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djr100's review against another edition
4.0
I think this my favorite Robert Crais so far. Stand-alone which I not used to with this author but very well done.
nicovreeland's review against another edition
4.0
Started a bit slow but the third act was really good
i11iane's review against another edition
4.0
This was the book that got me interested in Crais's work. I enjoyed the characters and developments, well-paced.
papidoc's review against another edition
3.0
A new character from Robert Crais...not bad, a wounded bomb technician.
twotoes's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.75
dantastic's review against another edition
4.0
An LAPD bomb squad technician is blown up on the job and Detective Carol Starkey, former bomb squad tech, is on the case. Can Starkey overcome her past and bring the bomber to justice?
I first heard of Demoliton Angel last year at Bouchercon when Robert Crais mentioned working on it in secret after LA Requiem. It sounded okay but I wasn't in a hurry to read it. After Carol Starkey appeared in a couple Elvis Cole books, I knew I had to check out her story. I was not disappointed.
At the beginning of Demolition Angel, Starkey is a wreck. She's a chain-smoker with a drinking problem, trying to forget about a bombing that killed both her and her lover years before. Starkey was resusitated and has been dealing with the scars ever since. When a serial bomber rears his ugly head, Starkey has a chance at redemption. Awesomeness ensues. Starkey's a really good character and I hope Crais uses her as a lead again one of these days. Her relationships with the other characters made the book a joy to read even when things were slow.
The search for Mr. Red takes up most of the book. To be honest, I wasn't that thrilled with the book at first. Then Crais yanked the rug out from under me and crazy things started happening. The last 100 pages blew by at a feverish pace.
While being quite enjoyable, Demolition Angel isn't perfect. The relationship seemed tacked on. Also, Demolition Angel was first published in 2000 and since technology is featured quite a bit, I don't think it has aged as well as Crais' other books written around the same time. Other than that, I've got no complaints. It's right on the line between three and four stars.
I first heard of Demoliton Angel last year at Bouchercon when Robert Crais mentioned working on it in secret after LA Requiem. It sounded okay but I wasn't in a hurry to read it. After Carol Starkey appeared in a couple Elvis Cole books, I knew I had to check out her story. I was not disappointed.
At the beginning of Demolition Angel, Starkey is a wreck. She's a chain-smoker with a drinking problem, trying to forget about a bombing that killed both her and her lover years before. Starkey was resusitated and has been dealing with the scars ever since. When a serial bomber rears his ugly head, Starkey has a chance at redemption. Awesomeness ensues. Starkey's a really good character and I hope Crais uses her as a lead again one of these days. Her relationships with the other characters made the book a joy to read even when things were slow.
The search for Mr. Red takes up most of the book. To be honest, I wasn't that thrilled with the book at first. Then Crais yanked the rug out from under me and crazy things started happening. The last 100 pages blew by at a feverish pace.
While being quite enjoyable, Demolition Angel isn't perfect. The relationship seemed tacked on. Also, Demolition Angel was first published in 2000 and since technology is featured quite a bit, I don't think it has aged as well as Crais' other books written around the same time. Other than that, I've got no complaints. It's right on the line between three and four stars.
troilee's review against another edition
2.0
This is not the best book I've ever read. It wasn't *bad* but in many places I simply hung on in order to get to the end. The story itself was interesting, but I had some issues with the style and characterization.
I felt there were entirely too many info dumps about bombs. Though I listened to the audio version, it seemed as though there were paragraphs and paragraphs about exactly what the bombs looked like, the composition of the explosives, etc, etc. I felt as though the author was very eager to convey the amount of research into bombs and bomb squads that he did. It became off-putting.
Te other major issue I had was with the main character, Carol Starkey. By the end, I liked her, but I can't say I ever really saw her as a woman. Nothing about her character made me relate to her. That's not to say she wasn't likeable or a good character. It's just to say that she seemed much more like the jaded male cop than a female one.
Another issue with characterization was the portrayal of other cops. Coming from a law enforcement family, the whining and backbiting didn't seem that realistic to me.
All in all, I did have some pretty big problems with this book. To his credit, the author kept the action going really well, with the exception of the info dump pauses. Many of the characters were interesting and the occasional twist and turn was nice. Though I will admit to having figured things out at about halfway through the book, perhaps 3/4. A little disappointing, overall.
I felt there were entirely too many info dumps about bombs. Though I listened to the audio version, it seemed as though there were paragraphs and paragraphs about exactly what the bombs looked like, the composition of the explosives, etc, etc. I felt as though the author was very eager to convey the amount of research into bombs and bomb squads that he did. It became off-putting.
Te other major issue I had was with the main character, Carol Starkey. By the end, I liked her, but I can't say I ever really saw her as a woman. Nothing about her character made me relate to her. That's not to say she wasn't likeable or a good character. It's just to say that she seemed much more like the jaded male cop than a female one.
Another issue with characterization was the portrayal of other cops. Coming from a law enforcement family, the whining and backbiting didn't seem that realistic to me.
All in all, I did have some pretty big problems with this book. To his credit, the author kept the action going really well, with the exception of the info dump pauses. Many of the characters were interesting and the occasional twist and turn was nice. Though I will admit to having figured things out at about halfway through the book, perhaps 3/4. A little disappointing, overall.
bookhawk's review against another edition
3.0
Demolition Angel is very good police thriller in many ways. It has plenty of twists, the writing is good, and the action builds to a crescendo at the end. I was teetering on a 3 or 4 star rating and ultimately found it just short of 4 stars.
chazmo1431's review against another edition
4.0
Except for the feeling that I might get lung cancer after finishing this book, I really enjoyed it. For some reason, the author felt compelled to have Carol Starkey sucking on a cigarette during most of her waking hours. Perhaps it was to demonstrate her fragile hold on reality after having been killed as a Bomb Squad member of the LAPD. or maybe she was a smoking bomb. She was clinically dead for a period of time and then revived. Her partner and lover was not so fortunate. Transferred from that position to the Criminal Conspiracy Section of the LAPD (Dective-2) she catches the lead in investigating the death of another Bomb Squad member. It appears that the bomb in the case she is investigating was made by a serial bomber known as Mr. Red who, while available as a killer for hire with his pyrotechnics, is apparently killing a bomb squad member or two, just for the fun of it. To tell more of the story line would give away some of the twists, turns and quirks of this very well told tale of revenge and betrayal. To do that would be to spoil the soup. Again, this book is evidence of the growth of this author from his early and popular Elvis Cole novels.