I had to change this from 2 stars to 1 star because I just can't get over how BAD this book is. To start with, the book is not much of a page turner and the characters are not well developed. However, the part that really got me is the ending. The book promises a twist at the end that the reader won't see coming. I'll admit I didn't see it coming, but it wasn't one of those "whoa! I did not see that coming!" It was more of a "huh?? But that makes no sense!" It feels as though the authors just started writing without knowing where the book was going and then came up with some crazy ending for the sake of having an ending that could be a marketing tool for promoting the book.

Tom is pretty content with his life. He takes life one day at a time. He loves being able to pick up a basketball game with his buddies. When a shoving match at one of these games causes one of the other teams players to pull out a gun, Tom is the calm voice of reason that talks the kid down. Tom doesn't think about the ruckus again until he hears that three of his buddies are in a pile on the same basketball court. They were executed. Tom wants to know what happened and gets stuck right in the middle of all the action.

This is a good story with an ending that I didn't see coming. Another well written tale by one of my favorite authors. His books are usually a quick read for me which is another reason why I love them. I always seem to wind up ignoring things I should be doing so I can keep reading.

I have read several Patterson books, which I usually rate around four stars. I gave this one star, and that was a long stretch. Maybe because I sort of like the last two chapters – a little. Several reviews at the front of the book describe the ending; “The final twist is a honey,” “There is a doozey of a twist at the end,” etc. I found the ending is based upon a total deception on the part of the authors, and this deception destroyed the book.

This is a mystery novel. I expect the author of a mystery novel to create a mystery and then, as the story progresses, provide clues to the reader. Sometimes, I figure the mystery out and that is great. Sometimes, I don’t – in a way that is even greater. This implied agreement can be messed up by the author. I have read two Mary Higgins Clark novels. In each one, there were clues and several characters that could be implicated. Then, at the end, Clark drug in a minor character that was not implicated and, boom – it was over. All the thought and guessing at the clues were – poof!! wasted. So, I don’t read Clark anymore. I will say, in each book, the conclusion was believable, and she has a huge following of people who like that. Her work is just not my cup of tea.

In “Beach Road,” Patterson and coauthor, Peter de Jonge, lied to the reader to make the final outcome totally not expected – in fact, the ending is unexpectable. When the killer was revealed, I just sat back in my chair – astounded. It was a doozy all right. As I crawled from my stupor, I wondered if I had misread things, so I started back at the beginning, reading the information Patterson and Jonge gave about the killer. The killer is going to say and do things to put any suspicion about him or her away. That is expected. However, if there is a robbery and we see into Jack’s mind that he is surprised anyone one would rob this place, the author can’t make Jack the robber two chapters later. Not unless the author makes a case for Jack to have a split personality. Or if Mary’s husband has been shot and the author, through a narrator, tells us, after the murder, that Mary has never ever used a gun, the author can’t reasonably make Mary the murderer, unless she hired someone to shoot the gun. Throughout this book, in various ways, the authors put things in the killer’s mind, and put the killer in circumstances, that completely exonerate this character from any possibility of being the killer – in fact, they give the killer an alibi for three of the murders; and this alibi is not explained in any fashion at the end.

This character could be the killer, and that would have been a real twist if the authors had taken the time and effort to make it plausible. Instead, they made it a farce.

Another problem I have with Patterson; in this book he has 117 Chapters and it is divided into five Parts. In some instances, there is a chapter break in the middle of a scene. This story just goes from beginning to end; there are no actual Parts. Each chapter begins in the middle of a page and randomly ends somewhere between the beginning and ending of a page. So, on average, they end in the middle of a page. That means for every chapter there is, on average, one blank page. For each Part there are about three blank pages. For 117 Chapters and 5 Parts there are about 132 blank pages. This book is 362 pages, but when you take out the blank pages, it is only 230 pages. This is common for Patterson books. Patterson sells millions of books. Say his average blank page count is 100 pages. That means for every million copies he sells there are 100 million blank pages; that’s pretty sizeable chunk of a rainforest. Sooo, a good place for this book is the recycle bin.

All I can say is, this was disappointing.
Started 2018.05.14 - finished 2018.05.25

Beach Road by James Patterson and Peter De Jonge is one of many books that I read by Patterson. It takes place in the resort town of East Hampton Tom Dunleavy is a lawyer barely making ends meet when a friend, Dante Halleyville, is arrested for murder. Dante asks Tom to represent him. Additionally, Tom recruits his high school girlfriend and current Manhattan lawyer, Kate Costello, to help him with the case.

This book has some very current themes in it including race, drugs, poverty and corruption. It has the usual short chapters, but in this case, the chapters are told from a first person point of view by several different characters. The good thing is that each chapter has a heading with the character that's talking. However, the first third or so of the book felt somewhat choppy to me. However, the rest of the book was fast-paced and page turning.

There is a mystery here and it is also a legal thriller. There is a huge twist at the end. I did not see that one coming. Some people will think the ending is fantastic and others will think it is a total shock or disappointment. I have read a lot of mysteries and this is one ending that certainly surprised me so for that reason alone, I gave it an extra star.

James Patterson and Peter De Jonge return to Beach Road for this very very very good suspense thriller novel… an all-star Black college basketball player is seemingly framed for the murder of three white men in the Hamptons. His cause is taken on by two old friends, both former lovers, and as the investigation and case veer into race and class issues, the truth behind the murders seems to be drifting away under the hyperbole of the court case. With some terrific twists, this is actually one of, if not Patterson's best book! 8 out of 12. For once, James Patterson...

Nice twist at the end!

idk why it took me so long to read this book bc it’s so good and once i got into it i could not put it down

EXCELLENT, excellent, excellent ! It's been awhile but no doubt, this is a five-star!

Great book. Never expected it to go the way it did.

4.5 stars

Beach Road by James Patterson and co-author Peter De Jonge

James Patterson an American writer known worldwide as a bestselling author.
He’s fabulous. Love him. Love his novels. Love his generosity of giving over a million books to school kids and millions to support education. What a man!

Peter De Jonge is an American author who also frequently writes for The New York Times Magazine and National Geographic.

Beach Road was without a doubt really really good. Three page chapters makes for a fast and super speedy read. Bloody fantastic.

Hooley friggen dooley. What. An. End. What. A. Twist. I’m still reeling.

*Book #4 of the 2020 International male author challenge

*Book #52/72 of my 2019 coffee table to-read challenge, cont. 2020

James Patterson book written by Peter de jonge.
Another decent read straight out of the James Patterson book factory, usual formula, fast paced, short chapters and in this case it works.
An ok read but lacks the excitement of the earlier books written by the author.
There are better books out there in this genre.

This was one of Pattersons that I thought had a serious twist, even after my husband told me it did, I didnt see who the killer was! I enjoyed it, I saw some other peoples trash comments, and I guess i dont get it. I had not read Patterson for quite some time thinking I wouldnt like his writing as it was too popular, now I see the draw and will read or listen to more of his stuff. Love the beach feel to it too! Thanks for making me feel like I am at the beach when i am stuck in a midwestern winter!