Chasing the Dime

Well the main character is not bright for being a scientist but things just keep turning up that he can't help due to his own stupidity. But great read. Couldn't put it down wanting to find out the end. How's he going to get out of his predicament? Definitely good.

It was an excellent book kept me turning the pages

I wonder if those critics who panned Chasing the Dime read a different novel than I did. Michael Connelly is a brilliant writer--one of my very favorites, right up there with James Hall and Dennis Lehane. His books are dark, full of atmosphere and fascinating characters whose lives impact the stories they move through. His works are not only successful thrillers, but like Lehane and Hall's works, also extremely literate. I'm always pleased to see a series writer write stand-alone books as well, and here Connelly moves away from his Hieronymous Bosch novels to introduce a new character. The criticisms that the protagonist Henry Pierce's actions are not well motivated seem absurd to me. Pierce isn't a Pierce Brosnan/James Bond superhero--yes, he is a genius scientist, but one who moves uneasily in social circles (he's just lost his fiancé through his own ineptitude in that regard), and furthermore one who bears an enormous burden of guilt at his sister's death--in short, he's more than a bit of a nerd (admittedly a high-functioning one!). When he tries to get in touch with a gorgeous girl on a porn site instead of the phone company, I'm not surprised at all. He comes to believe that this beautiful woman is in trouble and consequentially tries to help her--this is supposed to be unbelievable? I simply don't understand the criticism. The point is exactly that Pierce reacts in a way that most of us would not--it is that which makes him who he is, the guilt and the social awkwardness, and his curiosity. If Pierce were not the strange, driven character he is, not only would we not have a book, but Pierce would still have a fiancé, and his company would not be on the verge of a huge financial success, he would not have had to move out and get a new phone number, and none of the events of the novel would have transpired as they do. I found Chasing the Dime to be a superior thriller, up to Connelly's usual high standards. I won't discuss the plot details more, but the characterisations are well done and the storyline gripping and believable. I've not been entirely uncritical of Connelly in the past--A Darkness More than Night didn't work for me in spite of its wonderful title. But Chasing the Dime did, absolutely, and I look forward with great pleasure to Lost Light.

If the hero of "Chasing the Dime" were just another tough-talking PI, I'd be here complaining about the novel's clichéd plot. So what does best-selling crime writer Connelly do? He lets a world of intrigue, murder, and smut-peddling crash on the head of a lab rat who has no business snooping around alleyways or trading blows with thugs. .... You'll have to ignore your initial response (which will no doubt be of the "Why is this ...person doing this?" variety) and let Connelly warm up. With cleverly established motivations and riveting attention to detail, "Chasing the Dime" rewards your unhealthy curiosity very well by book's end.

With the demise of the dot com era, how can a novelist invoke high technology as the backdrop? Well, nano tech is still promising; which one could interpret as it never hitting the levels of hype that the dot coms reached. This book gives a nice peep into the vagaries of fund raising for a nano tech startup. (Indeed, of any startup.) The frantic search for an angel investor; the gimlet eye on the burn rate; the negotiating over (percentage) points of equity that the angel can get for his money; anxiety over bad publicity queering a deal...Connolly keeps the pace flowing. The protagonist is the chief scientist and founder of a startup, who find himself implacably manipulated by an unknown puppet master who seems to anticipate his reactions at every turn. Beatings, shootings, computer breakins, naked chicks. Gosh. An old fashioned whodunnit, updated for early 21st century Los Angeles. I suggest this to you. Read this book. But while doing so, squint a little. Strip out the high tech references. Then see the beautiful murdered woman, the sleazy, live hooker, the vicious thugs, the confused, clever hero. All by the sun-drenched beaches and boulevards of Los Angeles. Can you find echoes of Raymond Chandler and the whole LA Noir scene?

Henry Pierce is starting his life over. After his girlfriend leaves him, Henry moves into a new apartment and with his new apartment comes a new phone number...a number that belonged to someone else. Shortly after his new number is activated Henry begins receiving calls for Lilly, obscene calls from men wanting sex.Anxious to put a stop to the calls, but curious to find out find out more about Lilly, Henry begins searching for information only to discover the young woman mysteriously disappeared and nobody seems to care. Henry sets out on a quest to find out the truth about Lilly and the world she lived in, only to discover a world he's never known. A world of sex, escorts, websites, secret identities, and murder.The deeper Henry becomes involved in this world, the farther he is from escaping it and a wrong decision could cost him his life.`Chasing The Dime' is one of THE BEST thrillers I have read this year. The plot of a simple wrong number, turns into a terrifying ride of relentless suspense. From page one the reader is held captive in a race against the clock thriller that stuns with every turn of the page. It's fast-pace, gripping plot and creepy underworld setting will keep even the most jaded thriller readers on the edge of their seat.Michael Connelly is the leading writer of crime fiction, as far as I'm concerned, and his on-going `Harry Bosch' series is about as good as they get. But, when an author strays from writing their successful series, we as reviewers (and fans) become leery if the novel will be any good, well that is not the case with Mr. Connelly...three of his best novels are NOT part of the Bosch series, `The Poet', `Blood Work', and now his newest novel `Chasing The Dime'. Any reader not tempted to stay up all night to finish this novel is much stronger than I am, because I stayed up well into the night to finish it.`Chasing The Dime' will rocket up the best-seller list's, and prove Michael Connelly a master of the thriller/crime genre.A MUST read!Nick Gonnella