The Big Bad Wolf (Alex Cross, #9)

The Big Bad Wolf (Alex Cross #9)

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3.93 of 5 stars 3.93  ·  rating details  ·  23,683 ratings  ·  505 reviews
Alex Cross's first case since joining the FBI has his new colleagues stymied. Across the country, beautiful women are being kidnapped-to be bought and sold as slaves. Behind this depraved scheme stands a shadowy figure known only as The Wolf, a master criminal who has brought a new reign of terror to organized crime. With Alex's personal life in chaos because of his ex-fia...more
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Published November 1st 2003 by Little, Brown and Company (first published January 1st 2003)
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Community Reviews

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Sara
In the book The Big Bad Wolf by James Patterson, Alex Cross is working on his first case with the FBI that puts him and his two children in danger. Making it easier for his ex-fiancée too gain full custody of their son. Alex is first brought onto this case after a judge’s wife in kidnapped. Afraid that this kidnapping might be related to other crimes across the country were beautiful men and women are kidnapped and sold for slavery. Alex is added to the team of FBI agents to find the judges wife...more
Tom Barnes

Kidnapping is not unusual to top law enforcement and certainly not to the FBI.
However James Patterson has thrown a curve ball at the general kidnapping scenario. There are no threats or ransom demands of any kind. The several victims so far are gorgeous drop-dead model types that have no ties to the underworld; at least they had none before they were snatched off the street in broad daylight.
A man and woman are watching Mrs. Elizabeth, Lizzie, Connolly, gorgeous mother of three daughters, as she...more
Suad
Crime thrillers have never really been my genre of books to read and this book was no exception. One of my closest friends was reading one of James Patterson’s other books and told me to read it as well but I didn’t quite like that book, instead opted for this book instead. My tenacity led me to choose this book in its place, which I’m glad I did.
“The Big Bad Wolf” by James Patterson has got to be one of the most exciting, suspenseful and gripping books I have ever read. Patterson wastes no time...more
Colin
An Alex Cross book – this time he is in pursuit of the person named in the title of the book. I approached this book after being a bit disappointed in the last ‘Alex Cross’ I read, but in the end I liked it. The Wolf, in this tale, organises the kidnap of women and men for the pleasure of his clients and usually the victims don’t survive. Alex has been recruited into the FBI, and while on his induction course is taken out of the classroom and becomes involved with these investigations. The book...more
Chris
The Big Bad Wolf
By James Patterson

Amazing! Truly amazing. This book was absolutely puzzling and suspenseful in a way only James Patterson could achieve. James Patterson has succeeded in creating a remarkable, yet captivating novel in The Big Bad Wolf. This book was a five star book in my mind the moment I read the overview. In this novel, Alex Cross, a middle aged, new FBI agent who is also trying to decide if the FBI is the right choice for him or if he should go back to being a street cop, has...more
Nicole Green
The thing about series are that the story needs to progress somewhere to maintain the interesting aspect of the series. The thing about the Alex Cross series is that it is a lot like a crime TV show. Case after case after case with minimal story progression. I was excited when I saw that Alex was going to be joining the FBI, but was sadly disappointed by the fact it was the same old story, just a different career:

Alex is happy with his kids and Nana
Has a loving girlfriend, some trouble but it'...more
Carl Alves
Big Bad Wolf had a sufficient amount of tension and moved along at a nice pace, but what it suffered is that neither the plot, the situation or the characters were remotely believable. The Wolf is an ultra shadowy Russian mafioso who is invisible, omniscient and omnipotent. He can do anything he wants, any time he wants, and has no limitation on reach or resources. He's not a credible character. If you look at the history of law enforcement, the law officers know who the bad guys are, but they o...more
Book Concierge
Book on CD performed by Peter Jay Fernandez and Denis O’Hare

Alex Cross has left the Washington DC police department to join the FBI. He’s still in training, but his reputation precedes him and so he is tapped to lead a major investigation into a kidnapping ring. The criminal mastermind behind the kidnapping spree is a Russian Mafia kingpin called The Wolf. Brilliant, ruthless, cunning, and incredibly wealthy, he is always ahead of the FBI who bumble along making mistake after mistake. Only Alex...more
Ryan
This review is from:
The Big Bad Wolf (Hard Back)
Little, Brown and Company 390 pgs, $27.95
ISBN 0-316-60290-6

5 out of 5 stars: Suspense on every page turn, April 25, 2012
By: James Patterson

