Ali Cross #1 by James Patterson

My name is Ali Cross, and I'm the son of the well-known detective Alex Cross. He's going to be on trial soon for putting a man in a coma, but it was really an unfortunate accident. Also, my friend Gabe has been missing for several days, and I haven't been happy with the lack of progress by the police. I guess being a detective is in my blood, so I've started my own investigation. Gabe disappeared on his way home from school, but no one witnessed anything. I stopped by his house later to ask some questions, and his dad wasn't very helpful. The man scares me. Then, someone burglarized our house on Christmas Eve but returned my laptop and my parents' service revolvers a few days later. Who does that? My dad always says he often trusts his gut, and my gut is telling me something that makes little sense.

This book begins a new series and is a spin-off from the Alex Cross mystery collection for adults. Ali is truly a "normal" middle school student and doesn't have any super abilities or intelligence. He should be very relatable to most middle grade readers. His strength is strong determination to get answers, and he uses it to doggedly search for clues. This tends to get him into trouble, but he still keeps going. The subplot about his father mirrors issues in the world today. Alex Cross is accused of police brutality, and some members of the public and the police force have ignored his exemplary career and deemed him guilty. Some people are tired of seeing seemingly guilty officers get away with crimes they've committed. This book looks at the issue from the viewpoint of a wrongly-accused officer and his family. Ali gets some flack at school, and the book predictably includes the class bully. The plot moved a little slowly for me, although things picked up around the middle. The book used gaming as a communication tool, so that will appeal to today's readers too. Overall, I enjoyed the book very much and recommend you give it a shot.