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ingo_lembcke's review against another edition
4.0
Price was ok, I waited for long time for it to sink further, it did not, and I finally caved today and bought it, after reading the blurb / praise from unknown authors who best are forgotten ... . At least it is about a serial killer, so I hope for good entertainment.
At 73% I guessed the killer, and I was mostly right.
A few nice twists, but not in the beginning up to maybe 30-40% way to many important people playing a role, and even with some nice surprises not enough suspense for me, I am not so good with names, so I had trouble remembering who was what where with the 2 crime-scenes and two sets of cops.
Nice, bloody ending, with a surprising body count.
A little romance, no real sex scenes, straying into LGBT with the gender of the killer.
As this book was about a computer-game-constructing firm and computers, networks, firewalls etc. played a certain role, as a retired IT-Helpdesk-Slave I would have liked a more technical jargon and more details, for the layperson that could have been explained after the book in an X-ray (Kindle) or Glossary (even for a few expressions or words, I would have liked a Glossary). At one point near the end when the power was down it was asked how long the computers ran on battery, so they had implied UPS (uninterruptible power supply) connected, but given that they also had a generator for such a power failure, that could and should have been mentioned. The technology as mentioned was correct, but mostly because it was never very detailed, just the general terms (Firewall, hacking etc).
This was published a few years before the iPhone (or smartphones in general), but that is not too obvious, and I guess the phones at that time had no light. Today and even 2 or 3 years back you would just have switched on your phone for lack of a flashlight.
For a first in the series good enough to make me want to read the next book in the series, but not too soon. So a solid 4 stars it is, recommended.
At 73% I guessed the killer, and I was mostly right.
A few nice twists, but not in the beginning up to maybe 30-40% way to many important people playing a role, and even with some nice surprises not enough suspense for me, I am not so good with names, so I had trouble remembering who was what where with the 2 crime-scenes and two sets of cops.
Nice, bloody ending, with a surprising body count.
A little romance, no real sex scenes, straying into LGBT with the gender of the killer.
As this book was about a computer-game-constructing firm and computers, networks, firewalls etc. played a certain role, as a retired IT-Helpdesk-Slave I would have liked a more technical jargon and more details, for the layperson that could have been explained after the book in an X-ray (Kindle) or Glossary (even for a few expressions or words, I would have liked a Glossary). At one point near the end when the power was down it was asked how long the computers ran on battery, so they had implied UPS (uninterruptible power supply) connected, but given that they also had a generator for such a power failure, that could and should have been mentioned. The technology as mentioned was correct, but mostly because it was never very detailed, just the general terms (Firewall, hacking etc).
This was published a few years before the iPhone (or smartphones in general), but that is not too obvious, and I guess the phones at that time had no light. Today and even 2 or 3 years back you would just have switched on your phone for lack of a flashlight.
For a first in the series good enough to make me want to read the next book in the series, but not too soon. So a solid 4 stars it is, recommended.
trudy1963's review against another edition
5.0
Great book! The characters are great. The main characters are a police officer and a female computer geek. The supporting characters are the best. They remind me of the Stephanie Plum novels in the sense that the supporting characters add a whole new dimension to the plot and allow the main characters to be who they need to be and not everything to everyone. Highly recommend.
kathadrion's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed Monkeewrench. It’s a great debut novel.
At first I thought it would get confusing, trying to keep track of a fairly large number of main characters, but it’s really not. I think it helps that the different groups of characters stay apart for quite a while, so that by the time they are all brought together I felt that I knew them well enough not to get them all mixed up.
I did like all the characters a lot. Magozzi and Gino are fairly standard as far as crime fiction homicide detectives go, but likeable all the same. Sheriff Halloran and Bonar are also pretty standard, yet likeable. All liked all four of them, but the characters who really carry this novel and make it great, are without a doubt the Monkeewrenchers. They’re all complete weirdos and therefore memorable, with kickass computer skills and a really interesting backstory to boot.
As far as the plot goes, I liked that one a lot as well. The plot is interesting and keeps you guessing throughout most of the book. Gradually finding out how the different parts of the plot all fit together was great, and I loved reading about the Monkeewrenchers’ backstory as well. I did sort of figure out who the murderer was maybe ten or so pages before it was revealed, but that just added to the tension in my opinion.
All in all, Monkeewrench, is a really good crime novel, especially for a debut novel. The characters are great, the plot caught my interest right from the start, and it’s a great start to the series.
At first I thought it would get confusing, trying to keep track of a fairly large number of main characters, but it’s really not. I think it helps that the different groups of characters stay apart for quite a while, so that by the time they are all brought together I felt that I knew them well enough not to get them all mixed up.
I did like all the characters a lot. Magozzi and Gino are fairly standard as far as crime fiction homicide detectives go, but likeable all the same. Sheriff Halloran and Bonar are also pretty standard, yet likeable. All liked all four of them, but the characters who really carry this novel and make it great, are without a doubt the Monkeewrenchers. They’re all complete weirdos and therefore memorable, with kickass computer skills and a really interesting backstory to boot.
