The Scarecrow (Jack McEvoy, 2)

THE SCARECROW (Jack McEvoy Book 2) [2009] By Michael Connelly My Review Five Stars***** I have been a huge fan of Michael Connelly's works for literally decades. I re-read THE POET (1996) last summer, in fact a year ago this month. I have been excited about the release of FAIR WARNING (2020) in the summer of this year, and have been looking forward to reading it. Having said that, it is Connelly's third novel to feature Jack McEvoy, the hero of THE POET (1996) and later of course THE SCARECROW (2009). It has been over a decade since I read THE SCARECROW but I certainly recall how much I loved it. I felt like it would enhance my enjoyment of Jack's new adventure in FAIR WARNING if I were to re-read THE SCARECROW. I will readily acknowledge that it is one of my favorite Connelly works, in part because I liked the protagonist, journalist Jack McEvoy, and of course FBI Agent and former profiler Rachel Walling is a fascinating character. Another reason that I feel that this novel felt so genuine and riveting is the fact that Connelly actually worked as an LA Times crime reporter. The author's technique of alternating the chapters and points of view between Jack and the chilling sociopath who inhabits this dark and captivating serial killer thriller is superbly effective. The "Scarecrow" is every bit the genius and the sadistic psychopath when we compare him to "The Poet". Character development is one of Connelly's strong suits, well to be fair so is writing dialogue, and ratcheting up suspense and tension. I'm not sure Connelly has an Achilles Heel. The story pulls you in right at the beginning and proves to be "unputdownable". I loved reading it again after all these years, and it is simply an outstanding thriller. In any case, adoring fans over the past nearly a decade since this book first fit the shelves nine years ago have delivered far more articulate and comprehensive accolades than I could ever manage to do. I love Connelly and he is among my very favorite authors. THE SCARECROW is a 5-Star Read with no need to even ponder the rating for a millisecond. Bonus materials in the Kindle Edition I purchased included an in-depth interview with the author about writing "The Scarecrow" which I enjoyed very much. It is pertinent that in part the author intended for this novel to be a swan song for the newspaper industry. It was obvious to Connelly when he wrote the book that the internet was the future of journalism and that all facets of reporting were rapidly going digital. Obviously now, almost a decade down the road, his instincts were "spot on". I am ready to start reading his new novel just released this summer FAIR WARNING. It was a coincidence that I spotted a review on Amazon that was indicative that the recent release featuring Jack McEvoy is politically slanted. I am SO HOPING that as a former reporter himself, and one of the most successful crime fiction writers on the planet, that the niggling feeling I have right now is simply paranoia. I guess I will find out soon...

Great story line! Full of action and twist. I like the Mc Elvoy character!

Written in 2009 but still a fabulous book in 2026. That’s because it was written by Michael Connelly and he is not capable of writing a bad book.

I enjoyed the Brass Verdict, and I generally don't like Connelly's off-Bosch entries as much as the ones where Harry is present (though I will say one of my favorite of his novels is The Poet). What makes The Scarecrow worthwhile in my opinion, however, is two things: first of all, Connelly's created an interesting bad guy, and second, he sets most of the book in the newsroom of the L.A. Times, with circulation falling, writers being laid off, and the atmosphere of an extended wake where the revellers are themselves dying off as the party progresses. Since Connelly was a newsman himself for years, you feel that he really regrets the passing of this great institution, though of course he also sees it as inevitable and inexorable. It's a good setting and backdrop for the story. So our hero is Jack McEvoy, the main character from The Poet. He's moved from there to the L.A. Times, and been writing there for about a decade, looking for a story that will replicate his success with the Poet. At one point McEvoy (who narrates the story) tells you he bought a house in West LA with the proceeds from his book about the Poet case. As the story starts, Jack gets laid off, and has two weeks to train his own replacement, a pretty new reporter who's maybe going to move into TV work at some point. Jack isn't exactly happy with this, but he thinks that losing his job may force him to finish the novel he's been intermittently working on over the years. But then he fields a phone call, gets yelled at by an elderly black lady on the other end, and decides to look into her allegations. When he does that, a story begins to unfold, and things get a lot more complicated. I've always been a bit leery of the reporter-as-hero character in detective fiction (no offense intended to Mr. Connelly). Usually reporters are much more interested (in my opinion at least) in what makes a good story than they are in what actually happened. Connelly manages to get around that by making McEvoy more of a throwback, bucking the system and trying hard to write the story that he finds, not the one he creates. I really enjoyed the book, and I'd recommend it.

I have read all of Michael Connolly’s books. There isn’t a stinker in the bunch. I would highly recommend the series.

Lecture addictive

面白い。 スピーディーな物語の展開は読んでいて飽きることがない。 LAの新聞社に勤める警察担当のJ.マカヴォイがインターネットの急速な普及により、クビを言い渡される。 後任の女性記者と一緒に退職間際に起こった殺人事件を調査、記事にしていく過程で、その女性記者までもが犯人の餌食に。 かつての恋人だったFBIのレイチェルとわずかな手掛かりをもとに砂漠の中へと事件を追っていく中で、さらに新たな連続殺人事件がマカヴォイを待ち受ける。 主人公マカヴォイが様々な情報と推理を働かせて連続殺人犯を追い詰めていくのだが、ITで極度に情報が集約された近代社会の脆弱さにも気が付かされる社会小説的な側面も持った推理小説の仕上げとなっている。映画などでも取り上げられることがあるが、ITジーニアス、ハッカーなどにとっては仮想空間に保存してある個人情報などは丸裸も同然なのだなぁ、と思ってしまう。 一方、新聞を取りまく経営環境がインターネットの急速な普及により激変しているメディア事情を物語の背骨に置き、正統派ジャーナリストのありようにコナリーならではの解釈を与えたものである。 本編では詳しくは触れられていないが、レイチェルとの関係はこの事件の後、いったいどうなったんだろうか。 たしか、ボッシュとレイチェルは結婚したと思っていたんだが、、、。どなたか教えてください。これまでいろいろにボッシュシリーズやリンカーン弁護士シリーズを読んできたので頭の中がこんがらがっています。 なお、マカヴォイとレイチェルの関係や、マカヴォイがLAタイムスで働くようになった背景を良く理解するためにも本編を読むにあたっては、少なくとも「POET」を読んでおくことをお勧めする。

The bad guy is very smart and his plan is perfect. It brings out an interesting narrative because Jack and Rachel have to be smarter to catch the killer anyone doesn't even know about.

il libro è scritto benissimo. Ottimo linguaggio, trama avvincente sino all'ultimo momento. Davvero interessante

Always great to read Connolleys books