Private Games

Private Games, co-written by James Patterson and Mark Sullivan, represents the second book in the Private London series, which is a derivative of the broader Private series. Released on January 1, 2012, by Little, Brown and Company, this thriller unfolds against the backdrop of the 2012 London Olympic Games.

Plot

The narrative centers on Peter Knight, an operative for Private London, a branch of the international investigative firm Private, overseen by Jack Morgan in the United States. Tasked with providing security for the London Olympics, Private London confronts a major challenge when several team members die in a plane accident shortly before the event commences.

Just prior to the Olympics' start, the fiancé of Knight’s mother—who serves on the Olympic organizing committee—is brutally murdered by beheading. Meanwhile, Karen Pope, a journalist at The Sun, begins receiving menacing correspondence from an individual calling himself Cronus. This antagonist targets Olympic personnel he considers corrupt, carrying out high-profile assassinations and breaching security measures, including those protecting Knight’s residence. The plot intensifies through a series of murders and culminates in a surprising revelation that significantly affects both Olympic security and Private London's mission.

Reviews

By January 2013, Private Games had attracted varied but generally favorable feedback from readers on prominent retail platforms. On Amazon.com, 249 users gave it an average rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars; Goodreads showed an average of 3.72 stars based on 598 reviews; Barnes & Noble recorded a mean score of 3.5 stars from 345 reviewers; and Google Reviews reflected a 3-star average across 236 evaluations. These ratings indicate moderate commercial performance and engagement within the thriller genre audience.