The Scarecrow
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4.4 • 1.3K Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Forced out of the Los Angeles Times amid the latest budget cuts, newspaperman Jack McEvoy decides to go out with a bang, using his final days at the paperto write the definitive murder story of his career.
He focuses on Alonzo Winslow, a 16-year-old drug dealer in jail after confessing to a brutal murder. But as he delves into the story, Jack realizes that Winslow's so-called confession is bogus. The kid might actually be innocent.
Jack is soon running with his biggest story since The Poetmade his career years ago. He is tracking a killer who operates completely below police radar--and with perfect knowledge of any move against him. Including Jack's.
Bonus materials include an in-depth interview with the author about writing "The Scarecrow" along with his exciting travel photos-plus a link to an online promotional video and links within the text to a fictitious website based on the novel and a teaser chapter from his next book, "Nine Dragons."
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Set in the crumbling newspaper industry during the 2008 recession, this thriller from Michael Connelly’s Jack McEvoy series finds the investigative reporter chasing the deadliest story of his career. The Los Angeles Times is facing massive layoffs, and Jack is one of many staffers who has been handed his walking papers. But when he discovers that the murder he’s been tracking may lead to a serial killer, he can’t resist making his last story a memorable one—even if he might not live to tell the tale. We love how Connelly keeps the reader a few steps ahead when it comes to the murderer’s true identity and horrifying plans, leaving us in a state of terrified suspense as Jack struggles to catch up before it’s too late. Combining the grit of hardboiled crime fiction with the adrenaline rush of a nonstop thriller, the novel throws Jack into one dangerous situation after another as he journeys from California to Las Vegas in search of answers. When this tightly wound tale finally landed at its conclusion, we needed to stop and catch our breath—but only long enough to download the sequel.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Bestseller Connelly comments on the plight of print journalism in a nail-biting thriller featuring reporter Jack McEvoy, last seen in 2004's The Narrows. When Jack is laid off from the L.A. Times with 14 days' notice to tie up loose ends, he decides to go out with a bang. What starts as a story about the wrongful arrest of a young gangbanger for the brutal rape and murder of an exotic dancer turns out to be just the tip of an iceberg that takes McEvoy from the Nevada desert to a futuristic data-hosting facility in Arizona. FBI agent Rachel Walling, with whom he worked on a serial killer case in 1996's The Poet, soon joins the hunt, but as the pair uncover more about the killer and his unsettling predilections, they realize that they too are being hunted. With every switch between McEvoy's voice and the villain's, Connelly ratchets up the tension. This magnificent effort is a reminder of why Connelly is one of today's top crime authors. 8-city author tour.
Customer Reviews
The Scarecrow
I don’t think The Scarecrow is as good a read as The Poet. It begins really slowly and takes some time to set up the plot and draw you in. Once that happens it’s a highly suspenseful second half. At this point I don’t think Jack is as well developed as either Harry Bosch or Mickey Haller. Bosch in particular has so much history to draw on and additionally a truly unique personality. I hope to see more of that in Jack as time passes. I think Connelly missed an opportunity in this book by not bringing forward any of Jack’s feelings toward his twin brother or his sister who both died tragically and could have shaped the character more.
The Scarecrow
Worst book I have read this year
Good read
Great book