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John Driscoll #1
Bone Thief
Bone Thief
377 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2006
20 people are currently reading
705 people want to read
About the author
Thomas O'Callaghan
6 books62 followersThomas O'Callaghan's work has been translated for publication in Germany, Slovakia, Indonesia, and the Czech Republic. A publishing house in Italy has recently acquired rights, as well. As an internationally acclaimed author, Mr. O'Callaghan is a member of both the Mystery Writers of America and the International Thriller Writers associations. A native of New York City and a graduate of CUNY, Mr. O'Callaghan resides with his wife, Eileen, a stone's throw from the Atlantic Ocean in beautiful Belle Harbor, New York, where he is working on the latest in a series of thrillers featuring NYPD Lieutenant John Driscoll. His most recent, THE SCREAMING ROOM, was released by Kensington Books in May 2007.
Series:
* John Driscoll
Series:
* John Driscoll
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
August 15, 2014
I'm honestly sort of surprised by all the positive reviews on here. This book was poorly written, poorly researched, and barely qualifies as a mystery novel, much less a psychological thriller. The idea behind the book--a serial killer who removes all the bones from his victims--is an excellent one, but the book itself was poorly written. Spoilers ahead.
THE TECH
When I first read this, I thought surely this book must have been published in the late 90s. There was no way a book that relies this heavily on the internet and modern computers could be so off-base. As it turns out, the book was published in 2006. Some examples of the terrible tech in this book:
1) The detectives use Netscape. By 2006, less than 5% of people on the internet used Netscape. A year after this book was published, its user share was so low, they stopped development and announced the browser was essentially dead. No one used Netscape in 2006.
2) The author painstakingly has his middle aged detective hero describe to his younger lady sidekick--who despite being in her 30s, living in Manhattan and in 2006(!!) had apparently never used a computer before--how to use a search engine. Right down to describing how to open the browser, where to point and click, which search engines to use, and how to type things in. I could understand if this book had been written in 1997 when fairly few people owned computers. By 2006, pretty much all middle class, and many working class, folks had computers and internet access in their homes.
3) Almost no one in this book has cell phones, either, and by 2006, my college stopped using land lines entirely because they were so infrequently used because EVERYONE had a cell phone. I can't figure out what Manhattan cop in 2006 wouldn't have had a cell phone.
4) The 14-year-old hacker who basically finds the killer and figures out what his MO is (while New York's Finest is still trying to figure out how to run a search engine) proves her tech cred by showing the detectives a computer "vaccine" that will immediately fix any virus on any computer. That's not how viruses work (or how vaccines work, for that matter), and it makes you wonder if the author had even heard of anti-virus software in 2006.
5) "The land of hacking." There is no magical place you go to hack, especially not one that you get to by piercing some Matrix-like veil. This isn't how hacking works. The author clearly did so little research on this subject it was painful.
6) ISPs and messageboards. The serial killer signs up for multiple ISPs to access their message boards in order to lure in his victims with cheesy personal ads. Clearly the author is only familiar with ISP-sponsored message boards, because you don't need to have multiple ISPs to access message boards on the internet, and the only reason you'd think this is if you were a late 90s-early 00s AOL user who didn't realize there was an internet beyond the AOL community.
There's more to say about the tech, but a lot of this also works under the next category, so read on.
THE DETECTIVE WORK
No wonder it took Driscoll months to find the killer. He--and all of his colleagues--were so inept, nothing but sheer stupidity on the part of the killer could have enabled the detectives to find him any faster. Even assuming there's a lot going on that isn't shared in the book (come the heck on), a lot of crucial detective work is missing. Some examples:
1) They never search the victims' homes or seem to look in depth into their financial or phone records, internet search histories and e-mail accounts. It takes a 14-year-old girl to tell them they should have checked their victims' e-mail accounts (!!!!!!) after multiple women had already been murdered, and rather than get a search warrant to look at these things themselves, they rely on a 14-year-old's hacking skills to hack into the victims' e-mail accounts. Once they figure out the serial killer's handle and e-mail address, they never try to track him down using his IP address or by contacting his numerous ISPs for his billing information. It's maddening.
2) They don't push any of the people they interview for more information. When they're talking to the first victim's husband, he says if his wife were having an affair, he would know, in this meaningful way, and the cops never follow up on that or ask more questions. There are couple of other examples, but basically, if the cops determine the person they're interviewing wasn't immediately responsible for the victim's death, they stop interviewing them. As if there is no other information to be gleaned.
3) They follow up on individual leads for each victim without ever bothering to ask the question "how are the victims related?" They go after a tattoo artist related to the second victim as if he might be a suspect without ever really thinking about how he might be connected to the first victim, and they go after the boyfriend of the 3rd victim as if he might be the killer without bothering to question how he might have been connected to either of the first two victims. It's totally confounding. You obviously have one dude killing all these people. Why would people only connected with a single victim and no relationship with any of the others be a reasonable suspect?
