James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack (USA 2013)

From the Publisher:
THE FIRST BOOK IN JAMES PATTERSON'S #1 BESTSELLING MICHAEL BENNETT SERIES!
During a state funeral for a beloved former First Lady in New York City's largest cathedral, the unthinkable occurs. Armed men disguised as monks seize the church and seal themselves inside, along with more than one hundred of the most powerful people in America. The captives include world leaders, actors, TV stars, athletes, and politicians, and the kidnappers are armed with enough C4 explosives to blow a crater in the middle of Manhattan.

NYPD officer Michael Bennett is pulled into the standoff as lead negotiator. Despite the escalating danger, Michael faces an even more terrifying crisis at home. His wife has been diagnosed with a devastating disease, and Michael faces the prospect of losing the love of his life and having to raise their ten children alone. With his own life teetering and the lives of thousands suddenly his responsibility, Michael struggles to diffuse the tense situation fast. Yet the kidnappers' moves are impossible to predict, and they block every attempt to break into the cathedralmost as if they are privy to their deliberations.

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack. Grand Central Publishing, ISBN: 9781455599783 (August, 2013), 388 p., $9.99

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack (USA 2008)

From the Publisher:
During a state funeral for a beloved former First Lady in New York City's largest cathedral, the unthinkable occurs. Armed men disguised as monks seize the church and seal themselves inside, along with more than one hundred of the most powerful people in America. The captives include world leaders, actors, TV stars, athletes, and politicians, and the kidnappers are armed with enough C4 explosives to blow a crater in the middle of Manhattan.

NYPD officer Michael Bennett is pulled into the standoff as lead negotiator. Despite the escalating danger, Michael faces an even more terrifying crisis at home. His wife has been diagnosed with a devastating disease, and Michael faces the prospect of losing the love of his life and having to raise their ten children alone. With his own life teetering and the lives of thousands suddenly his responsibility, Michael struggles to diffuse the tense situation fast. Yet the kidnappers' moves are impossible to predict, and they block every attempt to break into the cathedralmost as if they are privy to their deliberations.

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack. Vision, ISBN: 0446199273 (May, 2008), 388 p., $9.99

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack (UK 2008)

From the Publisher:
The world's most powerful people have gathered in St Patrick's Cathedral, New York, to mourn the unexpected death of a former first lady. Then suddenly they find themselves trapped within one man's brilliant and ruthless scheme. Detective Michael Bennett -- father of ten -- is pulled in to the fray. But as the danger escalates, Michael is hit with devastating news -- his beloved wife has lost her battle against cancer. Grief-stricken, he has no choice but to carry on and try to save the 34 hostages -- and raise his ten children. With the entire world watching and the tension boiling to a searing heat, Bennett must face the most ruthless man he has ever dealt with -- or face for the greatest debacle in history.

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack. Headline, ISBN: 0755330412 (May, 2008), 407 p.,£7.99

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack (UK 2007)

From the Publisher:
A powerful and political thriller from the master of the genre. The scene is set for a huge funeral in St Patrick's Cathedral in New York. The rich and the famous from all over America -- and beyond -- have arrived to honour a former First Lady after her sudden, unexpected death. Then follows an attack that was three years in the planning. Hostages are taken -- the ex-President among them -- ransoms demanded, a couple of hostages shot to show the kidnappers mean business. It's all brilliantly and chillingly co-ordinated, and Michael Bennett, the detective in charge of the case, knows it will be his biggest ever challenge.

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack. Headline, ISBN: 0755330390 (February, 2007), 308 p.,£18.99

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack (USA 2007)

From the Publisher:
FIRST THERE WAS ALEX CROSS
THEN THERE WAS THE WOMEN'S MURDER CLUB

With the unexpected death of a beloved former first lady, the nation falls into mourning as the world's most powerful people gather in New York for her funeral. Then the inconceivable occurs. Billionaires, politicians, and superstars of every kind are suddenly trapped by one man's brilliant and ruthless scenario.

NOW MEET DETECTIVE MICHAEL BENNETT, NYPD
Pulled into the fray, Detective Michael Bennett-father of ten-faces the most sinister challenge of his career: a criminal who kills without hesitation and counters everything the NYPD and FBI throw at him with impunity. As New York descends into chaos, Bennett learns that the great love of his life, his wife, is battling a terrible disease and he may have to raise their children alone. Now with the entire world watching and the tension reaching a boiling point, Bennett must quickly find a way out-or become responsible for the greatest debacle in history.

From the #1 bestselling author who introduced readers to Alex Cross and the Women's Murder Club comes the beginning of a brand-new, electrifying series from "one of the bestselling writers in history" (New York Sun). STEP ON A CRACK is James Patterson's most fiendishly terrifying thriller yet.

James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge: Step on a Crack. Little, Brown, & Co., ISBN: 0316013943 (February, 2007), 383 p., $27.99