The Bishop by Steven James

Patrick Bowers, special agent for the FBI, has solved quite a few cases in his day, but this current case has him stumped. Teamed up with two women he can’t seem to decide between-Lien-Hua and Cheyenne-he must try to stop a pair of killers who have been leaving their mark around random Washington DC attractions, using misdirection every step of the way. Besides his new case and his relationship confusion, the biological father of his stepdaughter, Tessa, is seeking legal custody of her in a lawsuit. Tessa doesn’t understand the intricacies of life herself, since she is now wondering whether there is a true difference between man and beast. When it comes to criminal investigation, Patrick has to wonder the same things as well. With fake clues and no leads, the time is running out before true disaster strikes Washington DC…


In his usual epic and dramatic storytelling style, Steven James has weaved another complicated and deep mystery wrought with philosophy, suspense, and originality. Driven by good characters, this plot is only tarnished with minor missteps at the end.

Patrick and Tessa are the core characters of the series. They drive it along with their deep ponderings and well-developed personalities. Other characters are fine, but Patrick and Tessa and the true heart of the character base. The only problem with Steven James’ character department in The Bishop is the cheesy identity of one of the villains. Otherwise, I have no complaints.

As usual, Steven builds a strong case filled with dead ends, false suspects, and Patrick premonitions. Tessa’ philosophy adds no small addition to the series; in fact, I would miss her contributions if they were left out. One of the better points of the book is that Patrick’s relationship issues are not resolved. However, Steven may be purposely dragging the issue out. The showdown is the best of the series, though it may not seem like it at first. There is a deeper meaning that requires a second look, which then warrants an applause. There are unresolved issues at the end of this book that Steven will no doubt use to fuel a case for The Queen.

All in all, Steven James makes his books ten times better than they could be with his masterful storytelling abilities. While the originality of the Patrick Bowers Files may be coming to an end, I hope he does not lose to epic qualities he has demonstrated thus far.

4.5 stars

The Knight by Steven James

Steven James started out the Patrick Bowers files strongly with an abnormally good writing style for a rookie and with excellent research. Combine that with an Elite plot, and this author is unstoppable.

As Patrick Bowers prepares to testify at the case of his nemesis, Richard Basque, concerning Richard's actions in an abandoned slaughterhouse, he is still haunted by the ever-elusive Sebastian Taylor. But when he receives news of the untimely death of Taylor, Bowers is relieved.

But not for long, for questions of who killed him and how began to form in his mind. The deeper he and his team go with the investigation, the more complicated and powerful the killer seems. The killer is telling them a story, but Bowers and his team have to figure it out in time-or someone important dies.

Tessa, Pat's step-daughter, discovers her mother's diary in a box and begins to read it. The more she reads, the more she discovers about her real father.

Now when you look at my summary above, you wonder why in the world I would like a plot like that. Doesn't it go against everything I stand for in suspense?

Not when you combine that plot idea with a superb writing style, thorough research, imperfect characters, and an unpredictable end. The four components for a good suspense plot.

First, the story the killer is telling is a real, very obscure book that James dug up out of the past. How he bases the killer's patterns on the book is very professionally done and excellently researched. The fact that he even came up with this idea shows deep seated creativity.

Second, the characters he introduced in The Pawn and The Rook are better in the The Knight because they have developed personality and they remain to be imperfect. A character like Bowers is not easy to make because he can easily become perfect. A character like Tessa is not easy to make because she can easily become stereotypical.

Third, who the killer is and what his purpose is was a surprise to me. James has finally eliminated his typical showdown pattern. He made the showdown unique and unpredictable.

What James has done with The Knight has taken the series to a whole new level. The cutoff end makes the reader want to read more. The Bowers Files has become an epic, and I'm excited to see the end.

Sadly, however, the killer's stereotypical character keeps the book from being five stars. Few authors have captured the elusive art of making the villain, though he commits monstrous deeds, into a believable human character. Nevertheless, Steven James has made a name for himself in my book because he isn't like all the other mindless suspense authors on the market. He thinks and so he does. I can't wait to see what he gives us next.

4.5 stars

The Rook by Steven James

Special agent Patrick Bowers is back with another serial killer mystery. As I predicted, he is now following the arsonist that was released from jail at the end of The Pawn. Only, the plot isn't that simple.
He is also on the trail of another serial killer who likes to drown his "girlfriends" in tanks of water. On top of that, he witnesses a suicide by a brain-damaged homeless man and gets sucked into that case.
Tessa, his stepdaughter, is still hanging around, spouting her usual comments. As expected, she gets herself into another mess while poking around a tattoo parlor.
The whole stepdaughter plot device pops up to frequently in these types of mysteries. The male detective\FBI agent doesn't get along with the younger female in his life, and they go up and down throughout the series.
There is a convenient connection between Patrick's three cases, but it isn't absurd. It's realistic and disguised well by the good writing style.
This book should have not been called The Rook. It should have been called The Shark. The whole book is about sharks. It's only called The Rook to keep with the theme of chess pieces. James also forces the title to work at the end.
The serial killer character is, once again, not absurd. He has an interesting past and actually acts like a human.
Barring all these details, there is a sad fact about The Rook. It could have been five stars. James set it up to be five stars. But he didn't do it.
However, this book is still Elite because of the original answer to the mystery. It's one of the better plot devices ever used in a serial killer book.
It will be interesting to see what Steven James will do down the road in his career.
4 stars

The Pawn by Steven James

Patrick Bowers is an FBI investigator. He thinks he can capture every serial killer in the world. He thinks he's invincible. But he hasn't met the Illusionist.
The Illusionist is a powerful serial killer. He is extremely smart. His mental capacities are above average. He's definitely not normal. He stalks women and leaves chess pawns at the scenes of his crimes. Sometimes they are black; sometimes they are white.
Patrick Bowers is fighting his past by immersing himself in his job. He lives and breathes his job. He's completely obsessed with finding and apprehending serial killers. But when things start to not add up about the Illusionist, he starts to go crazy.
The book is partly a first person perspective of Patrick, and partly omniscient point of view of several other characters. Though Patrick is showed to the reader via first person, he isn't a very good character. He has flaws, but no personality.
The Illusionist is one of the best serial killer characters ever crafted. He is very realistic and thought out. He's so real it's scary.
Unfortunately, James spent most to all of his time working on his character, while he let the rest of the plot go to waste.
Don't get me wrong; the first half is exceptionally written for a debut novel. But in the second half, James loses the handle.
He begins introducing too many villains at once. There are too many unrelated things happening by the end of the book. It gets confusing and downright typical at the same time.
The other characters aren't really any good; they are merely plot devices.
At the end, James hints about the topic of the next book, The Rook. It could be interesting; it could not.
All in all, The Pawn is good for a debut novel. I'm interested to see what Steven James will do next.
3 stars