Product Description

Henry Pierce has a whole new life - new apartment, new telephone, new telephone number. But the first time he checks his messages, he discovers that someone had the number before him. The messages on his line are for a woman named Lilly, and she is in some kind of serious trouble. Pierce is inexorably drawn into Lilly's world, and it's unlike any world he's ever known. It is a night-time world of escort services, websites, sex, and secret identities. Pierce tumbles through a hole, abandoning his orderly life in a frantic race to save the life of a woman he has never met. Pierce traces Lilly's last days, but every step into her past takes him deeper into a web of inescapable intricacy - and a decision that could cost him everything he owns and holds dear . . .

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #129867 in Books
• Published on: 2003-06-26
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

Review
'Connelly is a former polic reporter for the LA Times, and attention to detail is perhaps one of the hallmarks of his work. In this, computer engineer Henry Pierce has a whole new life - new aprtment, new telephone and new telephone number. But he finds messages left for the woman who had the number beforehim, and becomes drawn into her troubled, somewhat seedy and definitely dangerous world in this intriguing and well-crafted novel.' THE INDEPENDENT 50 Best Books to Read on Holiday 28/6/03

About the Author
A former police reporter for the Los Angeles Times, Michael Connelly is the author of twelve acclaimed Harry Bosch thrillers and several other bestselling novels. He lives in Tampa, Florida, with his wife and daughter.

Customer Reviews

Interesting theme but lacks a punchline...
Having read the synopsis of this book, I thought it had an interesting premise behind it. The story is about a Computer Scientist/Biochemist, Henry Pierce, who is on the verge of developing a breakthrough in nanotechnological microprocessing. Unfortunately Pierce is a workaholic, which has resulted in him being kicked out of his old home by his girlfriend to a new house in L.A. When Pierce arrives at his new apartment, he realises his new phone number was previously held by an escort girl, who now seems to have disappeared. The story basically carries on from there with Pierce intent on determining what has happened to this mysterious prostitute.

I found the first half of the book quite tantalising. The story moved at a decent pace and with a good degree of plausability. Unfortunately the second half of the book, and particularly the ending, left a lot to be desired. Connelly seems to have gone down a path where the basic premise of the story, focusing on the disappearance of this hooker, is forgotten. In fact, the actual story is rather implausible and leaves a felling of "he could have done SOOOO much more with it".

Connelly also goes too much into the depth of Henry Pierce's science, in my opinion. Although it gives the reader an understanding of the character of Henry Pierce, and sets one up for the reasons behind the ending, it does this by breaking the course of the main story. I found myself a number of times on the edge of a cliffhanger, only to have the excitement broken by having to read about how nanotechnology will "change the world".

Another major downpoint was the dialogue between the characters. Much of it was rather wooden, I felt, and there just because it was necessary. Connelly's descriptive texts are much more colourful than the words coming out of his character's mouths. There were certain points where the characters were conversing in a manner which is highly unlikely given the circumstances they were in and their own personas.

Saying all that, I did enjoy the book and will probably try one or two more Michael Connelly books. The themes of his books all seem to be quite interesting - I'm certain that some of them are superior to this book in delivering a punchline with their basic premises.

Superb surprise for first time Connelly reader
I picked up 2 Michael Connelly books when I finished the 2 books I had brought with me on a family holiday.I had seen Connelly's books before but never tried them (you all know how difficult it is to start off with a new writer...).
Having no previous Connelly experience (Harry Bosch et al...) I found "Chasing the dime" superb.
Shades of Michael Crichton's flair for the scientific drama but also a plain,old fashioned "whodunnit" with some twists and surprises along the way.I found it thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying for a holiday read.
I am looking forward to reading "Chasing the light" and am proud to add Connelly to my list of favourites alongside Tom Clancy,Len Deighton,Ludlum and John LeCarre.

Despite what some of the reviews say!
I bought this book to read on my holiday, planning on being able to read it for a week. I had to go and buy another book because i read this in two days. I think this is a great book. It was also my first Michael Connelly book. However there was a few silly points that didnt quite seem believable but it has an intriguing storyline. Once i had started reading it i just didnt want to put it down. I wanted to find out what happened to him, his project and Lily. You really do need to read past the first coupe of pages..even hundred!
Really worth a read and i would definetly recommend it to others.