4) Rather than actually look at the victims' computers, they use the PD's computers to run searches on "bones" and "druidism" to try to find out more about the killer. As if the serial killer is going to be running a website called "HOW I KILL PEOPLE BY REMOVING ALL THEIR BONES IN A DRUID RITUAL", complete with his picture and home address. And then they print "reams of paper" filled with the stuff they find using search engines, even though none of those things are directly related to their investigation. *facepalm* What do they do with that paper? Presumably throw it in the trash, because it sure as shooting wasn't going to help them find their killer.
5) They allow a 14-year-old to become deeply involved in their investigation. She even turns up at a sting operation where they are trying to catch the killer. It never occurs to any of these brilliant detectives that the killer might be wary that it's a set-up and stake out the situation before walking into a trap. And when the killer doesn't show up, it never occurs to them that the killer might have seen them, avoided the trap, seen the 14-year-old, targeted her, followed the cops to where they dropped her off at her home after they gave up on catching the killer, and then might make a move on her. The result is a 14-year-old gets picked up by the killer and left brain dead in a body cast. The main detective feels some fleeting guilt about it, but the girl's parents aren't suing so he's not going to dwell. WHAT THE HECK?!
THE WRITING
The biggest flaw in the writing is that the author has never heard the phrase "show, don't tell" and spends the whole book telling us what we're supposed to think about the characters and the situations, while the things the characters' actions never support what the author tells us. For example:
1) While the cops are setting up the sting to catch the bad guy, one of the hero detective's underling basically says the detective is so good, he doesn't need luck. Which I think is supposed to make the detective look good, but in light of the fact of how badly the detective screwed up, including leaving a 14-year-old in a coma, it just comes off as excruciatingly bad writing. The author keeps telling us that Driscoll (the detective) is a great detective and everyone he works with him respects and admires him, but any sort of behavior that would actually justify anyone thinking he was a superlative detective never comes across in the writing.
2) Driscoll and his lady sidekick, Margaret (which, btw, it makes me furious that all the male cops are called by their last names, but his female partner is referred to by her first name the whole freaking book), are supposedly swept up in a romance with each other. And the characters TALK a lot about their feelings and how much they can't resist each other, but apart from one embarrassingly cheesy love scene where they share a candlelight dinner where the wind blows out not one, but two candles (*barf*), there's never any evidence they actually like each other. All their dialogue is direct and business-like, and you never get the feeling they are just dying to be together. At one point, the author has Driscoll envisioning himself making love to Margaret, and the author writes Driscoll lets the fantasy "consume" him. Then the very next sentence he takes a sip of coffee and goes back to work. ?!?!
3) All of the characters' back stories and prior relationships are not built up organically but are just plopped down beginning to end in long expositions. They read like character summaries a high school student would put together for a book report, not the natural unfolding of people's histories and connections. One character, Thomlinson, has his entire background dropped in a single chapter, so you know where he's from, what he's been like as a cop, and why Driscoll is his hero, totally out of joint from the rest of the narrative. It is completely jarring, and again, it TELLS us he has a great relationship with Driscoll without the author ever having to actually demonstrate they have that relationship. There's no authenticity, and it makes the progress of the narrative really clunky.
Of course, the author's inability just to let the story unfold isn't the only problem. There's also the fact that the book gets completely derailed by the Driscoll-Margaret love story (which is so unbelievably boring), to the point that at times the book feels more like a romance novel (a completely chemistry-free romance novel) rather than a mystery.
THE CHARACTERS
Ugh. Okay? Just ugh.
1) Driscoll is so obnoxious. He's tall, good looking, wears designer clothing (on a cop salary?), and love French cuisine. Everyone admires and respects him. He was a doting father and husband. He has a lot of guilt about his wife's accident which has left her comatose. The man has no flaws. And that's boring as all get out.
2) Margaret apparently is the victim of incest and abuse at the hands of her cop father. She never shows any sign of interest in Driscoll until she starts working this serial killer case with him. Driscoll's therapist inexplicably decides to diagnose and analyze her without ever meeting her and without her consent to Driscoll (so unethical!), and essentially tells Driscoll the only reason Margaret's interested in Driscoll is because she's working this case where she's reliving childhood trauma and she's looking for a father figure to replace her own sexually abusive father and has latched on to Driscoll for this reason. And instead of the therapist telling her he should leave Margaret alone and instead tell her to seek counseling, the therapist encourages Driscoll to take advantage of the situation and Margaret's psychological distress and try to build a relationship out of it. What the everlucking F#$@?!
