Book Review- Michael Connelly- The Scarecrow

Michael Connelly- The Scarecrow (Grand Central Publishing 2008) 3.75 Stars

Jack McEvoy has cracked many a case wide open with his journalistic prowess, but now he finds himself being laid off for making too much money. Wanting to go out with a bang he digs into the case of Alonzo Winslow, a young punk who says he is being wrongly accused of murder, yet he has confessed. McEvoy must figure out just what Alonzo confessed to and in the process he discovers a connection to an identical murder in Las Vegas. In his search, he warns the killer of his hunt and finds himself a target as well.

This book took me quite some time to get into, and I found myself wishing for a better introductory chapter, especially from such a seasoned author. However, when it did pick up it really got intense. The plot moves a long at a fast pace for the latter two-thirds of the novel. I also love the characters in this book, and it is interesting to see how McEvoy does his job so well. Normally in thrillers we see ourselves hating the journalists, yet in this book we are engrossed in McEvoy’s work. I enjoyed seeing the return of Rachel Walling, and their tense relationship. It was interesting that Connelly did not try to hide the guilty party from us in this book, which made you cringe as they make wrong assumptions; this is different from Connelly’s usual style. Overall I did enjoy this novel and would certainly recommend it to thriller fans.

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Tony Peters

Kids on a Case: The Case of the Ten Grand Kidnapping

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