Book Review: Jack McEvoy Is Back On The Beat

Fair Warning is a suspense novel by one of the most popular crime writers of today. Michael Connelly brings back a lesser-known protagonist than Harry Bosch. Jack McEvoy is a former crime reporter who is working for a service that informs the public of dangerous products, however a new serial killer draws his attention.

McEvoy comes under the scrutiny of police detectives when a woman with whom he once has a one-night stand is murdered. He decides to look into the matter himself and finds a killer who stalks women who use a certain DNA analysis service. He is reunited with a former lover, Rachel Walling, who at one time worked for the FBI. This isn’t McEvoy’s first rodeo with a serial killer, but it could be his last. Well, it could be his last unless Connelly decides otherwise.

Jack McEvoy has some characteristics that can be admirable or exasperating, which probably makes him pretty much like everyone else. The story itself is entertaining enough, but it does seem rather far-fetched at times. There are some irritating unanswered questions by the time the novel ends. I still ended up enjoying this one, but I already have a bias in favor of Connelly.

McEvoy comes across as a dedicated and reliable reporter, but he gets obsessed pretty easily, which is probably what is supposed to make him interesting. He does tend to keep making the same mistakes when it comes to his relationship with Rachel. I do like the idea that McEvoy is in a different living and working situation. What does make McEvoy more relatable is his career track. He doesn’t remain the same position with the same news service for very long, which seems to reflect the trend of today’s workforce.

Although the plot does seem a little outlandish, Connelly does ground it with a realistic sense of the news business. He was a crime reporter himself before his fiction career took off, so that understanding being reflected in his current works does make sense.

Michael Connelly has a large following, which he deserves. I don’t know if Fair Warning is going to be favorite, but it does the job as far as being an entertaining distraction from the stresses of the real world.

I will step even further out of the real world with my next reading selection, which is the beginning of Star Trek trilogy. The first one is Coda: Moments Asunder by Dayton Ward.