Along Came a Spider (novel)
U.S. cover
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| Author | James Patterson |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Alex Cross |
| Genre | Crime, Mystery, Thriller |
| Publisher | Little, Brown and Company |
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Publication date
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1993 |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 435 pp |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 25995508 |
| 813/.54 20 | |
| LC Class | PS3566.A822 A79 1993 |
| Followed by | Kiss the Girls |
Along Came a Spider is the first novel in James Patterson's series about forensic psychologist Alex Cross. First published in 1993, its success has led to eighteen sequels as of 2012. It was adapted into a film of the same name in 2001, starring Morgan Freeman as Cross.
Washington, D.C. homicide investigator and forensic psychologist Alex Cross investigates the brutal murders of two black prostitutes and an infant. Then, at an exclusive private school, math teacher Gary Soneji kidnaps Maggie Rose Dunne and Michael Goldberg. Cross is pulled off the murder case to investigate the kidnapping instead. Angry because he feels everyone cares more about two rich white children than three dead black people, he meets Jezzie Flannagan, the head of the children's Secret Service detail. At an old farmhouse, Soneji buries the children alive in a specially made coffin. Angered by FBI agent Roger Graham's contemptuous comments about him on TV, Soneji later impersonates a reporter and kills Graham. Meanwhile, Cross, his partner John Sampson and the FBI search Soneji's apartment, discovering his obsession with kidnappings, particularly that of the Lindbergh baby, and his desire to become a world-famous criminal.
Some time later, Michael Goldberg's corpse is discovered, and the Dunnes receive a telegram demanding $10 million. Cross, Sampson and the FBI investigate, and Cross begins an affair with Jezzie Flannagan. He is ordered to deliver the money to Walt Disney World in Orlando, wondering how Soneji knows about his involvement. A man takes him on a plane, flying to a small island and taking the money, but never delivering Maggie Rose. At the old farmhouse, police officers find the empty graves where the children were held. Soneji returns to his home in Wilmington, Delaware, where it is revealed he has a wife and a daughter.
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