26 Beauties

Women's Murder Club #26

by James Patterson

From the world's #1 bestselling author, the Women’s Murder Club goes searching for 26 Beauties—young women missing in San Francisco.

SFPD’s Sergeant Lindsay Boxer's best friend, Claire Washburn, is named medical examiner of the year. But an uninvited guest crashes the Women’s Murder Club's party: a concerned father seeking investigative reporter Cindy Thomas’s help in locating his missing daughter. And she’s not the only one. Lindsay’s been investigating the deaths of a Jane Doe washed up on a nearby beach, and a young woman found in Golden Gate Park.

What if all these cases are connected?

The answers lie with the 26 Beauties on the run and in the wind.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller, Audiobook, Crime, Suspense, Mystery Thriller

347 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 4, 2026

About the author

Official US Site
Official UK Site

James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, Michael Crichton, and Viola Davis, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.

Reviews

[Scott]

For most of you who read my reviews, you already know the following but let me be transparent. I read most of James Patterson’s books and have for several years. Some might ask why and that’s another whole discussion best saved for another day. I have really enjoyed some, liked some, and didn’t really care for others. On a personal level, I must admit that his Women’s Murder Club series – focused on the professional and personal lives of four women in San Francisco - has been very hit and miss over the last couple of years.

The first thing that struck me with his year’s outing - “25 Alive”- was that Patterson’s long-time co-author, Maxine Paetro, was left off of the cover. I wondered why, and when googling it I found out that she is indeed still co-author on the book, but was left off because of how a book is marketed and catalogued, wanting to emphasize James Patterson as the primary author since he is the reason the books sell so well. Gee, what a surprise… However, let’s not kid ourselves. Most readers are much smarter than that, but oh well. It is what it is and that strategy works well. When it comes to books, Patterson’s name is what matters.

“26 Beauties” focuses on the search for young “beautiful” girls going missing in San Francisco along with subplots for all of the members of the Women’s Murder Club that we have come to know and love.

Detective Lindsay Boxer has been assigned to investigate the murder of two young women - one washed up on a nearby beach and the other found in Golden Gate Park.

News reporter and author Cindy Thomas is approached by a distraught single father who seeks her help to find his missing daughter. He believes strongly that she was taken and not a runaway. Cindy is his last hope.

Assistant District Attorney Yuki Castellano is prosecuting a case against a neighborhood gang leader who shot a mini-mart clerk for not letting him sell drugs in his parking lot. However, the vicious assailant is putting the fear of God into Yuki’s witnesses, putting her open and shut case in big risk of being dismissed,

Medical Examiner Claire Washburn is facing a family concern. She’s been letting her cousin’s daughter live with her to ease the stress she’s been putting on her mother. However, the girl is gone all kinds of hours, mostly at night and not returning until the early morning. She’s also come into some serious amounts of cash and some rather expensive clothes and accessories causing Claire to grow concerned…

The good news is that this is a successfully established series that is nice to return to on a yearly basis. It’s a nice visit with what have become dearly loved characters that have become friends that have endeared themselves to us. We pretty much know them inside and out – their strengths and weaknesses. Their professional commitments and service to the San Francisco community. We appreciate their husbands and their contributions. These characters have been around a long time, much other Patteson characters in his Alex Cross and Michael Bennett series that also focus on fighting crime while maintaining a strong family foundation. They keep us coming back for that annual visit that helps ground us.

However, at the same time too much of the same can start to make things too comfortable. As with several of the last six to eight books, each of the storylines come across like variations on previously used storylines, which are starting to feel a bit prescriptive and repetitive. Let’s see if this sounds familiar to you… Yuki fighting a courtroom battle. Lindsay searching for a crazy serial killer or in this case teenage traffickers. Cindy running her own investigation and helping Lindsey find the bad guy with hopes of writing another book about it. Claire providing necessary medical information and playing the role of emotional support, this time for her family members. Oh, and of course, let’s not forget, the police officer spouses and FBI husbands, who support them both in work situations and at home.

Truth be told, as good as an annul visit is with the Women’s Murder Club, this outing feels like more of one major “A” plot and 3 B” sub-plots on a police drama television show than a full length novel. The major “A” plot started out okay with some interesting elements, but it got bogged down and a little all over the place (although I liked Alain Creasy and found him to be interesting). And for me, the ending was not as strong as I was hoping for. I felt that it was a bit anticlimactic and not very compelling. It was another Patterson buildup over 300 pages followed by connecting all of the dots and wrapping everything up in the last 20 pages. And with this one, there were elements of the major “A” plot that were not addressed.

