Alex Cross

Alex Cross is the main character in Roses Are Red by James Patterson. He is a homicide detective struggling to balance a troubled personal life with the many obligations of his demanding career. The reader learns that Agent Cross has three children, two from his marriage to Maria who has sadly passed away, and a third with Christine, with whom his relationship is currently faltering. He briefly dates a woman equally attached to her job, FBI agent Betsey Cavalliere. Additionally, Alex has a doctorate degree in psychology, but chooses to remain on the police force because he enjoys the action it brings. This is a contradiction because he also realizes that it negatively impacts his personal life.

Throughout this novel, Detective Cross is engaged in solving a series of robberies. During the majority of the robberies one or more people are killed, so time is of the...