Vous voulez voir cette page en français ? Cliquez ici.

83 used & new from CDN$ 0.01
See All Buying Options
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
 
Chasing the Dime
 
See larger image 
Share your own customer images
Publisher: learn how customers can search inside this book.

Chasing the Dime (Hardcover)

by Michael Connelly (Author)
3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (173 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.


5 new from CDN$ 17.95 75 used from CDN$ 0.01 3 collectible from CDN$ 4.88

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Void Moon

Void Moon

by Michael Connelly
3.9 out of 5 stars (154)  CDN$ 9.50
The Poet

The Poet

by Michael Connelly
4.0 out of 5 stars (178)  CDN$ 9.50
Blood Work

Blood Work

by Michael Connelly
4.2 out of 5 stars (121)  CDN$ 9.50
The Lincoln Lawyer

The Lincoln Lawyer

by Michael Connelly
4.8 out of 5 stars (10)  CDN$ 9.50
City of Bones

City of Bones

by Michael Connelly
4.1 out of 5 stars (157)  CDN$ 9.50
› Explore similar items

Product Details

Product Description

From Amazon.com

Henry Pierce is about to become very rich--as soon as his firm, Amedeo Technologies, gets an infusion of capital from a big backer. But the brilliant chemist's workaholic habits are disrupted when his lover, the former intelligence officer of his company, breaks up with him. Lonely and dispirited, he moves into a new apartment and gets a new phone number that attracts a lot of callers, but not for him. His new telephone number seems to have previously belonged to one Lilly Quinlan, an escort whose Internet photo arouses Henry's curiosity, especially when L.A. Darlings, whose Web page features the beautiful young woman, can't tell Henry how to find her. With the same single-mindedness that made him a high-tech superstar, Pierce pursues his search for the missing girl, motivated by his guilt over the disappearance years earlier of his own sister, who, like Lilly, was also a prostitute (and ultimately the victim of the Dollmaker, a serial killer from Connelly's 1994 novel The Concrete Blonde.) But that motive is too thin to support Pierce's sudden abandonment of his career at such a critical juncture, even if forces unknown to him are setting him up for a fall. Despite those holes in the plot and a less than compelling protagonist, the novel succeeds due to Connelly's literary and expository gifts and his more interesting secondary characters. --Jane Adams


From Publishers Weekly

The copy on the galley of Connelly's slick new thriller doesn't mention Hitchcock, but most reviews probably will, with the novel's many surprises and "wrong man" plot line. Even the opening echoes Hitch's North by Northwest, in which Cary Grant's mistaken interception of a bellboy's page leads to disaster; here it's nanotechnology entrepreneur Henry Pierce's getting a phone call that triggers the trouble. The call is for a prostitute, Lilly, and it's the first of many; turns out that the Web site on which she advertises, L.A. Darlings, has Pierce's new home phone number next to a photo of gorgeous Lilly. But when Pierce visits the Web site's offices, he learns that Lilly has vanished. Where has she gone? His search to find the missing woman-prompted by his insatiable curiosity and by memories of his tragic, long-ago hunt for his sister, also a prostitute-draws Pierce into mortal danger. It also pushes him into conflict with the law, for when the cops cotton to Lilly's disappearance, Pierce becomes the number one suspect-serious bad news for this scientist whose company is being visited by a major investor in just a few days. Connelly's plotting is shrink-wrap tight, his characters-particularly Pierce, whose impulsiveness is balanced by his measured applications of the scientific method to analyze his plight-are smartly drawn. It's the rare reader who will be able to finger the villain behind all the mayhem. While very entertaining, however-this is the perfect book for a long airplane ride-the novel lacks the moral resonance and weight of Connelly's most impressive works, such as City of Bones.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
See all Product Description

Tag this product

 (What's this?)
Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.
Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What do customers ultimately buy after viewing this item?

Chasing the Dime
40% buy the item featured on this page:
Chasing the Dime 3.0 out of 5 stars (173)
Void Moon
18% buy
Void Moon 3.9 out of 5 stars (154)
CDN$ 9.50
The Poet
17% buy
The Poet 4.0 out of 5 stars (178)
CDN$ 9.50
A Darkness More Than Night
13% buy
A Darkness More Than Night 4.0 out of 5 stars (126)
CDN$ 9.50
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

173 Reviews
5 star:
 (32)
4 star:
 (41)
3 star:
 (28)
2 star:
 (36)
1 star:
 (36)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.0 out of 5 stars (173 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most helpful customer reviews

 
4.0 out of 5 stars Weaker than Harry Bosch ... but better than most!, Oct 10 2009
By Paul Weiss (Dundas, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Chasing the Dime (Mass Market Paperback)
Henry Pierce, a brilliant scientist on the cutting edge of nanotechnology, biotechnology and quantum computers, is about to become very, very rich when his company Amadeo Technologies files the patent on the latest discovery he and his team have put together.

