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Topic: So can anyone tell me about Jester?

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I-F-Letty avatar
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Subject: So can anyone tell me about Jester?
Date Posted: 11/15/2010 4:40 PM ET
Member Since: 3/14/2009
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I kept seeing this book by James Patterson, never read anything by him, but Bonnie had a copy and sent it to me.  Anyone have an opinion?

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Date Posted: 11/15/2010 5:30 PM ET
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Last Edited on: 3/5/11 5:07 PM ET - Total times edited: 1
ALbookbugg avatar
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Date Posted: 11/15/2010 5:40 PM ET
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I had no idea he was writing historical fiction. Here's a review, in case anyone else wants to see what Jester is about:

From Publishers Weekly

Just who is writing the coauthored Patterson novels makes for interesting water-cooler chat, but whether the majority of words are contributed by Patterson or Gross, this terrific new novel is prime Patterson all the way, another step in the author's application of his patented storytelling style to a multitude of genres-in this case, historicals. The title character is, when introduced in 1096, an unassuming innkeeper in a French village oppressed by the local nobleman. To earn his freedom, Hugh de Luc joins the Crusades for a torturous, bloody march toward Jerusalem that occupies the book's first third and ends with him escaping the madness around him by deserting back to France, in possession of some minor treasures-or so he thinks. Back home, he finds that his beloved wife has been taken captive by the odious nobleman, and his infant son slain. Seeking his wife and revenge, Hugh adopts the guise of a jester in order to enter to the nobleman's castle, where he begins to fall in love with a young noblewoman, and she with him. In time, Hugh finds his wife, only to experience tragedy, and learns that the nobleman is searching for him, as he is believed to have carried back from the Crusades the greatest holy relic of all. Returning to his village, which has been destroyed during the nobleman's hunt for him, Hugh persuades his townspeople, then surrounding towns, to rise up in revolt against the corrupt nobleman and his henchmen. From start to finish, this is supersmart popular fiction, slick yet stirring, packed with colorful details of medieval life, bursting with unforgettable characters and clever tropes and themes. Patterson's fans will adore this one.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title./

 

Letty, it actually sounds pretty interesting! Maybe he's hoping to have a Follett-like historical that will sell millions of copies, just like "Pillars of the Earth"; not that he has a problem selling books, of course. Let us know what you think of it. I think I might have read a few Patterson books. Did he write the ones featuring the women's murder club? If he did, then I have read some of his work. If he didn't write these books, then I'm obviously confused. Again.

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Date Posted: 11/15/2010 5:46 PM ET
Member Since: 3/14/2009
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Thanks guys, Valli I will let you know, I am going to fit this into one of the challenges I hope.

Ruth, historical mysteries have fast become my favorite genre.

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Date Posted: 11/15/2010 7:28 PM ET
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Maybe he's hoping to have a Follett-like historical that will sell millions of copies

My thought exactly. Letty, thanks for being our guinea pig. LOL!

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Date Posted: 11/24/2010 9:14 AM ET
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I read Jester and enjoyed it. It is a Patterson book so it reads very quickly. I liked it.