Fair Warning

★ ★ ★ 1/2 (rounded up)
This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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Veteran reporter Jack McEvoy is no longer on the crime beat, he's no longer hunting serial killers or anything of the sort. He's doing consumer watchdog reporting for a website. One night after work, he's approached by two LAPD Detectives about a former one-night stand, Christina Portrero, who has been murdered. The detectives take an almost instant disliking to McEvoy and he's soon a Person of Interest.

I groaned once figured out what was going on initially (it's in the book blurb, I really should pay more attention to things like that). Series protagonists being suspected of murder almost never works for me. The stakes don't feel real. But Connelly abandons this fairly quickly, and his being a person of interest really only serves to get McEvoy interested in the case. Because there's no way he's going to wait for the police to clear him—he's going back to his strengths to clear his name, and maybe uncover the truth.

McEvoy quickly discovers a handful of murders throughout the country that seem to match Portrero's. But the link between them eludes him for a while—and once he begins to get an idea, it's so outlandish that it seems near-impossible. Teaming up with another reporter at the website, he dives in—defying the police. He also recruits Rachel Waling (now in the private sector) to help build a profile of the killer.

McEvoy isn't too far into this investigation before he comes alive—he seems content with his work (maybe not the income from it), but it's not the same as this kind of work. Working with Walling doesn't hurt his enthusiasm, either.

This would just not have worked as a Bosch or Ballard story, it possibly could've worked as a Mickey Haller story—had he been representing someone like McEvoy. But why go to that much trouble when you've got Jack in your back pocket for just this time? (also, we've already got a Haller novel slated for later this year).

One of the advantages of Connelly having invested so little into the character is that the peril he faces when the killer focuses his attention on McEvoy (or Walling)—there's a strong sense of peril. I'm not worried about Ballard or Haller (although I can see the appeal of letting Bosch go out in action, rather than retiring), so even when things get threatening, you don't really worry too much. But McVoy? Come on, the dude's totally expendable and therefore the danger is real.

The initial set up just left me cold, but by the time that had been resolved and the team was fully into the investigation? I was hooked. Hooked in the “please don't bother me with anything short of medical emergency” sense. That didn't stop my family from interrupting me, but it did result in me glaring at them frequently.

This isn't Connelly at his best—it's not even the best McEvoy novel. But man, it's gripping. It's exciting. I had a great time reading it and am glad Connelly brought McEvoy back (and leaves the door open for more).

I found Fair Warning to be a compelling read, but not as engaging as I wanted or expected. I have read both The Poet and The Scarecrow and remember loving the books. But in this one, I find Jack McEvoy to be an irritating asshole and this detracts from the book for me. It is difficult to read a story where the main character is less than sympathetic, and McEvoy, in this book, is.
Still, the story, revolving around genetic analysis, and the involvement of Rachel Walling drew me in and I had to keep reading.
Particularly in the first part of the novel, I felt that Connelly's handling of the details of the story were not as strong as I have seen in the Harry Bosch novels. At times, I almost felt like this was an old novel, written years ago when he was still learning how to write police procedurals.

Honestly I didn't really enjoy the first two Jack McEvoy nearly as much as the Bosch or Lincoln Lawyer books, but I'm a completionist for the most part (trying to wean myself off of that, way too much sunk cost fallacy). Additionally, I'm not a fan generally of serial killer novels, so that can skew my opinion as well.

This just wasn't that great, not up to par with all the other novels Connelly has written. There were quite a few just odd out-of-place or ill-fitting passages. The story seemed strangely patched together and not well thought out. And the serial killer was frankly unbelievable as a real killer.

And is there even ONE good reason at all in the whole world why on earth the killer would go after Jack at the end??? No, there isn't.