Along Came a Spider
Overview
Along Came A Spider is the first novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....

 in a series of books written by James Patterson
James Patterson
James B. Patterson is an American author of thriller novels, largely known for his series about American psychologist Alex Cross...

, about forensic psychologist Alex Cross
Alex Cross
Alex Cross is a fictional character, the protagonist in a series of books by novelist James Patterson.-Character overview:Cross is a Black detective and psychologist living and working in the Southeast quadrant of Washington, D.C...

. It was adapted into a movie of the same name
Along Came a Spider (film)
Along Came a Spider is a 2001 American mystery film directed by Lee Tamahori. The screenplay by Marc Moss was adapted from the 1993 novel of the same title by James Patterson, but many of the key plot elements of the book were eliminated...

 in 2001, starring Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman
Morgan Freeman is an American actor, film director, aviator and narrator. He is noted for his reserved demeanor and authoritative speaking voice. Freeman has received Academy Award nominations for his performances in Street Smart, Driving Miss Daisy, The Shawshank Redemption and Invictus and won...

 as Cross.
Alex Cross
Alex Cross
Alex Cross is a fictional character, the protagonist in a series of books by novelist James Patterson.-Character overview:Cross is a Black detective and psychologist living and working in the Southeast quadrant of Washington, D.C...

 is a Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 homicide
Homicide
Homicide refers to the act of a human killing another human. Murder, for example, is a type of homicide. It can also describe a person who has committed such an act, though this use is rare in modern English...

 investigator and forensic psychologist  investigating the murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...

s of two black prostitutes
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...

 and an infant. The women were slashed with a razor
Razor
A razor is a bladed tool primarily used in the removal of unwanted body hair through the act of shaving. Kinds of razors include straight razors, disposable razors and electric razors....

, their pubic hair shaved and their breasts cut off.

At Washington Day School, an exclusive private school, math teacher Gary Soneji kidnaps Maggie Rose Dunne and Michael Goldberg.
 
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