The spellbinding No 1 bestsellers Along Came a Spider and Kiss the Girls introduced Washington homicide detective Alex Cross.

Now he's back - in James Patterson's most explosive and powerful novel yet. In the middle of the night, a controversial US Senator is found murdered in bed.

The police turn up only one clue: a mysterious rhyme signed 'Jack and Jill', which declares that this is just the start.

They are out to get the rich and famous, and they will stop at nothing until their chilling plan is complete. Meanwhile, Alex Cross is called to a murder scene only blocks from his house, far from the corridors of power where he spends his days.

The victim: a beautiful little girl, savagely beaten - and deposited in front of the elementary school Cross's son Damon attends. Could there be a connection between the two murders?

As Cross tries to put the pieces together, the killer - or killers - strike again. And again. No one in Washington is safe - not children, not politicians, not even the President of the United States.

Only Alex Cross has the skills and the courage to crack the case - but will he discover the truth in time? A relentless rollercoaster of heart-pounding suspense and jolting plot twists, Jack and Jill proves once again that no one can write a more compelling thriller than James Patterson - the master of the non-stop nightmare.