3) I was never able to piece together what made the serial killer tick. Something about Irish Catholic guilt and childhood abuse and Druid rituals? There are some loosely connected ideas, but the dots never really completely connect. I also can't figure out why any of the people who knew him as a child and knew he had some serious psychological issues and propensity toward violence, when they realized he was being suspected of murdering a bunch of women, didn't try to do something. I don't care how much you love someone. You don't let someone kidnap, torture, and murder innocent people.
THE ENDING
In the end, for all the emphasis on tech, what finally does the bad guy in is his own ego and a weird hunch the detectives get because of how he handled a patient (who was nearly one of his victims, but got away) in the hospital where he works. They couldn't track him down by searching his victims' e-mail accounts, finding his e-mail address, and tracking him back that way. Instead, they have to go on a "gut feeling" based on none of that tech stuff, put Margaret in a dangerous situation alone with a known serial killer, and hope to turn up something in the course of Margaret's "date" with a guy they're pretty sure is a psycopath. Yup. that's pretty much par for the course for this book.
The whole thing ends on a boat with a helicopter and a fist fight. Of course. The bad guy gets shot and ends up disappearing into the water at night, but his body is never found. Gee, I wonder if there's going to be a sequel to this book.
Everything about this book was awful. I only kept reading it because I was on vacation with friends, and my friends got a big kick out of my reading the particularly awful passages aloud to the group. It only gets 2 stars because it started out with a really good idea, and then quickly degenerated into a cliche, clueless mess. The only real mystery with this book is how it got published in the first place.
THE TECH
When I first read this, I thought surely this book must have been published in the late 90s. There was no way a book that relies this heavily on the internet and modern computers could be so off-base. As it turns out, the book was published in 2006. Some examples of the terrible tech in this book:
1) The detectives use Netscape. By 2006, less than 5% of people on the internet used Netscape. A year after this book was published, its user share was so low, they stopped development and announced the browser was essentially dead. No one used Netscape in 2006.
2) The author painstakingly has his middle aged detective hero describe to his younger lady sidekick--who despite being in her 30s, living in Manhattan and in 2006(!!) had apparently never used a computer before--how to use a search engine. Right down to describing how to open the browser, where to point and click, which search engines to use, and how to type things in. I could understand if this book had been written in 1997 when fairly few people owned computers. By 2006, pretty much all middle class, and many working class, folks had computers and internet access in their homes.
3) Almost no one in this book has cell phones, either, and by 2006, my college stopped using land lines entirely because they were so infrequently used because EVERYONE had a cell phone. I can't figure out what Manhattan cop in 2006 wouldn't have had a cell phone.
4) The 14-year-old hacker who basically finds the killer and figures out what his MO is (while New York's Finest is still trying to figure out how to run a search engine) proves her tech cred by showing the detectives a computer "vaccine" that will immediately fix any virus on any computer. That's not how viruses work (or how vaccines work, for that matter), and it makes you wonder if the author had even heard of anti-virus software in 2006.
5) "The land of hacking." There is no magical place you go to hack, especially not one that you get to by piercing some Matrix-like veil. This isn't how hacking works. The author clearly did so little research on this subject it was painful.
6) ISPs and messageboards. The serial killer signs up for multiple ISPs to access their message boards in order to lure in his victims with cheesy personal ads. Clearly the author is only familiar with ISP-sponsored message boards, because you don't need to have multiple ISPs to access message boards on the internet, and the only reason you'd think this is if you were a late 90s-early 00s AOL user who didn't realize there was an internet beyond the AOL community.
There's more to say about the tech, but a lot of this also works under the next category, so read on.
THE DETECTIVE WORK
No wonder it took Driscoll months to find the killer. He--and all of his colleagues--were so inept, nothing but sheer stupidity on the part of the killer could have enabled the detectives to find him any faster. Even assuming there's a lot going on that isn't shared in the book (come the heck on), a lot of crucial detective work is missing. Some examples:
1) They never search the victims' homes or seem to look in depth into their financial or phone records, internet search histories and e-mail accounts. It takes a 14-year-old girl to tell them they should have checked their victims' e-mail accounts (!!!!!!) after multiple women had already been murdered, and rather than get a search warrant to look at these things themselves, they rely on a 14-year-old's hacking skills to hack into the victims' e-mail accounts. Once they figure out the serial killer's handle and e-mail address, they never try to track him down using his IP address or by contacting his numerous ISPs for his billing information. It's maddening.
2) They don't push any of the people they interview for more information. When they're talking to the first victim's husband, he says if his wife were having an affair, he would know, in this meaningful way, and the cops never follow up on that or ask more questions. There are couple of other examples, but basically, if the cops determine the person they're interviewing wasn't immediately responsible for the victim's death, they stop interviewing them. As if there is no other information to be gleaned.
