James Patterson - 2nd Chance

Little, Brown and Company

New York Boston London

The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Copyright 2002 by SueJack, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review.

Cover design by Jackie Merri Meyer

Cover illustration by Franco Accornero

Little, Brown and Company

Hachette Book Group

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New York, NY 10017

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Second eBook Edition: January 2011

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ISBN: 978-0-759-52707-2

PRIME PATTERSON: FIRST RATE ENTERTAINMENT. Pattersons richest, most engaging novel since When the Wind Blows. THE STORY RIPPLES WITH TWISTS AND REMARKABLY STRONG SCENES. But what makes this Patterson stand out above all is the textured storytelling arising from its focus on Boxers personal issues.

Publishers Weekly (starred review)

RE-ESTABLISHES PATTERSON AS ONE OF THE TOP MYSTERY-THRILLER WRITERS IN THE GAME TODAY. 2 ND CHANCE IS A FIRST-RATE THRILLER.

Grand Rapids Press

PATTERSON AT HIS BREEZY BEST.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

A SOLIDLY ENGINEERED WHODUNIT. BOTTOM LINE: WORTH CHANCING.

People

TERRIFIC A GREAT THRILLER. Whats not to love about a club formed by four women to catch a psycho killing newlywed couples?

Providence Sunday Journal

I CANT BELIEVE HOW GOOD PATTERSON IS. HES ALWAYS ON THE MARK.

Larry King, USA Today

PATTERSON BOILS A SCENE DOWN TO THE SINGLE, TELLING DETAIL, THE ELEMENT THAT DEFINES A CHARACTER OR MOVES A PLOT ALONG. Its what fires off the movie projector in the readers mind.

Michael Connelly, author of City of Bones

HIS CLEVER TWISTS AND AFFECTING SUBPLOTS KEEP THE PAGES FLYING.

People (Page-Turner of the Week)

DELIVERS A SHARP PUNCH.

Chicago Tribune

THAT RAPID-FIRE, IN-YOUR-FACE, YOUD-BETTER-KEEP-READING-OR-ELSE FORMAT WILL MAKE YOU FINISH 1 ST TO DIE IN ONE SITTING (barring World War III, a 9.1 earthquake or the Ebola virus).

Denver Rocky Mountain News

PATTERSON KNOWS WHERE OUR DEEPEST FEARS ARE BURIED. THERES NO STOPPING HIS IMAGINATION.

New York Times Book Review

Pattersons prose style is smart powering the plot along smoothly. Works to keep readers glued tight right to the end. A WALLOPING GOOD RIDE.

Buffalo News

[A] NEAT TRICK OF AN ENDING.

Janet Maslin, New York Times

A clever plot with enough LAST-MINUTE REVELATIONS TO KEEP YOU GUESSING.

Entertainment Weekly

JAMES PATTERSON WRITES HIS THRILLERS AS IF HE WERE BUILDING ROLLER COASTERS. He grounds the stories with a bare-bones plot, then builds them over the top and tries to throw readers for a loop a few times along the way.

Associated Press

A SLICK, TAUT THRILLER. Patterson keeps the pace moving at top speed. 1St TO DIE is a darn good book.

Orlando Sentinel

A good story with a murderer as twisted as any Patterson has createdand AN ENDING THAT WILL TAKE READERS BY SURPRISE.

Newark Star-Ledger

POLISHED, BRISKLY WRITTEN ENTERTAINMENT DELIVERS THE SPINE-TINGLING GOODS.

Sunday Oregonian

A SURE BET FOR A BESTSELLER.

Cleveland Plain Dealer

HES DONE IT AGAIN. CLEVER KICKOFF TO A NEW SERIES A GLEAMING MACHINE OF A NOVEL. Patterson isnt afraid to reach as a writer.

Publishers Weekly

If you want togaspscare yourself silly, GRAB JAMES PATTERSONS LATEST THRILLER.

Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel

PATTERSON, WHO FIRST HOOKED CRIME-THRILLER FANS WITH HIS SERIES OF ALEX CROSS NOVELS, DOESNT MISS A BEAT. The plot moves at breakneck speed. Patterson manages a fine balance and he keeps the reader guessing right up to a scary double-twist ending.

Memphis Commercial Appeal

PATTERSON SHOWS HES 2 ND TO NONE. Patterson catches us again with book in hand and fingers turning those pages just as quickly as we did for other favorites, Along Came a Spider, Pop Goes the Weasel, and Kiss the Girls.

Oakland Press

SOLID, THREE-DIMENSIONAL CHARACTERS newcomers to his work will be enthralled.

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

ONE OF THE MOST CREATIVE AND SADISTIC KILLERS SINCE HANNIBAL LECTER. There are surprises in store right up to the last page.

BookPage

PATTERSON AGAIN PROVES HIMSELF A MASTER OF THE CRAFT. Such a great book: every time you think youve got it all figured out, you realize the killer is still a step ahead.

Providence Sunday Journal

PATTERSON KEEPS UP THE SUSPENSE UNTIL THE VERY LAST PAGE and will have readers looking forward to the second installment in the series.

Booklist

READERS WLL ENJOY THE HEART-PUMPING PLOT AND ROOT FOR THE LADIES TO SUCCEED.

Midwest Book Review

THE RELENTLESS VELOCITY is guaranteed to hook fans of the bestselling Patterson.

Kirkus Reviews