I’ve been wanting to read a book from James Patterson’s Alex Cross series for a long time now and finally did. It was more worth reading with every page. The cover is misleading, you wouldn’t suspect there being so much kidnapping, murders, and lust in the book, but there is. James Patterson keeps your atten...more
Ithlilian
I read this after I read London Bridges, which didn't really effect anything too much. I think I would have been more irritated if I read London Bridges after this because the characters acted clueless about the wolf the entire way through Bridges, yet they should have known who he was at that time. Anyway, the lack of any real detective work in these novels irritates me. Alex lets other people uncover things then goes after the bad guy and fails. Someone will turn up a piece of information, Ale...more
Jasmine Diaz
This book is about a man who goes by the name the wolf. He would hire men to go and kidnape women because he has a websit were men could purchase women for a high amount of money. These men kidnapp these weman and brings them to the owner. The wolf is very famouse but no one knows or has ever seen what he looks like hes a very smart ghostly man. Alex cross was on the investigation case and started trying to figure out to see if there was a patter in the kidnappings. He found out that there all r...more
Nolan
Thirty-seven-year-old Elizabeth Connolly is in the midst of a busy day. There are errands to run, an appointment to keep with a hairdresser, and one of her children’s birthday parties to plan and conduct. She’s pretty in that Claudia Schiffer way, and she looks closer to 30 than 37. Her world changes forever in the parking lot of an Atlanta mall where she is kidnapped by a man and woman with heavy Russian accents, and, with her children looking on, she is forced into her own car, which is driven...more
Jerry
"Untidiness" spoils otherwise great Alex Cross thriller!

Patterson's latest is typical of his best work: furiously paced short chapters; an edgy plot that keeps the pages inexorably turning; and thrills and chills galore as the scary action rarely pauses for us to breathe. And for Alex Cross fans, it's good to have him back, even though this book marks the start of his FBI career, a start that wobbles a little bit. For good measure, some family stuff is worked in, especially a surprise visit fro...more
Tony
James Patterson- The Big Bad Wolf (Doubleday 2003) 3.75 Stars

As Alex Cross adjusts to being in the FBI, he must complete the training courses and adjust to their different way of dealing with cases. The kidnapping of a judge’s wife brings in the FBI and Alex Cross finds himself hunting a Russian gang leader named the Wolf. The Wolf is using small groups to kidnap women and sell them to his select buyers for the purposes of slavery/sex. Just as they think that they have got him he eludes their gr...more
Erik Dogoldogol
The Big Bad Wolf written by James Patterson was a pretty good read. This is the first book By him that I have read and it was pretty good. Hes got a pretty simple of writing but his story was pretty interesting. This big bad wolf guy is a super rich drug lord/weapon dealer/ plain dealer. His problem is that he is also a slave dealer. Lately there have been reports of women disappearing and when he kidnaps the wife of a wife of a judge the FBI sends in their brand brand new recruit Alex Cross. He...more
Kathy
"Alex Cross battles the most ruthless and powerful killer he has ever encountered - a predator known only as "the Wolf. "Alex Cross's first case since joining the FBI has his new colleagues stymied. Across the country, men and women are being kidnapped in broad daylight and then disappearing completely. These people are not being taken for ransom, Alex realizes. They are being bought and sold. And it looks as if a shadowy figure called the Wolf - a master criminal who has brought a new reign of...more
Laurel-Rain
When Alex Cross first joins up with the FBI, he is assigned to a big case. One involving the kidnapping of men and women in broad daylight—who then disappear completely. The victims are being bought and sold, and the shadowy figure behind it all is a Russian predator dubbed The Wolf.

Every time the agents have a lead, they are stymied. They find and arrest several participants in this ring, but everywhere they turn, The Wolf eludes them. Each time they think they have finally identified him, they...more
Laura
Dear Mr. Patterson

While this book was an easy read, I must say that it must have been easy to write because you have done this 19 or so times before. This book was predictable up until the end. I do not appreciate the ending hanging there so that people will buy the next book to find out what happens. Sorry but that ploy will not work with me. I will not buy the next book. This cheap ploy to get me to buy book number 20 will not work. It wasn't even that good. And talk about drama, seriously you...more
Russell Brooks
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Amy (amyb2332)
I got about half way into this book and then I realized that I had already read it! I went through a phase at the end of high school, early college where I read all of the Alex Cross books (in order, in a row!). I was very tired of them by the end and haven't read / listened to many since then (6 or 7 years ago). I've been meaning to start this series again as I think they make decent audiobooks and I decided to not reread all the old ones but pick up where I had left off. I thought I had stoppe...more
samuel Flippin Northup
My book is called "The Big Bad Wolf" by James Patterson. It is about a guy named Alex Cross and he is now the newest member of the Washington D.C FBI and he was going to retire but he new girlfriend is on the San Fransisco Police Department. So now his newest case is that the world's most dangerous killer the "Wolf" is buying the richest people and kidnapping them and selling them to people who want them. He is selling them like slaves. That is all where I got so far. The reason hat I like this...more
Jennifer
This was the very first James Patterson novel I ever read. This is the book made me start reading Patterson, and I am so glad that I read it. In this enthralling tale Detective Alex Cross is working overtime to catch a kidnapper known as 'The Wolf.' People are disappearing for no reason. As it turns out they are being sold as slaves. Alex tries to do his best on and off the field. He has a son, and his ex-wife is trying to take him away. Alex loves his son, and is willing to fight for him. This...more
Brody
Mar 24, 2011 Brody rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: people who like crime and suspense books
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Villager
This has been my favorite Alex Cross novel so far in the series. The villain is truly worthy ... unlimited plot twists ... and I could relate a little too much to the story of a child custody case. The Wolf is a unique character and he becomes even more mysterious the further you go in the book ... up to the very end.

