Friday, February 7, 2014

"RED 1-2-3" by John Katzenbach

RED 1-2-3 by John Katzenbach is about three women who have been targeted to be killed by a man who calls himself the Big Bad Wolf.  They are called RED 1, RED 2, and RED 3.  Just an outstanding read!  The Big Bad Wolf is fascinating in how he plots the killings and the three REDS are good in how they try to keep from getting killed.  This is a real page turner with just enough twists to keep you guessing.  LOVED IT!  The ending was priceless!  
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Karen's review, 4 stars:
RED 1-2-3 by John Katzenbach is probably the most unusual thriller I've read about an author/journalist who writes thrillers but isn't satisfied just to write them--he actually wants to live them!  He stalks three red-haired women with the intent to kill them all on the same day but when they find out they are not alone and join forces, the table is turned.  Throughout the book he refers to himself as The Big Bad Wolf and his wife as Mrs. Bad Wolf.  Other than his secret stalking, they appear to be an ordinary couple.  I felt sorry for the wife.  My favorite of the three Reds was Karen, the doctor, referred to as Red 1.  Red 2 was Sarah, a middle-aged woman who lost her husband and little girl in a car accident, and Red 3 was Jordan, a student who played basketball at a private school. 

I liked this one which had a surprise ending.  I liked all three women but felt sorry for Mrs. Bad Wolf, realizing she's been married to a killer!  I didn't care for all the detail, but suppose it was meant to show how ordinary their lives were.  It just seemed to drag along sometimes, but it had built up enough suspense along the way to keep me turning the pages and anxious to see how it was going to end.  It's quite a story!

WARNING--Spoiler Alert, Stop now if you haven't read this yet but plan to:
This is an odd thriller because no one gets killed except for Karen's two cats which really got me angry at the Big Bad Wolf.  But then, when I thought about it I realized that he would not have been able to kill the cats in the short amount of time he had been in the house because if they were anything like my cats, they would have hid when they heard the window breaking and for sure would have stayed hiding somewhere when the strange man came into the house.  He would not know their hiding places and cats hide very well.  Also, he killed them with a knife which means he would have had to hold them down which is not easy to do to an strange cat.  They run really fast!   

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. Happy Reading!

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