It has been four years since the hardcover release of SNOW
BLIND, from the mother-daughter team writing collectively known as
P.J. Tracy. Tracy has created an engaging and addicting series
featuring Monkeewrench, a quirky quartet of mismatched computer and
Internet geniuses. They work in tandem with two Minneapolis police
detectives: the equally odd-coupled Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth.
Monkeewrench appeared, but did not figure prominently, in SNOW
BLIND, which focused primarily on Magozzi and Rolseth. Thus, fans
of the series will rejoice at the publication of SHOOT TO THRILL,
in which Monkeewrench comes roaring back to a position of
prominence.
Tracy’s past work has been driven equally by plot and
character, and SHOOT TO THRILL is no exception, bringing the skill
sets of Monkeewrench and the Magozzi-Rolseth team together in a
chilling way. Someone is murdering people, recording the acts, and
putting the final moments of the victims on the Internet. But the
characters, both old and new, bring this work to an entirely new
level. The four members of Monkeewrench are unique enough to be
memorable yet familiar enough to be readily identifiable: Harley
Davidson, a biker/party animal; Roadrunner, who is obsessed with
exercise; Annie Belinsky, a traffic-stopper; and Grace McBride, the
glue that holds the group together, even as she herself is a
veritable raisin of anxiety. It is ironic that the team that both
creates software and hacks into databases is brought into the case
by the FBI, which seeks to use their expertise to catch the
murderers who are exhibiting their dastardly acts in
cyberspace.
John Smith is the FBI agent tasked with riding herd over
Monkeewrench. A quietly likable man who consists entirely of right
angles, Smith is