Roses Are Red, Violets Are Blue

"Violets Are Blue (pix) " is a novel in continuation with "Roses Are Red (pix) " by James Patterson (pix). Both books are about the hunt for a psychopath criminal who labels himself the Mastermind.
While "Roses Are Red" is about bank robberies and murders, "Violets Are Blue" centers on murder cases committed by modern-day vampires. In the former book, we saw that Alex Cross, a homicide detective in DC, failed to drag the heartless killer to the face of justice after he was responsible for the slaughtering of quite a number of innocent family members of the bank managers. And he still can remember vividly how his female partner, Betsey Cavalierre, had been gruesomely violated and murdered in her own house. While he's always in constant fear for his safety, he's also aware that his children's and Nana's lives are at stake. His first wife, Maria, had died in an unsolved murder case, leaving him with two children, Jannie and Damon. He also has another child, Alex Jr, with a teacher named Christine Johnson. Christine decided not to stay with him after the kidnapping incident that befell her not long ago. She left him with the baby and old Nana Mama takes care of them while he's away for work.
"Violets Are Blue" starts off with two persons being found killed at Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Both of them are a couple. Sharp, deep bite marks are found all over the male victim's body and it's believed that they are made by a large carnivorous animal. There are bites on the female victim too, but they are not as distinct. Both the victims are hung by their feet from an oak tree when they are first sighted. It's because of this that they lose most of their blood by the time they are spotted. This merciless murder is followed by another one. The victim is a teenage girl. She's found hanging from a cypress tree by her bare feet with most of her blood drained. Meanwhile at Mill Valley, two lawyers are found hanging upside down from a rack used to hold copper pots. At Chateau Mormont Hotel, an old record company executive is discovered hanging from a lighting fixture, with bites on his neck. In all of these cases, none of the victims have their possessions stolen. It's obvious that the killers are not interested in money. Instead, they want blood to quench their thirst.
We are then being led into the lives of two brothers, William and Michael Alexandra. They have a white tiger as their pet and occasionally they go out and hunt for human prey with it. Both of them wear sharp fangs for their canine teeth and they are used for piercing the flesh on their victims' necks so that they are able to drink blood from their carotid arteries. When live preys are hard to look for, they will search for dead ones in morgues in order to satisfy their lust for blood. To vampires, drinking blood will be able to restore their energy and also make them superior to the person they withdraw blood from.
There are two famous magicians (Daniel and Charles) who are also leading a vampire lifestyle. Over the years, they have been travelling from one place to another, not only to perform in circus, but also in search for new preys. And they've been practicing it for almost a dozen years yet remain uncaught, at least until now. Just as the police force is about to lay their hands on them, they are found dead in their house. They've been murdered by more powerful vampires, the Alexandra brothers, who are being puppetted by the Mastermind all along.
Gradually, pieces of puzzles begin to come together and the identity of the Mastermind is unraveled. It's none other than the competent FBI agent and also a close friend of Alex Cross, Kyle Craig. It doesn't come as a surprise as the author has already mentioned it in the ending part of "Roses Are Red". What's left for question is the reason the murderer commits all those heinous acts.
Those who have read "Roses Are Red" should also read "Violets Are Blue" for a complete story. Both books are quite good though I wouldn't say that each and every page is equally entertaining.