As I said in my reviews of the last two books in this series, my biggest frustration is that this series could be better if Patterson and Paetro focused more on character development and took some risks rather than settling for retread formulas that are losing most of their strengths and uniqueness.

Overall, after all my comments on my long-term connections with these characters, as well as constructive feedback, I give it a 2.5-stars out of 5-stars (rounded up to 3-stars on Goodreads), but most of that is due to legacy and the relationships these characters have built with me rather than the comfortable state that their current storylines and weaker endings have been delivering.

Here to hoping your reading experience was more enjoyable…

[Laura]

I'm always excited when a new Women's Murder Club book comes out, and this one was a pleasant surprise. The last few installments just didn't quite hit the mark for me, so it was nice to find myself really enjoying this one again.

The mystery itself was pretty straightforward, and it didn't rely on any huge twists or shocking reveals. Even so, I was invested the whole way through and genuinely wanted to keep reading to see how everything played out.

I do wonder if the different co-authors James Patterson has been working with have had an impact on the series. I'm not sure why he doesn't seem to write novels on his own as much anymore, but this book had the fast pace, short chapters, and addictive "just one more chapter" feel that I've always loved about his books.

Overall, this was a solid addition to the series and definitely one of the stronger recent entries. I'm looking forward to seeing where the Women's Murder Club goes next.

[Brenda]

SFPD Sergeant Lindsay Boxer was investigating missing young women; the father of one such woman sought out investigative reporter Cindy Thomas at Claire Washburn's congratulations party as medical examiner of the year. But there were also two young women who'd been found murdered, in two different locations. The things all women had in common was their uncanny beauty. Was there a racket going on that hadn't rung any alarm bells as yet? Alain Creasy of Interpol had joined Lindsay and the SFPD in the investigation of people trafficking, his knowledge invaluable.

They had plenty of suspects, but no evidence. They needed something concrete. Cindy was going to write a book on the trafficking, so joined Lindsay and other cops some of the time. Meanwhile Yuki Castellano had a brutal case she was prosecuting, a struggle which frustrated her. Would all the cases align and be solved?

26 Beauties is the 26th in the Women's Murder Club series and once again James Patterson has nailed it! This was a complicated, complex and breathtaking set of cases and the Women's Murder Club worked well as the team they are. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and am looking forward to #27. Highly recommended to fans.

[Tim]

For me this began decently before descending as usual.

[Dee]

This was just what I needed!! 4.5⭐️’s!!! I enjoyed this one so much, well developed characters, super interesting plot and the storytelling was pen point perfect. Being a little bit of a crime junkie myself this was right up my alley. It was like Law and Order SVU on steroids. I really believe Olivia Benson is a real person 😂

Looking for your next crime mystery adventure? Then stop right here, this one will grab you from beginning to end. It’s a smooth almost believable ride and for that I say….Thank You!!!!

[Michele M]

It really kinda hurts my heart to give a women's murder club 2 stars. But this one was just boring. It took everything I had not to DNF. That is saying a lot for me with this series. Hopefully ill like the next one like I do the rest. This one just didn't do it for me.

[Marta]

The WMC is back! I really truly do enjoy the 4 main characters. Enough so that they are a group that I wouldn’t mind listening to their every day normal boring life stuff. Except these women have far from normal lives. They have exhausting lives and amazing work ethic.

It starts with a party in celebration of Claire being named medical examiner of the year. Then we have Lindsay and Cindy working on a case of missing girls and Yuki in the middle of a stressful trial. An Interpol agent, flying bullets, and a CRAZY old lady whose part in the book seemed so random that I chuckled to myself. It ends with a dramatic courtroom scene and another party.

While not the most adventurous, fast paced, or exciting of the WMC books, it wasn’t over the top like some can be and it was nice to be back with the 4 ladies and some of the other regulars from the books.

4⭐️’s for being back in the comfort of a much loved series.

Rating and review posted: 5/20/26
———-
After a bit of thinking, 3.75⭐️’s rounded up to 4⭐️’s seems more accurate than a direct 4⭐️’s.
Small revised rating updated: 5/21/26

[Betty]

I have read all of The Women’s Murder Club Thrillers and felt that this one fell short.

[R L HERSKOWITZ]

This book was much slower paced than most James Patterson’s books. It included police procedural (which I usually enjoy).

The story was primarily about human trafficking.
Human trafficking is extremely sad.
It is also a timely matter.

Yesterday (May 14, 2026) I read that the in the USA, the security has been tightened ahead of the FIFA World Cup to help prevent human trafficking.

Please read other reviews for other people’s opinions about this book.

