Book Review – Swimsuit by James Patterson

Swimsuit by James Patterson

Publisher – Little, Brown and Company
Category: Fictioin, Suspense & Thrillers
Format: Hardcover book
Publish Date: 6/29/2009
ISBN: 9780316018777
Pages: 416

Henri Benoit has many alter egos including Marco Benevenuto, Charles Rollins, Nels Bjorn. he is a con artist, master of disguise, cool, clever maniac, and a serial murderer. In the last four years, he has killed more than thirty times in Jakarta, Tel Aviv, Korea, Venezuela, Bangkok, Barbados, France, Denmark, and Hawaii.

Henri has no fingerprints on record anywhere. Brewster-North eradicated his life when he joined them. Danger is his thrill. He leaves his weapons at the scene, uses condoms to leave no DNA, and has no motive other than the money the Peepers pays him to let them watch. He is a contract killer who learns from his mistakes.

His crimes are premeditated, calculated, artistic. Their settings are cinematic backdrops for his movies. Kim, Rosa, Julia, Levon, Barbara, Gina, and Mieke have all been tortured and dispatched. Henri leaves no proof. Henri’s identity is unknown.

It falls to Ben Hawkins, ex-policeman now writer, to stop him before Henri kills him and his beloved Amanda. All Ben knows is what Henri told him when he demanded Ben write a tell all blockbuster life story, a guaranteed bestseller. Ben is puzzled by one question, “Why?”

Ben recognizes Henri as a delusional, narcissistic psychopath. He believes Henri has become greedy, drunk with the attention. He figures the lies glorify him as he invents his life story. He questions if Henri wants to be caught.

Ben knows Henri is highly observant. Ben also knows that Henri is watching. His bland symmetrical face could become any six foot, 160 pound, mid-thirties white male. Finding him is like looking for the proverbial needle in the haystick.

Ben is forced to seek help from the Alliance and confront its financier Horst Werner, a perverted voyeur perhaps more dangerous than Henri. When Henri is finally taken down, his byline “Is everybody happy?” makes Ben wonder. Did Henri made everything happen to be free of the Alliance, to change his identity, to lead his own life.

Even though I have told you about whodunit, this novel is worth the read. The plot turns and twists to its climax. Its ending leaves many, many avenues open….