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30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting theme but lacks a punchline..., 10 Nov 2003
Having read the synopsis of this book, I thought it had an interesting premise behind it. The story is about a Computer Scientist/Biochemist, Henry Pierce, who is on the verge of developing a breakthrough in nanotechnological microprocessing. Unfortunately Pierce is a workaholic, which has resulted in him being kicked out of his old home by his girlfriend to a new house in L.A. When Pierce arrives at his new apartment, he realises his new phone number was previously held by an escort girl, who now seems to have disappeared. The story basically carries on from there with Pierce intent on determining what has happened to this mysterious prostitute. I found the first half of the book quite tantalising. The story moved at a decent pace and with a good degree of plausability. Unfortunately the second half of the book, and particularly the ending, left a lot to be desired. Connelly seems to have gone down a path where the basic premise of the story, focusing on the disappearance of this hooker, is forgotten. In fact, the actual story is rather implausible and leaves a felling of "he could have done SOOOO much more with it". Connelly also goes too much into the depth of Henry Pierce's science, in my opinion. Although it gives the reader an understanding of the character of Henry Pierce, and sets one up for the reasons behind the ending, it does this by breaking the course of the main story. I found myself a number of times on the edge of a cliffhanger, only to have the excitement broken by having to read about how nanotechnology will "change the world". Another major downpoint was the dialogue between the characters. Much of it was rather wooden, I felt, and there just because it was necessary. Connelly's descriptive texts are much more colourful than the words coming out of his character's mouths. There were certain points where the characters were conversing in a manner which is highly unlikely given the circumstances they were in and their own personas. Saying all that, I did enjoy the book and will probably try one or two more Michael Connelly books. The themes of his books all seem to be quite interesting - I'm certain that some of them are superior to this book in delivering a punchline with their basic premises.
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by Michael Connelly
by Michael Connelly
by Michael Connelly
by Michael Connelly
by Michael Connelly