But he's also toting a suitcase jam-packed with distracting baggage at the moment. Recently separated from his lover, he's just moved to a new apartment and has discovered that his new phone number used to belong to one Lilly Quinlan, a high-priced escort (and almost certainly a prostitute) whose services are advertised on a web page called "LA Darlings". When the wrong number calls continue by the dozens, Pierce suspects that something has happened to cause Lilly to disappear and begins to worry that she may be in serious trouble.

Still deeply disturbed by the disappearance of his own sister many years earlier who had fled home, taken to a street life of drugs and prostitution and was ultimately murdered, Pierce decides to search for the missing girl. He soon discovers that there are some very mean, very motivated people out there who will stop at nothing to let him know that he is putting his nose into places where it definitely doesn't belong. When he takes his discoveries to the LAPD, he is shocked to discover that he is in top place on the police's list of possible suspects for Lilly's disappearance and murder.

Previous individual reviewers (and even editorial reviews) have criticized Connelly's basic premise suggesting that Pierce's response to the stimulus of a series of wrong number calls was weak, melodramatic and unbelievable. I beg to differ! Brilliant scientists can almost certainly be correctly stereotyped as outside-the-box thinkers; driven, workaholic people who look internally for solutions to their problems; and, single minded individuals who march to the tune of their own drummers. They are often people who interact poorly under normal social circumstances and who respond differently than you or I might to the same mental stimulus. From that point of view and particularly considering the guilt and grief that Pierce would be subject to on the matter of his murdered young sister, his decision to conduct a one-man police hunt, while a long way from sensible or appropriate, at least might be considered understandable and reasonable under the circumstances.

"Chasing the Dime", like all of Connelly's other novels, is chock full of well-developed, colourful characters. And, no matter what one might believe about the basic premise of the novel, any reader will have to admit that Connelly's plotting is tight and the revelation of the ultimate villains arrives out of left field entirely unseen and unpredicted. Admittedly, the dialogue in "Chasing the Dime" seems a little more clunky and forced than his previous work. It just doesn't have the darkness, the depth or the psychological angst that made his previous Harry Bosch novels such works of art.

By comparison to Connelly's previous body of work, I'd probably award "Chasing the Dimes" no more than three stars. But - and let's be honest here - if James Patterson, Clive Cussler or many of the other "crank-'em-out-six-a-year" thriller authors had written it, it would be getting raves as a tour-de-force! So I think perhaps a rating of four stars is more appropriate in the context of the thriller field at large.

Recommended.

Paul weiss
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
4.0 out of 5 stars A Cerebral Crime Story That Improves Past Mid Point, Oct 6 2008
This review is from: Chasing the Dime (Mass Market Paperback)

What do nanotechnology (making molecular-sized devices), call girls, pornography, going public, and extortion have in common? They're all part of a most unusual crime story in Chasing the Dime.

Instead of following noir homicide detective Harry Bosch on the track of a violent criminal, this book is about Henry (don't call me "Hank") Pierce, a genius CEO who has cracked the code on an amazing new technology and who is poised to capitalize on his success by selling off a piece of the company to a "whale" investor. A typical lab rat, Pierce has let that fixation on amazing science destroy his relationship with the love of his life. After moving out, he's thrown off kilter by repeated calls to his new telephone number by men at local hotels looking to hook up with Lilly Quinlan. Intrigued, Pierce has to know more. That decision turns his over-sized IQ into learn-on-the-job bit of amateur detection. Despite being warned to get back to the lab, Pierce pushes on. Will curiosity kill the lab rat?

This story seems odd. Most people don't pick up Michael Connelly books to read about molecular biology. In addition, having a scientist become fixated on a call girl he's never met seems weird. I almost didn't keep going. I would rate the book's first half as a two-star effort.

Connelly hits his strike, however, after mid point in the book, and the plot becomes surprising, interesting, and irresistible. Be patient. The five-star second half lifts the weak beginning (which should have been edited down quite a bit) into an above average story.

But if you are looking for Harry Bosch (or a reasonable facsimile), you won't like this story very much. Unless you feel compelled to read every book written by Michael Connelly, you can certainly skip this book and not miss anything you really have to read.

