Initially I kept thinking why nobody has the cellphone, why no one was using phone to check the breaking news, or tracking the suspect by the phone, and after few chapters I realized that the book came out in Once I got past that bump it was a smooth ride, a little too smooth for my taste.
Two crime stories were intertwined here and only when one is solved that we get the clear picture. While the characters in here were likable but, imo, were not mashed together well. And the cr 3. And the criminal was predictable after a certain point and I couldn't enjoy it more. Overall I enjoyed the first mystery enough to go and read second book.
View all 4 comments. Jack McEvoy is a newspaper reporter in Denver. When his twin brother, Sean, a homicide detective, is found dead in his car by what's ruled a self-inflicted gunshot, Jack decides he wants to write his story. But, the more he probes, his suspicions grow about it possibly being a murder.
As he continues his research, Jack lands himself into an FBI investigation that points to a diabolical serial killer. While this case is referenced in early Harry Bosch stories, Harry doesn't make an appearance her Jack McEvoy is a newspaper reporter in Denver.
While this case is referenced in early Harry Bosch stories, Harry doesn't make an appearance here. But, it's important to get the background on the case origins before Harry does get involved so that's why it is part of the Harry Bosch Universe. Now, regarding the story. This one is really different because Jack's a reporter, not a detective or private investigator so he doesn't have cop instincts. I had to check myself on occasion when Jack didn't react the way I thought he should have, like a cop.
That's a tribute to Connelly because I think he got it right as a journalist. In addition to Jack's first person narrative, we also get the voice of the suspect, which was pretty awful due to the subject matter but quite essential to the story.
I enjoyed this twisting and turning, around-the-bend-and-back case. I must admit to being a bit shocked at the ending, even though I had growing suspicions. The narrator was fine but I associate Buck Schirner with the Monkeewrench series so that was a distraction.
And, he sounds older than Jack. Otherwise, it was a very interesting story with lots of tangents. View all 7 comments. Jul 08, Georg rated it it was amazing Shelves: english , crime. I really liked this book. It has a strong beginning and a lot of credible characters.
What I liked most was the fact that it seemed to end on page I thought: Ok, not a bad solution, but a bit obvious. But then I noticed there were still pages to go. Finally I realized the end was not the end, but only a fake end, and then the "real story" was about to begin. Very strong and surprising until the very last page. Dec 03, Scott Rhee rated it really liked it Shelves: mystery. Some things are better left unsaid, so the saying goes. I personally disagree with that sentiment. Cancer used to be taboo.
So did adultery and homosexuality. Taboos succeed in creating an atmosphere in which feelings never get expressed and problems never get solved. Taboos generally make things worse. Pedophilia is, in s Some things are better left unsaid, so the saying goes.
Pedophilia is, in some ways, still a taboo subject. It stops conversations dead, makes everyone feel uncomfortable, and brings to mind nothing but disturbing thoughts and images. Of course, tactfulness and discretion is always in order.
Outside of memoirs and other nonfiction, pedophilia is not an issue many fiction writers are willing to tackle. The few writers willing to confront the subject matter often find ways of doing it subtly; bringing it up without actually having to bring it up. To explain: Connelly uses the subject matter of pedophilia to create a taut, edge-of-the-seat crime thriller, something which he succeeds in doing. He also succeeds in creating a thoroughly unpleasant read, precisely because of the subject matter.
Of course, I may be coming at this reading with a unique perspective, one that I did not have a year ago. Prior to having a child, I never fully appreciated or understood how truly life-changing it was to become a parent, nor how completely in love one person can be with another. I see my past and my future, and I see a hope for the human race.
I also now understand the intense feelings of protectiveness that inherently comes with parenthood. I would do anything to shelter and protect my little girl from the evils of the world.
Pedophiles are the natural enemies of parents. Whereas parents want to keep pure, pedophiles want to sully and contaminate. They are still human beings, albeit flawed, and, most likely, victims themselves. Nowadays, to that I say: Bullshit.
Pedophiles are evil and incomprehensibly so. Whatever possesses a human being to do something so ugly and inhuman to a child is beyond comprehension and beyond my sympathetic and empathetic capabilities.
I no longer care or believe that they can be rehabilitated, because I would never allow a known pedophilerehabilitated or otherwiseanywhere near my child. And, despite my Judeo-Christian upbringing and belief in tolerance and nonviolence, I would have no hesitation or guilt in defending my daughter, even if it includes killing a pedophile. It frightens me to say that, but it is true.
He and the reader are, I suppose, expected to feel shocked and appalled by her statement. She is, after all, an agent of the Law. She is beholden to upholding the Law and supporting the basic moral tenet that murder is wrong and unforgivable, and yet she admits to having no problems wanting to put a bullet in the brains of a pedophile. I found myself surprised to feel no shock or disgust at what she was saying.
I whole-heartedly agreed with her. There is no manipulation of emotions. He leaves it up to us, the readers, to bring our own sense of morality to the reading. While his investigative skills carry the investigation, the reader is never fully convinced that he is doing it for the right reasons.
Is he doing all this to avenge his brother, or is he simply hoping to find that Big Story, the one that may finally get him a Pullitzer Prize and a higher-paying job as a staff reporter for a newspaper like the Chicago Tribune or the Los Angeles Times? At other times, he looks like a self-aggrandizing asshole. Connelly refrains from making any editorial judgment. The killer himself is an interesting character study in duality.
I hated him, and my hatred made me uncomfortable. It is not a side of myself that I liked seeing. Sadly, this discomfort carried over to the rest of the novel, tainting what I would have otherwise considered an excellent thriller. I respect Connelly for not walking on eggshells and for telling it like it is.