As far as the plot goes, I liked that one a lot as well. The plot is interesting and keeps you guessing throughout most of the book. Gradually finding out how the different parts of the plot all fit together was great, and I loved reading about the Monkeewrenchers’ backstory as well. I did sort of figure out who the murderer was maybe ten or so pages before it was revealed, but that just added to the tension in my opinion.
All in all, Monkeewrench, is a really good crime novel, especially for a debut novel. The characters are great, the plot caught my interest right from the start, and it’s a great start to the series.
book_concierge's review against another edition
3.0
Audio book performed by Buck Shirner.
3.5***
On a particularly cold October morning a priest in a small Wisconsin town discovers his two most devoted parishioners have been murdered while in their pew. As the sheriff begins his investigation he soon discovers that they have a mysterious past, and were obviously afraid of someone or something. Meanwhile in Minneapolis / St Paul, a serial killer is recreating the scenes in a newly popular web-based game. The Monkeewrench crew – a group of high intelligent computer geeks who develop computer games – is first to recognize the connection, but as soon as they go to the police they find themselves considered suspects rather than potentially valuable allies in finding the killer.
The two cases are connected … but it will be awhile before the police (and the reader) discover how.
Tracy has crafted a good suspense thriller. The plot moves quickly, the clues are not obvious (but they are there), and there’s an undercurrent of sexual tension between a couple of characters that keeps things interesting. If I have a complaint it’s that the main female character – Grace McBride – is just a little too detached and weak-kneed., yet she ALWAYS carries her Sig and has her home and office made into veritable fortresses. Just doesn’t quite add up. In fact, most of the female characters were poorly written in comparison to the men.
Still, it kept me turning pages (or changing CDs as the case may be). I would definitely read another book by Tracy, but I’d much rather read about Halloran (the Wisconsin sheriff).
Buck Shirner does a respectable job of the audio version. His pace is good and his voice inflection lends the right tone of seriousness or levity as required. He’s not quite so skilled with the female characters, but I love his voice for the many male detectives (and suspects).
3.5***
On a particularly cold October morning a priest in a small Wisconsin town discovers his two most devoted parishioners have been murdered while in their pew. As the sheriff begins his investigation he soon discovers that they have a mysterious past, and were obviously afraid of someone or something. Meanwhile in Minneapolis / St Paul, a serial killer is recreating the scenes in a newly popular web-based game. The Monkeewrench crew – a group of high intelligent computer geeks who develop computer games – is first to recognize the connection, but as soon as they go to the police they find themselves considered suspects rather than potentially valuable allies in finding the killer.
The two cases are connected … but it will be awhile before the police (and the reader) discover how.
Tracy has crafted a good suspense thriller. The plot moves quickly, the clues are not obvious (but they are there), and there’s an undercurrent of sexual tension between a couple of characters that keeps things interesting. If I have a complaint it’s that the main female character – Grace McBride – is just a little too detached and weak-kneed., yet she ALWAYS carries her Sig and has her home and office made into veritable fortresses. Just doesn’t quite add up. In fact, most of the female characters were poorly written in comparison to the men.
Still, it kept me turning pages (or changing CDs as the case may be). I would definitely read another book by Tracy, but I’d much rather read about Halloran (the Wisconsin sheriff).
Buck Shirner does a respectable job of the audio version. His pace is good and his voice inflection lends the right tone of seriousness or levity as required. He’s not quite so skilled with the female characters, but I love his voice for the many male detectives (and suspects).
loouuuz's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
gator468's review against another edition
4.0
Probably more like 3.5 - I enjoyed the book but I did have an inkling about who it was pretty early on. I also wince at the use of the word hermaphrodite but think for the year it was written I can get past it. Will keep reading the series.
jane_kelsey's review against another edition
3.0
Found this book and I mostly bought it because of the title - I liked it that much! The book itself deserves like 3.4 stars, I read it very fast because I had a lot of time to kill, but I can't say that it impressed me.
It wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but it wasn't bad either. The characters were interesting and colorful and I really like the cops, while Grace was kind of annoying for my taste, but well..The story was interesting enough to kept me going even after I kinda figured who the killer was, I just couldn't put a name on it.
I actually enjoyed this book, but I'm not gonna read another Monkeewrench book.
It wasn't exactly what I was expecting, but it wasn't bad either. The characters were interesting and colorful and I really like the cops, while Grace was kind of annoying for my taste, but well..The story was interesting enough to kept me going even after I kinda figured who the killer was, I just couldn't put a name on it.
I actually enjoyed this book, but I'm not gonna read another Monkeewrench book.
jmj697mn's review against another edition
4.0
Very good debut novel. I had a hard time keeping all of the characters straight in the beginning but I worked it all out about half way through. I always enjoy a book set in the Twin Cities and this one did not disappoint in that respect. I am very much looking forward to the next one in the series.
heidisreads's review against another edition
5.0
Thank goodness this is the first in a series because I flew through this book. I couldn't put it down! The Monkeewrench Company based in Minneapolis designs a computer game where the player becomes a detective and must figure out who the serial killer is. Meanwhile, the Minneapolis Police Department finds themselves wrapped up in a real serial killer case and the victims die exactly like the characters in the game. It becomes a race against time and the game as both organizations work to save themselves and the public.