Orion audiobooks, London 2009

In his latest novel Connelly finds back to his roots as reporter for the LA Times and has written a kind of obituary for The Old Lady and the print media in general.

His hero, middle-aged, world-wise police reporter Jack McEvoy finds himself sacked in the course of the latest restructuring of the LA Times, which means, that 100 of the staff have to go. McEvoy is number 99 and replaced by a young, eager reporter right from college. He has to introduce her to the job, which is hard enough.

When she is murdered he soon finds out, that his last case, the mutilation and murder of a young woman, becomes too hot to handle. His credit card doesn´t work any longer, his telephone line is dead, his bank account erased, the whole of his digital existence is wiped out.
When he asks his one time lover Rachel Walling, an FBI agent, for help, they both find themselves in life-threatening situations on end.

The reader soon learns, who is behind it: Mr Carver, head of a computer company specialising in storing data for clients all over the country.

Whereas Jack tells us his story in first person, we hear about serial murderer Carver and his sinister assistant from the omniscient author.

The real story behind all this is the tale of the rapid decline of the print media and the death of investigative journalism caused by the twittering electronic media. And it is just as thrilling and sad.

Having been to a reading with Michael Connelly, I find Michael Brandon reads the story in a very congenial way, without frills, just like Connelly himself might do it. The question is, why he doesn´t.