11 January 2010

Book Banter -- Void Moon


Title: Void Moon

Author: Michael Connelly

Length: ~450 pages

Genre: mystery/thriller

Where Word Nerd's Copy Came From: Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library

Plot Basics: Cassie Black is trying to live on the straight and narrow after serving five years in prison because of a casino robbery gone bad. But when senses a big change in the routine she's got laid out for herself, Cassie decides to do one last casino job. When she ends up trapped in the job during a void moon -- a superstitious time of night according the guy who set her up on the job -- everything with the score starts to go wrong. Cassie finds herself running from a Vegas "fixer" and having to use everything she's got to stay one step ahead of him.

Banter Points: Continuing on in reading all of Michael Connelly's back list in publication order, Word Nerd came to Void Moon, disappointed that it wasn't another Bosch novel. That said, she actually enjoyed this one. It was nice to have the female protagonist instead of Bosch or McCaleb or McEvoy. And, the really nifty part was that the whole story was about criminals -- there really weren't good guys in this one (it's still crime even if the people getting ripped off are criminals). The fact that Connelly had Word Nerd rooting for the bad guys (in alternating turns... the bad guy and the BAD guys) was some slick writing.

Bummer Points: Word Nerd liked the book, but it wasn't a home run. There's nothing specific she can put her finger on for what she didn't like, just that she didn't finish it with that sense of awe that sometimes accompanies books.

Word Nerd Recommendation: Keep reading Connelly. Word Nerd can't wait to see what he'll try next.

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