Tweets: @Oh_Dinky.