Wondering if it's worth it? Start with the first three. If you're not invested after 'Kiss the Girls', which is arguably one of the most tense and famous, the series probably won't grab you. Those three form a perfect trilogy of early-career Cross facing iconic villains.
They're also before the later books got criticized for shorter chapters and more fragmented plots. It's the series at its most focused and influential. Consider it a three-book trial. If you're hooked, you have a long, fun road ahead.
Be prepared for the family drama. A huge part of the series is Cross's home life with Nana Mama, the kids, and later, Christine. If you start with a later book where, say, Ali is a tech whiz kid, you miss the years of him being a cute toddler. That emotional payoff matters.
Some readers find the family scenes saccharine; others love the heart they provide. To know which camp you're in, you need to experience it from the beginning, where it's established as a core contrast to the brutality of his work.
I dipped in with 'Cross' (book 12), the one about his wife's killer. It was emotionally heavy, but it explained enough backstory that I wasn't lost. It actually made me want to read the earlier books to see the lead-up to that moment. So starting with a pivotal, emotional book can work as a powerful 'in media res' entry point.
You meet a wounded, driven version of Cross and then go back to see the more optimistic, earlier man. It's a tragic but effective way to frame the whole series.
2026-07-22 06:59:47
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“I want a divorce.”
The room stilled.
“Excuse me?” His voice was silk wrapped around steel. “What did you just say?”
“You heard me.” I said, getting up from the bed, holding the sheets tightly around my body as I walked towards the dresser. I opened the drawer and pulled out the divorce paper, handing it to him. His eyes darkened. “I want a divorce…”
*******************
Be with perfect Luna, they said.
Be the lover.
The wife.
The friend…
But what happens when a Luna no longer wants to be?
It is a challenge, an outbreak, and a direct offense to the order.
And Alpha Xavier… well, he was never known to like rules being broken…
Unless it was him breaking them.
Savage Sons Mc books 1-5 is a collection of MC romance stories which revolve around five key characters and the women they fall for.
Havoc -
A sweet like honey accent and a pair of hips I couldn’t keep my eyes off.That’s how it started.Darcie Summers was playing the part of my old lady to keep herself safe but we both know it’s more than that.There’s something real between us.Something passionate and primal.Something my half brother’s stupidity will rip apart unless I can get to her in time.
Cyber - Everyone has that ONE person that got away, right?
The one who you wished you had treated differently.
For me, that girl has always been Iris.So when she turns up on Savage Sons territory needing help, I am the man for the job.
Every time I look at her I see the beautiful girl I left behind but Iris is no longer that girl.
What I put into motion years ago has shattered her into a million hard little pieces.
And if I’m not careful they will cut my heart out.
Fang-The first time I saw her, she was sat on the side of the road drinking whiskey straight from the bottle.
The second time was when I hit her dog.
I had promised myself never to get involved with another woman after the death of my wife.
But Gypsy was different.
Sweeter, kinder and with a mouth that could make a sailor blush.
She was also too good for me.
I am Fang, President of the Savage Sons. I am not a good man, I’ve taken more lives than I care to admit even to myself.
But I’m going to keep her anyway.
When journalist, Bella Sinclair, was invited to a friends birthday celebration in the local bar, she imagined there would be drinking, dancing, and letting her hair down. What she didn't imagine- being sexual assaulted.Biker Alex 'Axel' Warner wasn't happy. He was supposed to be back in his clubhouse for the weekly party held by the club. He was supposed to be drunk, with the clubwhores begging for his c***. Instead, he was serving alcohol to a bunch of drunken adults, some behaving like children. That is until he spots the beautiful redhead dancing with her friends. What will happen when the two meet?Will Axel be able to protect Bella?Will he be able to protect her from herself?
“You are nothing but a slave, do you understand?” Alpha Alexei said, glaring at Scarlett whose eyes hardened in anger.
“That is where you are wrong” Scarlett said, glaring at the Alpha. His eyes were fixed on hers, waiting to hear what she had to say “I am no slave, Alpha Alexei, and whether or not you are Alpha, you are not my Alpha”
************************
Sold, beaten, and taken advantage of. Scarlett has fought for her life to stand strong and not give into the pain. But when she is sold to the Alpha, the Russian Pakhan , her life takes a turn like no other.
Would Scarlett give into the cold Alpha, or would the Alpha soften to the girl who he saw as nothing but a slave?
Ava Adams tolerated living with her stepfather and her douchebag of a stepbrother. She lived her life being maltreated by them until luck smiled on her and she got a job to work in the Kings'mansion as a babysitter. She was glad to leave the hell hole she called a home.
She got the shock of her life when she found out it wasn't a little boy she would babysit, but a grown up man. A very sexy, mouthwatering one at that. Fate brought Alexander King, the young billionaire and the master of the mansion to her. He got into an accident few years before and was not his normal self.
What are you doing? Read more to find out how their journey of love began and who made Alex that way. Will their love prevail? Will Alex take revenge on those who made him that way?
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This is the first book in an 8 book series of hockey romances. All 8 books have an underlying theme of ‘life after loss’. My first book is about Natasha, a librarian in her 40s who lost a sibling as a teenager and never healed, preventing her from ever finding/committing to love…and the hockey coach who is twice divorced and has given up his dreams of ever finding his match and having a family-until he meets Natasha…. Will Coach Alex's love (along with his superior skills in the sack) be enough to break down the walls Natasha has held firm for over two decades? The 8 books go through the different players of the team, all having their own versions of loss to overcome, with the captain (Adam) being married to a woman (who happens to be a teacher at Natasha's school) who has a terminal illness and will eventually commit suicide in book 6 and the series ends with Adam's own second chance love story….
If you're diving into the Alex Cross series for the first time, I'd strongly recommend starting with 'Along Came a Spider'. It's the first book in the series, and it sets up Cross's character, his background, and his investigative style perfectly. James Patterson does a fantastic job introducing you to Cross's world—his family, his job at the Metro Police, and his relentless pursuit of justice. Skipping it would feel like missing the foundation of a house. From there, you can follow the publication order, which lets you see how Cross evolves over time, both personally and professionally. The later books build on earlier events, so reading them out of order might spoil some surprises or leave you confused about references to past cases.
That said, some fans argue that 'Kiss the Girls', the second book, is a better starting point because it's more fast-paced and introduces Cross's dynamic with his partner, John Sampson. But personally, I think the emotional weight of 'Along Came a Spider' is irreplaceable. Plus, seeing Cross's growth from the very beginning makes the later twists hit harder. If you're a completionist, you might even throw in 'Cross', the later prequel, after the first few books for a deeper dive into his backstory—but definitely not first!