I admire the fact that he was not afraid to be graphic when necessary because turning a blind eye to this kind of inhumanity is, in my opinion, just as dangerous as those who perpetrate this type of inhumanity. View 1 comment. I read The Lincoln Lawyer about a week ago and have been on a sort of "Michael Connelly marathon" ever since.
I like the writer and I like his books. I think I still like The Micky Haller character best of his creations but this is my favorite book "outside that series" so far. The Poet is a psychopathic killer who has been killing for a fairly long time. Not sure how long because see, his victims have so far been mistaken for suicides.
That is they were until one of them was Jack McEvoy's broth I read The Lincoln Lawyer about a week ago and have been on a sort of "Michael Connelly marathon" ever since.
That is they were until one of them was Jack McEvoy's brother. Jack is a reporter and as such the cops nor the FBI wants to listen to him, that is until he comes up with irrefutable proof that not only was his brother not a suicide but that his death is tied in with other deaths.
The story is very well constructed and the book is what is usually termed a "page turner". I like it greatly and highly recommend it. Well, as some of you who've read many of my reviews may know I'm really not into emotional stories. A romance will get the ole "heave-ho" from me in a heartbeat and if a romance or emotionally loaded character line takes over a book I'm still prone to "move on".
Well, the romance doesn't actually "take over" here but it does "weigh heavily". Now and then the characters do something totally illogical Also they have emotional baggage, I mean BIG emotional baggage.
If these people take a plane cross country they probably have to pay extra for all that baggage Still that aside it's a good book and I really can recommend it, I like it greatly. Read this a while back but had my attention drawn back to it View all 10 comments. Oct 15, Sue rated it it was amazing Shelves: suspense-thriller-mystery , serial-killer.
I am so glad I listened to their recommendation. This was an amazing novel Jack McEvoy was a reporter for the Rocky newspaper, who wrote about murder stories. Sean McEvoy was found in his unmarked car There was a note written on the windshield that said, "Out of Space.
Out of Time. It didn't add up! Then Jack decides to dig deeper He joins forces with the FBI to solve the mystery. The FBI began a manhunt for a serial killer who had claimed as many as seven homicide detectives as his victory. He was named "The Poet" because he left notes containing lines of poetry from the work of Edgar Allan Poe, at each murder scene, disguising the deaths as suicides.
This was an amazing psychological thriller, a serial killer on the loose It was so well written, and I was glued to the book from the beginning. If you enjoy reading mystery suspense thrillers with a twist You won't be disappointed. View all 35 comments. Jul 23, Arah-Lynda rated it it was amazing Shelves: i-said , top , Wow, from the opening line Death is my beat. Meet Jack McEvoy a reporter who makes his way covering murder stories.
Little does he know that the next story he will write involves the death of his own brother, an apparent suicide. Jack has a difficult time accepting that his brother Sean, a homicide detective, would take his own life, further still he does not understand his brother's last words, Wow, from the opening line Death is my beat.
Jack has a difficult time accepting that his brother Sean, a homicide detective, would take his own life, further still he does not understand his brother's last words, written by his hand just before death " Out of space. Out of time" He begins to investigate the possible meaning in that message and in the process uncovers other deaths and other quotes, left by a suicidal hand.
It would seem that other detectives also quoted Edgar Allan Poe in their final dying moments. As Jack's investigation continues it becomes clear that he is on the path of a serial killer of unprecedented savagery.
On more than one occasion as I followed Jack on his hunt for the killer I was sure I had it figured out. This one keeps you guessing, delivering unexpected twists and turns as you navigate the final chapters, most likely white knuckling each page at break neck speed.
A haunting and irresistable thriller! View all 6 comments. Not too much to say here except this was kind of middling. This was one of the earlier Connelly books and he ended up inserting these characters into the larger Bosch world novels later on. They definitely worked better in a Bosch book than a Jack McEvoy book. I think it's because I honestly did not care for Jack. Some of his insights as we find are incorrect. He ends up doubting everything and everyone and is focused on not getting pushed out of the investigation.
I also have to call BS that a Not too much to say here except this was kind of middling. I also have to call BS that a reporter would even be allowed into a FBI manhunt for a serial killer but of course it makes sense when you get to the ending. When Jack starts digging though, he ties his brother's investigation into a cold case to links to other suicides of police with cases they could not solve. When Jack stumbles upon a probable serial killer, he is pulled into the FBI investigation.
Connelly also explores another point of view in this story, we follow William Gladden who is a pedophile that a link to the cases that Jack and the FBI is trying to solve. The character of Jack, eh. I really didn't care for him. Comparing him to Bosch he was definitely just okay. Having an entire book about him and his hunt for the truth was kind of boring. I think mostly because Jack's reasons for staying involved with the case were not really noble. He says it's for his brother, but really it's for the story and glory of what he is getting involved with.
His "insights" into things was laughable too. He goes and pesters people and starts notes, but when he is working with Rachel and others, they are the ones who are putting things together. I also didn't like the relationship with Rachel, probably because Jack was questioning it and her almost immediately about what did it mean and were they together.
He seemed to be written in a way to fit whatever Connelly was trying to do and not really as a developed character. The Jack we meet at the beginning of the book didn't really seem the relationship type. The other characters are so-so with regards to development.
Gladden was developed very well and his sections were hard to read. Ballard swiftly concludes that the deadly bullet could not have fallen from the sky and connects it with another unsolved murder - a case at one time worked by Detective Harry Bosch.
Meanwhile, Ballard still hunts a fiendish pair of serial rapists, the Midnight Men, who have been terrorising women and leaving no trace. Finding herself up against deadly inertia and foundering morale in a police department ravaged by the pandemic and recent riots, Ballard must look outside to the one detective she can count on: Harry Bosch. John Grisham Author. James Author. Jeffery Deaver Author. William Kent Krueger Author. Jonathan Kellerman Author.
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