Scratch One (Hard Case Crime)

This is one of Crichton's early thrillers, written before his breakout under his own name into the more cerebral techno-thrillers. The endpapers are a super insight into this incredibly accomplished man. The story uses the mistaken-identity storyline and wraps it around a plot that owes a lot to the James Bond classics. A relatively short, easy read that has the desired effect of wanting to know what happens next. I give it 4 stars rather than 5 because most readers will judge it by the author's better-known mature work, but it is a good casual read (and, at the reduced price, far ahead of the mass of poorly-written first-timers that inhabit this price point).

This was an exciting early thriller by Michael Crichton. A case of mistaken identity becomes a life of death situation for lawyer Roger Carr. Sent overseas to buy a villa, he is mistaken for a hired killer and the game is one. A fast paced, entertaining thriller, it has many twists and turns. Though dated, it's still fun. I read this book using immersion reading while listening to the audiobook version. Christopher Lane magnificently handles the narrative and accents and is a not to listen to. If you are a Chrichton fan, or just love a fun fish out of water tale, you will enjoy this book.

This book wasn't written in what I have come to expect of Michael Crichton excellence. However, it is entertaining. The action is non-stop although at times seemed drawn out. The premise of this book is another "mistaken identity" - a businessman (realtor) is mistaken for a ruthless arms dealer. The main character is unaware of his mistaken identity although calamity seems to follow him throughout his business trip. He seems a bit dense at times and doesn't react with as much fear of his captors/circumstances as an "average Joe" would have. I would have enjoyed reading more descriptions of how he relied on ingenuity to get out of the jams he found himself in, rather than rely on his captors to realize their mistake and let him go. This book lacked passion which, for me, spoiled suspense and thrill.

Another early book from the Master of the Techno-Thriller. Michael Crichton's second book was written while he was young and in college. Not as great as his later works, but still a good read. A mild-mannered Lawyer gets mixed up in the world as international espionage and political assassinations. Main character leaves something to be desired, though. If you're a Crichton fan, give it a read.

In the opening chapter of Scratch One, several people tangentially connected to an under-the-table arms deal between Norway, Israel, and the US are murdered on the same day in different cities around the world. A few days later an unlucky American lawyer who bears an unlikely resemblance to an internationally renown assassin is spotted exiting an airport terminal in France only minutes after a plane bomb detonates. This case of mistaken identity is about to throw the intelligence agencies of two nations and a cell of Arabic terrorists into chaos…Michael Crichton once said in an interview the John Lange books were written to be sold at airports and to compete with in-flight movies for the reader’s attention for a couple of hours.In this book, one of his characters “stopped at the [airport] gift shop to buy a paperbook book. He wanted something light and amusing, of no consequence.” The author was perfectly summing up his own book.Scratch One is not one of the better John Lange novels. While it features a few exotic locales, it lacks the suspense of Binary. It does not feature any emerging motifs that would define Crichton’s later bestsellers, as did Odds On. Even the more farcical scenes are missing the campiness that made Zero Cool and Drug of Choice memorable. The one fun highlight of this novel was the climax at the Gran Prix de Monaco; Princess Grace Kelly even makes a cameo.This is a spy novel with absurd movie logic, not book logic. Too many coincidences and conspiracies that do not make sense (Example: If the Arab terrorists kill all the arms dealers and transporters involved in an illegal shipment of guns from Norway to Israel, then the guns won’t be shipped. As if those two countries’ governments cannot find another way to get the deal done!)

Not as interesting as his other novels, but enough detail and James Bond type of dialog to keep it going

Being from Louisiana I can appreciate the Regional culture and mitts represented in this book.

This one is not a typical Michael Crichton novel but it was still good in a "James Bond" sort of way. If you like that type of novel/story/plot, you will probably like this one. In fact, reading it has caused me to want to re-visit all of the James Bond movies! It's been a while!

I purchased this book in spite of mediocre reviews because I simply love Michael Crichton's books; this one was reviewed by several people as being below his standard but I figured he couldn't have written anything really bad! I'm so glad I did get it; the story line is completely different than anything I've read, the characters are rich and fun, it's a bit wacky but in such a wonderfully entertaining and delightful way, I absolutely loved this book. Highly recommend.

Really enjoyed the historical, then current perspective - with some unusual twists and turns. Tempo was well-managed and kept me engrossed for the duration of the book.

I am looking forward to reading this book. I did not know that Michael Creighton wrote under a different name. I will be getting copies of all these books

I loved reading this excellent thriller book. I highly recommend it.

A rediscovered (early) Michael Crichton. Not the best of his medical writing years, but a lot better than nothing! Thank you, John Lange/