4.5 StarsAnother good mystery filled with twists and turns. Great to see the Monkeewench crew back in the thick of it!

Don't get me wrong. I loved this book. Not only is it another P.J. Tracy book, but this one features the Monkeewrench crew more heavily in this book than the previous book (Snow Blind). It's just that this book had one or two things I'm just not entirely sure about. This volume of the Monkeewrench series focuses on killers who are videotaping their murderous exploits. The FBI is at a loss as they appeal to various internet geniuses (including the Monkeewrench crew) for assistance. The Minneapoli...

Monkeewrench is back, baby! Monkeewrench is a haunted, eccentric, close-knit team of computer geniuses who’ve turned their skills from creating computer games to developing anticrime software. Harley Davidson, Roadrunner, Annie and Grace must a) crack the code killers are using to communicate online b) create software which will separate staged murders from the real thing and c) trace the online snuff films to the killers. Minneapolis homicide detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth are along fo...

While I enjoy this series, this episode didn't wow me as much as the earlier ones. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing the Monkeewrench crew in action grappling with the evil ways people have found to use internet technology, but I feel that the characters are no longer developing and are in danger of becoming stereotyped. I also love seeing cops Leo and Gino in action, especially with their latest car impounded from a drug dealer, and enjoy their banter with each other. The plot itself was deviou...

I think I fell a little bit in love with John Smith. For an FBI agent he’s pretty damn cool. At first he was typical feeb - all official and stunted talking. But as he relaxed and became one with the Monkeewrench crew he became funnier and more contemplative. This was a great twister even though you never really know who the killers were. Just a bunch of nobodies in a great big internet sea. Another stellar read by the PJ Tracy duo.

I think the series gets better with each book, but maybe that's just because I'm getting to know the characters better. This book is basically more of the same, in many ways, but I thought it had a bit more humor. The story was interesting but nothing exceptional but the characters were more interesting to make up for it.There was a new character, an FBI agent named John Smith, who started out being much like Joe Friday in Dragnet - very straight, no sense of humor, etc. But he turned out to be

Probably closer to 2.5 stars but I rounded down. This is another mystery set in Tracy's Monkeewrench universe in MN. I really enjoyed the previous efforts in the series but this one rang a bit hollow for me. I didn't feel like the Monkeewrench crew were terribly involved with the story. The actual mystery was solid and the ending looked like it could possibly set up some interesting character developments down the road, this particular installment felt more like it was just keeping time, at leas...

Entertaining whodunnit, with Minneapolis homicide cops and the Monkeewrench guys on one side, with a cadre of internet killers on the other. My favorite hombres in this one were peripheral characters: a former judge, now an infamous local drunk, and a FBI agent working with the core group of computer geeks to find the supersmart criminals.

I love this series! Great mystery with great characters. Leo and Gino and the guys at the precinct have a fun back and forth, and the Monkeewrench gang always make me laugh. Grace and Leo continue to make baby steps towards a more solid relationship, kind of a necessity with Grace's background and trust issues.Listening to the series. Love Buck Schirner's performance and comedic timing.

3.5~4★“ ‘Dude. Are you seriously asking us to hack into servers in hostile countries so you can catch one of our own? First off, we don’t kiss and tell. Second, we could go down for years on something like that.’”Yep. The Monkeewrench team are part of an FBI presentation to an invited audience of hackers. Someone has been posting videos of murders being filmed in real time. After everyone’s seen the films, they are to get to work tracing the untraceable.When our favourite Minneapolis detectives,...

Please note: Read in Dec. 2012Book Info: Genre: Mystery/Suspense/ThrillerReading Level: AdultRecommended for: Fans of the genre, fans of the seriesTrigger Warnings: Violence, hate crimes (including but not limited to against LGBT people)My Thoughts: This is book five in the series, after Snow Blind (review here where formatting allowed—please note it does include spoilers, but they have mostly been hidden under spoiler tags), and the first of the books I have not read previously.Maybe it’s f...

I am really enjoying this series with its clever mix of ultra smart computer geeks on one side and the activities of a team of homicide detectives on the other. This one adds a dash of FBI plus numerous unusual murders and the fun begins!As with most series the books are best read in order to get the full benefit of the character development. By now we are very comfortable with the ongoing attempts at a relationship between Grace and Leo and the rather odd behaviours of the Monkeewrench team. Th...

This was really bad. I've loved the other Monkeewrench novels, but this one was pretty useless. They find one killer, who you kind of feel sorry for. And that's the one whose story you know. Then there's the psycho teacher, who they have no explanation for the two waitresses he terrorized. Then there's the rest of the online killing gang who Monkeewrench tracks down from "an anonymous tip" and gives to the FBI. No explanation. Just people do crap kind of stuff.And then the ending is very ambiguo...

I'm a bit mixed about this one and may come back and change my rating. I liked that the Monkeewrench crew featured more but I just don't think the story was well developed and the suspense was just not there. I am wondering if too many characters have been introduced. I will read the last one as the end is in sight but unless this last one is fantastic I think the series has deteriorated.

It took me a while to get hooked on this book and then even once I became vested a number of things dampened my reading pleasure.One, the Monkeywrench team is just being set up as too miraculous. I've reached a point where their skill set has gotten too over the top to be believable. It's to the point where you don't need anyone but them and their computers.Two, Grace who doesn't get close to anyone all of a sudden connects with the new FBI character. Their relationship is not clear and yet they...

Another well written cybercrime novel by PJ Tracy. Monkeewrench are just awesome.

This review applies to the audio version. #5 "Monkeewrench" mystery set in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, and featuring MPD homicide detectives Rolseth and Magozzi and the Monkeewrench computer team. Monkeewrench--a very computer saavy bunch who operate somewhat outside the law for the greater good--has been asked by the FBI to assist in tracking down a killer or killers who are posting video of their kills on the web. Their own crack squad can't find anything, so they aren't above seeking outsi...

P.J. Tracy continues her wonderful series with a fifth novel that taps into some of the technological aspects of crime in the 21st century. As they still remember their last major case in the middle of a blizzard, Homicide Detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth find themselves in the middle of a Minneapolis heatwave. They are, however, fitted out in a wonderfully air conditioned ride, at least for a time. When they are called to the river to investigate a floater, Magozzi and Rolseth soon learn...

(view spoiler)[The drag queen had HIV, and infected about eight people. In the case of one of the victims, the HIV developed into AIDS, and he killed himself. The drag queen was killed after being put on a hit list by the victim's father. (hide spoiler)]