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The Scarecrow cover art

The Scarecrow

Written by: Michael Connelly
Narrated by: Peter Giles
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Publisher's Summary

The Scarecrow: Booktrack Edition adds an immersive musical soundtrack to your audiobook listening experience!

From the number one best-selling author of the Bosch series and the Lincoln Lawyer series.

"An addictive read that, once it grabs you in those first few pages, won't let go of you." (Boston Globe)

Forced out of the Los Angeles Times amid the latest budget cuts, newspaperman Jack McEvoy decides to go out with a bang, using his final days at the paper to write the definitive murder story of his career.

He focuses on Alonzo Winslow, a 16-year-old drug dealer in jail after confessing to a brutal murder. But as he delves into the story, Jack realizes that Winslow's so-called confession is bogus. The kid might actually be innocent.

Jack is soon running with his biggest story since the Poet made his career years ago. He is tracking a killer who operates completely below police radar - and with perfect knowledge of any move against him. Including Jack's.

Booktrack is an immersive format that pairs traditional audiobook narration to complementary music. The tempo and rhythm of the score are in perfect harmony with the action and characters throughout the audiobook. Gently playing in the background, the music never overpowers or distracts from the narration, so listeners can enjoy every minute. When you purchase this Booktrack edition, you receive the exact narration as the traditional audiobook available, with the addition of music throughout.

©2008 Hieronymus, Inc. (P)2020 Hachette Audio

What the critics say

"Connelly continues to discover new depths to his character and new stories to tell that reveal those depths in always compelling ways." (Booklist, starred review)

What listeners say about The Scarecrow

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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Music

I really hate the music I find it distracting for the louder areas I will try not to waste my money on them..

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well done and read!

loved it from beginning to end. the narrator was excellent. Micheal Connelly did it again.

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excellent story, music takes a bit to get used too

finished it in 2 sittings. great story very well narrated only issue is the background music that comes up. it took a while to get used to. but that's new to me

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Another great “listen”

The book, twists and turns, made for a great story. How does Connelly come up with his ideas ? Every book is a new adventure. Peter Giles made each character come to life. The diction was always clear. Thanks to Mike and Peter.

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Profile Image for Anonymous User
  • Anonymous User
  • 2020-08-01

The Scarecrow

I enjoyed everything about this book except for the background music. It’s just not my thing. I will avoid buying books with this strange background music in the future. I personally felt it added nothing but annoyance to the production.
Story was great! I’m definitely a Michael Connelly fan!

21 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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  • E
  • 2020-10-31

Another enjoyable Michael Connelly read, but...

The story is really good; this is one of my favorite authors and I am enjoying this series. However, in this second book on Audible there are all these background noises & music played and while some might not notice or care, I find it very distracting and unnecessary. Wish there was a way to turn it off because the narration is fine otherwise.

13 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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  • Sonja K
  • 2020-08-30

Forget the sound effects!

I found the sound effects distracting and made the book more difficult to follow. I couldn’t seem to distinguish where the weird sounds were coming from!

12 people found this helpful

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  • jane
  • 2020-08-18

Great story- but this is not a new one!!

Audible redid an old book. I bought it thinking it was a new Michael Connelly.. It was not. In fact I’ve read the book in the past so the story was familiar. Rather disappointed!

9 people found this helpful

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  • Janice
  • 2020-12-29

Lose the sound effects

Love the book, classic Michael Connelly. Great narration but the " immersive musical soundtrack" was awful and a big distraction. Will avoid audiobooks with Booktrack in the future.

4 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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Profile Image for Danine Wright
  • Danine Wright
  • 2020-08-13

Disappointing

I love this author. I've read many of his books. I was excited to listen to this book but was very disappointed. It drug on. It wasn't very exciting. The narrator was poor. I just didn't like it.

4 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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Profile Image for J.E. Mullaney III
  • J.E. Mullaney III
  • 2020-08-04

Weak

Weak story line, weak performance, weak editing. A waste of $20 and too many hours.

4 people found this helpful

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  • David
  • 2022-12-10

Fantastic Work on Mental Disorders

Starts out slow, then builds. Unlike audiobooks with music background that distracts, this edition is like listening to a modern day radio show. The music adds to the story. Keeps your interest until the end. Don't give up on it!

1 person found this helpful

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  • joel chrisman
  • 2022-11-25

This format has music!!

it's my fault for not knowing what the "booktrack" version was. turns out it means they play music in the background. to me it ruins it but the book itself Is great, Giles reading is great, music in the background is annoying.

1 person found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Profile Image for Anonymous User
  • Anonymous User
  • 2022-07-05

Kill the music

Good story but background music must go. The music is very distracting and unnecessary. Mahalo

1 person found this helpful