The book's lack of adequate editing can be found in the many mindless repetitions of Pierce calling the lights on and off in his offices (a "high" technology PR stunt) and talking about how his science is going to "change the world." There's a reason why some people don't enjoy hanging out with geeky scientists: Their dialogue sometimes doesn't thrill. Connelly should have chosen to ignore the stereotype and let Pierce be able to vary his language in interesting ways.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
4.0 out of 5 stars Henry Hears a Who, Jan 22 2007
By Craobh Rua "Craobh Rua" (N. Ireland) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Chasing the Dime (Mass Market Paperback)
"Chasing the Dime" was Michael Connelly's twelfth novel, was first published in 2002 and was only his fourth book not to feature Harry Bosch. Instead of Bosch, the central character is Henry Pierce, a scientist based in Los Angeles. Pierce, it seems, is something of a genius : he's the founder and the brains behind Amedeo Technologies, a company that specialise in the development of molecular-based computing. The company already have several patents in the field, though they believe they're on the verge of something huge with their Proteus project. Pierce is also a very focused and very cautious researcher, though the word `paranoid' is also occasionally used about him.

Unfortunately, Pierce's obsession with Proteus has cost him his relationship with Nicole James. Nicole has also stepped down from her position as Amedeo's Director of Competitor Intelligence following the relationship's demise. Pierce, meanwhile, has moved out of the house they shared on Amalfi Drive and is now renting a sparsely-furnished apartment. Worse luck, his new phone number is being bombarded with calls for a woman named Lilly. From the nature of the calls, it's pretty obvious what Lilly does for a living and, before long, Pierce has discovered she advertises her `services' on a very popular website. Pierce also suspects that, rather than having retired early, something may have happened to her. Therefore, rather than just changing his number, he decides to try and find her. Naturally, this decision brings him nothing but trouble...

"Chasing the Dime" is an enjoyable and very easily read book. The one (possible) weak link with the story was Pierce's decision to start looking into Lilly's disappearance - rather than just changing his number and forgetting about it. However, the reason Henry made this choice lies in his past and it's only gradually we find out the full story of what happened. If you've never read anything by Michael Connelly before, this is a good place to start- "Chasing the Dime" is one of his stand-alone novels, so you're not jumping in halfway through a series. However, for the Connelly fan, there are a couple of nods to previous cases investigated by Harry Bosch. Janis Langwiser, a lawyer who'd previously appeared in "Angel's Flight" returns in a minor role, while there's also mention of the famous "Dollmaker Case". Overall, a very good story and well-worth reading.
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 		 Most recent customer reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars And your point was . . . ?
A friend lent me this book, and I just don't know why. I didn't buy the premise, found the characters unsympathetic, and was waiting for someone to grab the protagonist by the... Read more
Published on Jul 15 2004 by P. T. Hill

3.0 out of 5 stars Unconvincing
Somehow a novelist has to convince the reader that the events described in the tale could or did happen. This is extremely important in a mystery/suspense/spy/action book. Read more
Published on Jul 15 2004 by Roger Long

2.0 out of 5 stars A poorly written page turner
"Chasing the Dime"... By page 86, I believe I counted at least eight references to the title. Read more
Published on Jun 18 2004 by Trenton Pomeroy

4.0 out of 5 stars Not his best, but a decent effort
Being a huge fan of Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series, the few books he wrote that didn't feature the popular detective, to me were not his best work. Read more
Published on Jun 11 2004 by Theresa W

1.0 out of 5 stars Total waste of time
It's difficult to fathom how Connelly's editor(s) let this one pass. It's a totally ridiculous and formulaic book. Read more
Published on Jun 3 2004 by Bruce J. Miller

4.0 out of 5 stars Can't-put-downable
Implausibilities and thin motives aside, this is one heck of a good read. It's basically a grab bag of some of the best elements of Crichton' "Disclosure" and Grisham's... Read more
Published on May 27 2004

1.0 out of 5 stars Just plain STUPID...
Anyone with the smarts that Pierce had in this book would not have been that stupid to sacrifice ..."chasing the dime" for a waste of his "time".. Read more
Published on May 26 2004 by The TT

5.0 out of 5 stars Nanotechnology for Dummies
(...) This is a great read, fast-moving, "can't put it down" type book. Sure, there are some implausibilities, but what novel is totally realistic? Read more
Published on April 27 2004 by Kris

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Fast Compelling Read
Michael Connelly knows how to write a sleazy character and there are plenty of them to draw from in this quick read that leaves Harry Bosch's personal world but not the seedy... Read more
Published on April 15 2004 by Diana F. Von Behren

4.0 out of 5 stars Chasing Big Bucks
Brilliant 35 year old scientist Henry Pierce is head of his own research company and is on the verge of patenting a discovery which will provide a quantum leap forward in... Read more
Published on April 15 2004 by binnsie

Only search this product's reviews


Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject














i.e., each book must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.