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread)]

Another binge in a day listen from a favourite author. Love the murder club

[Carm]

Well… here we are again. Another year. Another Women’s Murder Club book. This was fine. Twenty-six books in, we’re mostly just repainting the walls and moving the furniture around. I suspect Patterson keeps a Women’s Murder Club edition of Mad Libs in his desk drawer and pulls it out every spring. 😅

[Krys | TheFxckingTwist]

This series ran its course like 8 novels ago. This newest entry is nothing but reheated storylines completely devoid of emotion and impact, comprised of such simple prose that it reads like its leaning into the literacy crisis.

Patterson die-hards giving this 5 stars:


I'm done with Patterson. It's not even fun to give him shit anymore. Thanks 2026! You've ruined everything fun!


Let's Be Bookstagram Friends!

[Mary Kay]

I’m a big JP fan but this was not very good.

[Vickie]

I really enjoy all of the Women’s Murder Club books and this one rates right up there as one of my favorites. The ladies are pursuing different cases, with Yuki in a trial with a drug-dealing gangster, Cindy investigating the disappearance of a father’s teen daughter, Lindsay (and Conklin) working on solving murders and Claire getting the dead bodies that are piling up. The action is fast and furious and the short chapters make the book each to read and engaging. The characters haven’t changed but they are becoming a little more cautious about rushing into danger without looking first or without backup. A new character, a detective from France, was introduced, and I think Alain was my favorite. He is a perfect gentleman with an intriguing accent and a man who knows how to handle himself in conflicts. Lindsay finds that out first hand when she takes him with her to a shady part of San Francisco. A good read, not mind-boggling or hard to figure out, but entertaining and totally satisfying.
I voluntarily received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions expressed are my own.

[Rich Cattarello]

Brilliant. Interesting book. There was lots of action almost to the point of being unbelievable, but I digress.The *Woman's Murder Club" goes searching for 26 beauties. SFPD Seargent Lindsay Boxer's friend Claire Washburn is named medical examiner of the year. But an uninvited guest crashes the "Woman's Murder Club " party. It's a concerned father seeking investigative reporter Cindy Thomas's help in locating his missing daughter. And she's not the only one. Lindsay's been investigating the deaths of Jane Doe washed up on a nearby beach and a young woman found in Golden Gate park. Everything is connected by a human trafficking ring. There's also a sub-lot going on involving a drug related shooting. Typical James Patterson short succinct chapters. I'm glad I read it. I think you'll like it too. As always, he's got some books being released in the near future I will be reading.

[Cheryl]

Quick read. I had pegged one of the villains about half way through. Action and dialogue were good. I haven’t read a lot of the Women’s Murder Club books, but I have enjoyed the ones I have read! I actually read most of this in one sitting but I had started it and my mom picked it up to read and thoroughly enjoyed it!

[Skip]

The Women's Murder Club searches for missing young women in San Francisco. A distraught father crashes a party celebrating Claire Washburn's award to beg for help finding his missing daughter, linking to a growing string of dead and vanished beauties. The main storyline is SFPD Sergeant Lindsay Boxer investigating dead Jane Does and missing women. A recruiter approaches these vulnerable women with fake job promises before killing or exploiting them. Lindsay and a French Interpol policeman uncover a massive sex trafficking ring, with a somewhat surprising ringleader. They race against time to rescue the missing girls, leading to a tense, violent shootout. Meanwhile ADA Yuki Catellano is handling a tough court case. This series has lost some of its luster in my opinion.

[kathy]

I really like this series and have read all the books in it. I even watched the TV show when it was on. Interesting following the different storylines with each character. I like how trafficking was addressed with young teenagers. Well done story!

[Marcie]

This book is truly awful. All of these books are formulaic, but this one wasn't even interesting. Might be time to give up on the series.

[Marianne Stehr]

As always a great installment in the series now to wait another year!

[Siobhan Savitski]

James Patterson’s 26 Beauties is a masterclass in controlled chaos, the kind of thriller that seduces you with elegance before dragging you into something far darker and infinitely more unsettling. From its opening pages, the novel moves with Patterson’s trademark velocity, yet beneath the relentless pacing lies an unexpectedly sharp meditation on fear, disappearance, and the fragility of identity in a city built on illusion.

What elevates this installment beyond a conventional procedural is the emotional architecture beneath the investigation. Lindsay Boxer and the Women’s Murder Club are no longer merely solving crimes; they are confronting the psychological residue left behind by absence itself. The missing women become more than statistics or plot devices, they linger like ghosts at the edge of every chapter, creating an atmosphere that feels simultaneously cinematic and intimate.

Patterson understands something many thriller writers do not: suspense is not created solely through violence, but through anticipation. Through implication. Through the unbearable possibility that the worst outcome may already be inevitable. The novel weaponizes that tension brilliantly.

