Getting Your Hands on Against Medical Advice
Against Medical Advice is the twenty-sixth book in the Alex Cross series by James Patterson. It came out in September 2018 and follows Cross investigating a serial killer targeting medical professionals. If you're looking to get a copy, there are several legitimate routes. The audiobook runs about 11 hours and 13 minutes, narrated by Chris Hill. It's available on Audible, Apple Books, and Google Play Books. The physical paperback typically retails for around $9.99 to $14.99 depending on the vendor. Hardcover and e-book editions are also widely available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Book Depository. I picked up the audiobook version on a long drive and finished it in about nine hours with a couple skips. The narration is solid but some of the dialogue tags get repetitive after a while. That's just Patterson's style in book form — heavy on action, light on interior monologue. You learn to roll with it.
One thing people ask about is whether the Kindle version has the same pagination as the print edition. It doesn't. The e-book chapter breaks align differently, which can throw off anyone trying to reference specific passages from a class or book club discussion. Just something to keep in mind if you're comparing editions. Also worth noting: the first printing had a minor editing error where a character's name was misspelled in one paragraph on page 142. Patterson's team caught it quickly and the second printing fixed it, but you might still find copies online with the error if you're buying used. Doesn't affect the story, but it'll bug you if you notice it mid-chapter. If you want the full Alex Cross series order to read this in sequence, it sits between Cross Justice and Cross the Line. Patterson's publishing schedule means the timeline gets a little loose across the later books, but the general chronological flow holds up fine. Just don't overthink it — the books are written to work standalone anyway.
