Off the Grid

I could not be more disappointed in this book. What this seriously written by the same authors as the previous entries in the series? These books have always centered around Monkeewrench, a small eccentric group of computer programmers who end up assisting the police in a series of cases throughout the novels. The group dynamics of Monkeewrench and the halting relationship of Grace Mcbride and police detective Magozzi has been the heart and soul of the books, but these elements are MIA in this latest entry. Although I have read all the previous books, I still needed a reminder of who the characters were and why I should care about them, which I was still piecing together at the end of the book. The characters, who I know and feel affectionate toward from the earlier books, still seemed two-dimensional and uninteresting. Such character development as did take place seemed unrealistic and almost insulting. Grace McBride, a deeply damaged women, paranoid and suspicious as a result of a horrific childhood, is on a cruise with a retired FBI agent as the story begins, and has discovered that wearing a sundress and sandals completely alters her outlook on life. Really? The writing is clunky, cliches abound, the Native American called Chief has sequoia-like legs, and blood is referred to as the liquid of life.... cringe. The big showdown at the end, with an army coming for our heroes who are waiting on platforms in the trees must have taken place off-screen; a few people die, and suddenly Harley is calling the all clear. What? I will not read another Monkeewrench book unless the authors rediscover the heart of the series.

I've always "read" the Monkeewrench books as audio books. They're the perfect commute book--highly entertaining, full of cliffhangers, well performed.

Until "Off the Grid", which was sadly disappointing. Other reviewers have written about how the characters seem flat, and how many plot hooks aren't explained. The audio version meant that the lazy writing was highlighted; I couldn't skim over the never-ending folksy analogies and comparisons. Maybe I should write the review in the same style. "The book's ending was as weak as instant coffee made from a picture of a brown crayon."

Worst of all, I just couldn't suspend disbelief. For example (spoiler): you have an enormous nationwide plot that's going to impact seemingly every city in the United States. You expect that the entire federal government emergency and investigative apparatus is going to snap into action. There's not a moment to waste. There's a crucial piece of computer hardware you need to recover to crack the case. So the government's response is....to send two city detectives on a flight leaving in a few hours to the location, where they can spend enough time to have a leisurely dinner before realizing they're now stuck because of a storm.

Worst book of the series. Author went way out in a whole different implausible direction.

Grace MacBride is on a relaxing sailing trip with her friend, retired FBI agent John Smith, when a couple of Saudi nationals try to kill John. Grace handily dispatches the killers and John goes underground temporarily. Turns out John has been tracking terrorist activities and may have information about their plans to attack American cities. Thus John and his friends, especially Grace and her colleagues at the software company Monkeewrench, become targets for the terrorists.

So Grace, her Monkeewrench cohorts (voluptuous fashionista Annie Belinsky, big guy Harley Davidson, and beanpole Roadrunner), pick up John and make a run for it. They take back roads, drive dangerously, and so on to avoid being followed by the terrorist assassins. Meanwhile, Somali gangs and Native American thugs have teamed up to kidnap young girls for the sex trade and detectives Leo Magozzi and Gino Rolseth are on the job.

Before long the hunt for terrorists and the pursuit of gang members and thugs dovetail because the sex trade is being used to fund terrorist activities. While all this is going on terrorists around the country are being killed in their homes - a few at a time. Seems someone has been distributing information about where they live. There's a race against time as 'the good guys' try to stop the planned terrorist attacks before becoming victims themselves. Before the end there are some exciting battles that involve guns, knives, and bows and arrows.

There's also some humor in the story: Gino's fear of flying provides a few laughs as does the banter between the secondary characters Claude and the Chief. For me the book was just so-so. Grace wasn't in top form in her strategy to run from the terrorists and the book's ending was a bit of a let down. Still, fans of the series will enjoy visiting with favorite characters in the series and seeing how Grace's personal relationship with Leo Magozzi is affected by everything that's going on.

I never write reviews of books on Amazon. I figure there’s enough already, and no one needs to hear what I have to say. But I have to say how terrible this book is. I was so excited to find it on the free bookshelf at our library, officially withdrawn for reasons unknown (until now!) I have read every other PJ Tracy book up until this point and enjoyed the references to Minneapolis - my hometown and current place of residence. I have thought that the characters, while one-dimensional, were still interesting and funny. The mysteries were good.

This book, however, is complete garbage. To describe Somali immigrants as Middle Eastern is incorrect and confusing, to describe the Cedar Riverside neighborhood as a crime ridden place with no value is incorrect and racist, and to describe bus drivers as over paid is just straight up ridiculous. Fact checking and attention to detail are completely lacking , and my primary take away from this book is that I will not be continuing with the Monkeewrench series and that the writers are racist, likely red hat-wearing, Fox News-watching bigots. A real fall for these two, but in some ways, I am thankful to have discovered what probably was there all along. Thank god the Hennepin County Library withdrew this book - my Somali neighbors likely thank you, and I certainly do.

This story started in the south and then went up north. It was a few chapters before the connections were made, but it turned out to be a very good story. I will read the next.

Funny section in the middle. Fell off the bed.

Wow! Great characters, lively dialogue. Insightful & thoughtful observations -- about nature, humans, Native American culture/beliefs. I've lived in the Minneapolis area many years, with some connections to the Native American community; I found nothing that didn't ring true and my understanding was deepened through this book. I was struck by the way the authors express themselves in unpredictable ways. And as a wannabe writer, I took notice of how vibrate the scenes became with references to all of one's senses, including intuition. I am eager to read more by P.J. Tracy.

Decent condition!

These books are great.