I've learned that the actual mystery in the plot lines of the various Alex Cross books can stand alone. However, there are elements of his life (his friends, Kyle Craig, his growing...more
Mark Patchett
I was looking for a gripping thriller with an inspiring lead character.

I came from reading a Jack Reacher novel so was used to following a bad ass.

Alex Cross is a wimpy, self indulgent and somewhat bland guy.

"I'm a nice guy"

"I like to help out at the homeless shelter on Sundays. My Church"

"Snuggle with my kid"

Is this some mushy family novel mixed in bizarrely with some sick crime?

Elements of the story where somewhat interesting, but in no way did I feel hooked at any point.

I had to stop reading...more
Vivienne Neal
This is the first time I have read works of James Paterson. I must say, this author knows how to create a page-turning and terrifying masterpiece. The protagonist, Alex Cross, is a former police officer who is now an FBI agent. His first assignment is to find a depraved criminal known as The Wolf who kidnaps men, women and young girls and sell them into slavery for wealthy clients. No one knows the identity of The Wolf. With Cross’s life in a turmoil, will he be able to capture this evil man? Wh...more
(´*•.¸ღBexღ¸.•*´)
Jun 29, 2010 (´*•.¸ღBexღ¸.•*´) rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: People who like mystry novels
Shelves: own
A series of kidnappings with no ransoms perplexes Alex Cross and his fellow FBI agents. Both men and women have been kidnapped in places like shopping mall parking lots and have later turned up dead. The victims were all tortured before they died. Apparently, they are being kidnapped by a Mob-type network and given to psychopaths who pay a high price to have them as slaves for their own satisfaction. The monster believed to be behind the kidnappings is a criminal mastermind known as the Wolf, wh...more
Robert
This book in my personal opinion is pretty good but not exceptionally great. It's about a man who is joining the CIA and he gets his first case, women around the country that are disappearing and the kidnappers aren't going to return them for a ransom. It turns out that the women are disappearing due to being kidnapped by a mafia like organization that sells the women to the highest bidder as slaves and the leader is a former Russian agent and Russian mafia who goes by The Wolf and nobody knows...more
Rudy
The Ending a Bit of a Let Down

This was my first James Patterson book. Yes my first, and I did enjoyed this book. I had the feeling that I was out of sequence with Alex Cross's adventures, but this story kept on track and I wasn't lost with the characters. I enjoy being educated when I read a novel and Mr. Patterson did an excellent job of the Russian mob or whatever they are called. The Wolf fella was a bit over done. There were lots of plot twists and interweaving of story lines. The only real...more
Nicole
I would give this one 2 stars, because it's from James Patterson's period of lazy writing, but it's an Alex Cross book. You have to love Alex Cross. Patterson fell into a rut several years back, just following the formula that brought him success with previous books. I stopped reading his stuff back then, but after nursing school, I grabbed this book for some fun, brainless reading. Big Bad Wolf was filled with unfortunate cliches and constant references to popular culture--but I still read ever...more
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The Big Bad Wolf  (Alex Cross #9)
The Big Bad Wolf (Hardcover)
The Big Bad Wolf (Paperback)
The Big Bad Wolf  (Alex Cross novels)
The Big Bad Wolf (Paperback)

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The subject of a Time magazine feature called, "The Man Who Can't Miss," James Patterson is the bestselling author of the past year, bar none, with more than 16 million books sold in North America alone. In 2007, one of every fifteen hardcover fiction books sold was a Patterson title. In the past three years, James has sold more books than any other author (according...more
More about James Patterson...
Kiss the Girls (Alex Cross, #2) Along Came a Spider (Alex Cross, #1) 1st to Die (Women's Murder Club, #1) The Angel Experiment (Maximum Ride, #1) Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas

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