The prose is lean without feeling hollow, polished without losing urgency. Every chapter lands like a controlled detonation, making the book nearly impossible to put down once its machinery begins turning. There is also a surprising emotional maturity threaded throughout the narrative, particularly in the exploration of loyalty, grief, and the quiet exhaustion carried by those tasked with chasing monsters for a living.

In an era oversaturated with formulaic thrillers, 26 Beauties reminds readers why Patterson remains a dominant force in the genre. He does not simply write page turners; he engineers momentum. This novel is sleek, intelligent, psychologically resonant, and ruthlessly effective.

A sophisticated, pulse driven thriller that proves the Women’s Murder Club series still has the power to evolve while delivering everything longtime readers crave. Patterson once again demonstrates that commercial fiction and literary tension do not have to exist on opposite ends of the spectrum.

[Denise]

Fast paced and engaging thriller.

Detective Lindsay Boxer investigates the disappearance of young women across San Francisco. The Women’s Murder Club must coordinate their police, forensic, and medical resources to tackle down a trafficking ring before more women vanish.

Trademark short chapters and high tension make the book speed by so I read it in a single setting. I love the series and the ladies of the club so it’s always fun to have a new installment. The characters collaborate well and get along and are still going strong with their friendship and their partners.

The story focuses on human trafficking but on a local scale in San Francisco. Bodies are found and girls are reported missing and the area of interest is the Tenderloin part of the city. An Interpol agent visits to help Lindsay and he gets involved in the investigation. There’s not a lot of depth about motives and the network of criminals involved, nor explanation of what those found were actually doing in the meanwhile, but the team gets their man after all.

Always enjoy listening to the audio book while following along in the e-book. The narrator, January LaVoy, does a fantastic job of voicing all the characters, including the accents. Listening definitely enhances my enjoyment of the story.

[Shannon]

26 Beauties
Women’s Murder Club, Book 26

I Picked Up This Book Because: Continue the series.

Media Type: Audiobook
Source: CC Public Library
Dates Read: 6/7/26 - 6/8/26
Stars: 4

The Characters:

Lindsay Boxer: Police Detective
Clair Washburn: Medical Examiner
Yuki Castellano: Attorney
Cindy Thomas: Crime Desk Reporter
Joe Molinari, Warren Jacobi, Ritchie Conklin, Julie Molinari, Jackson Brady

The Story:

Catching up on this series was one of the worst things I’ve done because now I have to wait a year for the next installment. I miss these ladies way too much. I will admit this was not my favorite WMC story but being back in this world made me so happy. This was a twisty case with a satisfying ending.

[Ben Arthur]

4.5 ⭐ - rounded to 5 for Goodreads.

Damn, I really wanted this one to be a bust. I feel like my Goodreads is just littered with 5 star reviews for JP and a few others.

These characters are too familiar and the story is too common for it to fail now. I really like the heroines of this series and the way JP doesn't discount their abilities because they're not the stereotypical protagonist of crime novels.

Boxer and her comrades had unique storylines through this novel which kept the pace going. When one was in a low, the others piqued. Those typical JP cliffhanger chapters keep you going back for more. You'll say "Just one more chapter" and all of a sudden you've done 350 pages and looking for your next novel.

[Natalie M]

Down the middle for me.

Positive: all four murder club members feature equally. Joe and the other husbands are involved - which was nice to see. The plot has substance but…

Negatives: the substance is glossed over and lacks depth. Far too many coincidences to be believable and it all felt like it was to keep the book as short as possible. Quality of the writing a little “meh”.

Average, 2.5, mediocre.

[M]

Gotta love the four women in this series-all professional, all work together when appropriate in the San Fran area and all have a good time together! This plot has a deep deadly backstory-sex trafficking-young, good looking girls are found murdered- one in the water and possibly many more. If a reader has not read these Women Murder Club series- definitely take the ride. Enjoy

[Brittany McCann]

Lots of great Women's Murder Club fun, but I had an issue with Lindsay knowing about what Claire's niece was up to and never telling her.

This one had a lot of great moments and a few rushed moments.

Overall, another good addition to the series.

4 Stars

[Lisa Traasdahl]

Very good - one of the better series books.

[Elizabeth Lian]

James Patterson, for sure!

The Women's Murder Club is back! It is the amazing, multi fabulous, hair razing, hold your breath suspense book as usual. This book is not as suspenseful as others, but it is still typical Patterson. You won't be sorry you've read it, enjoy! Liz/f S. Jersey, USA

[Mary Weikum]

Not my favorite in the series, but not the worst either.