The Scarecrow features not Harry Bosch, but crime reporter Jack McEvoy. McEvoy first appeared in The Poet and has appeared in minor roles in subsequent books. I was happy to see him with a book to himself.
Jack seems to have reached the end of his reporting life with the LA Times. He's being laid off in two weeks. But when a grandmother calls him out on a story he wrote involving her grandson, he decides to investigate a bit further. The boy is accused of murder, but says he didn't do it. When Jack finds evidence of a very similar murder, he realizes the boy could be innocent. He decides to end his career on a high note and pursues a lead to Las Vegas. But that lead has digitally alerted the killer and he's ready and waiting for Jack. Another familiar character, FBI agent Rachel Walling is featured as well.
Connelly writes taut, suspenseful thrillers. His plots are tight and believable. The Scarecrow is built around the demise of the daily newspaper and the increasing use of the web. As a former reporter, Connelly's descriptions and scenes ring true. With the increasing use of the web, comes a wealth of information stored online, and people like The Scarecrow.The background between Jack and Rachel also provides an interesting subplot.
It was interesting to listen to this in audio format. When you are familiar with a character, you have an idea in your head of how he should sound. Peter Giles is the reader on The Scarecrow. He is an accomplished actor, appearing on such shows as CSI, Cold Case and many more. His voice was perfect for Jack. He conveyed anger, shock, incredulity and many more emotions with his delivery. His voice was perfect to carry this suspense novel. I enjoyed experiencing this in audio format. (And I got to do two things as once!)
Read an excerpt of The Scarecrow.
Listen to an excerpt from The Scarecrow.
Here's some great Q & A's from Michael Connelly on the writing of The Scarecrow.
Harry Bosch returns in Nine Dragons, being released by the Hachette Book Group on Oct 13/09!
Want a chance to win a copy of The Scarecrow (audiobook) for yourself? Enter my giveway - ends Friday, June 19.
Can you believe I've never read any of Michael Connelly's work and I have 3 of his books in my TBR pile. I think I'll really like his work once I can get to it!
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