3) They follow up on individual leads for each victim without ever bothering to ask the question "how are the victims related?" They go after a tattoo artist related to the second victim as if he might be a suspect without ever really thinking about how he might be connected to the first victim, and they go after the boyfriend of the 3rd victim as if he might be the killer without bothering to question how he might have been connected to either of the first two victims. It's totally confounding. You obviously have one dude killing all these people. Why would people only connected with a single victim and no relationship with any of the others be a reasonable suspect?
4) Rather than actually look at the victims' computers, they use the PD's computers to run searches on "bones" and "druidism" to try to find out more about the killer. As if the serial killer is going to be running a website called "HOW I KILL PEOPLE BY REMOVING ALL THEIR BONES IN A DRUID RITUAL", complete with his picture and home address. And then they print "reams of paper" filled with the stuff they find using search engines, even though none of those things are directly related to their investigation. *facepalm* What do they do with that paper? Presumably throw it in the trash, because it sure as shooting wasn't going to help them find their killer.
5) They allow a 14-year-old to become deeply involved in their investigation. She even turns up at a sting operation where they are trying to catch the killer. It never occurs to any of these brilliant detectives that the killer might be wary that it's a set-up and stake out the situation before walking into a trap. And when the killer doesn't show up, it never occurs to them that the killer might have seen them, avoided the trap, seen the 14-year-old, targeted her, followed the cops to where they dropped her off at her home after they gave up on catching the killer, and then might make a move on her. The result is a 14-year-old gets picked up by the killer and left brain dead in a body cast. The main detective feels some fleeting guilt about it, but the girl's parents aren't suing so he's not going to dwell. WHAT THE HECK?!
THE WRITING
The biggest flaw in the writing is that the author has never heard the phrase "show, don't tell" and spends the whole book telling us what we're supposed to think about the characters and the situations, while the things the characters' actions never support what the author tells us. For example:
1) While the cops are setting up the sting to catch the bad guy, one of the hero detective's underling basically says the detective is so good, he doesn't need luck. Which I think is supposed to make the detective look good, but in light of the fact of how badly the detective screwed up, including leaving a 14-year-old in a coma, it just comes off as excruciatingly bad writing. The author keeps telling us that Driscoll (the detective) is a great detective and everyone he works with him respects and admires him, but any sort of behavior that would actually justify anyone thinking he was a superlative detective never comes across in the writing.
2) Driscoll and his lady sidekick, Margaret (which, btw, it makes me furious that all the male cops are called by their last names, but his female partner is referred to by her first name the whole freaking book), are supposedly swept up in a romance with each other. And the characters TALK a lot about their feelings and how much they can't resist each other, but apart from one embarrassingly cheesy love scene where they share a candlelight dinner where the wind blows out not one, but two candles (*barf*), there's never any evidence they actually like each other. All their dialogue is direct and business-like, and you never get the feeling they are just dying to be together. At one point, the author has Driscoll envisioning himself making love to Margaret, and the author writes Driscoll lets the fantasy "consume" him. Then the very next sentence he takes a sip of coffee and goes back to work. ?!?!
3) All of the characters' back stories and prior relationships are not built up organically but are just plopped down beginning to end in long expositions. They read like character summaries a high school student would put together for a book report, not the natural unfolding of people's histories and connections. One character, Thomlinson, has his entire background dropped in a single chapter, so you know where he's from, what he's been like as a cop, and why Driscoll is his hero, totally out of joint from the rest of the narrative. It is completely jarring, and again, it TELLS us he has a great relationship with Driscoll without the author ever having to actually demonstrate they have that relationship. There's no authenticity, and it makes the progress of the narrative really clunky.
Of course, the author's inability just to let the story unfold isn't the only problem. There's also the fact that the book gets completely derailed by the Driscoll-Margaret love story (which is so unbelievably boring), to the point that at times the book feels more like a romance novel (a completely chemistry-free romance novel) rather than a mystery.
THE CHARACTERS
Ugh. Okay? Just ugh.
1) Driscoll is so obnoxious. He's tall, good looking, wears designer clothing (on a cop salary?), and love French cuisine. Everyone admires and respects him. He was a doting father and husband. He has a lot of guilt about his wife's accident which has left her comatose. The man has no flaws. And that's boring as all get out.
2) Margaret apparently is the victim of incest and abuse at the hands of her cop father. She never shows any sign of interest in Driscoll until she starts working this serial killer case with him. Driscoll's therapist inexplicably decides to diagnose and analyze her without ever meeting her and without her consent to Driscoll (so unethical!), and essentially tells Driscoll the only reason Margaret's interested in Driscoll is because she's working this case where she's reliving childhood trauma and she's looking for a father figure to replace her own sexually abusive father and has latched on to Driscoll for this reason. And instead of the therapist telling her he should leave Margaret alone and instead tell her to seek counseling, the therapist encourages Driscoll to take advantage of the situation and Margaret's psychological distress and try to build a relationship out of it. What the everlucking F#$@?!
3) I was never able to piece together what made the serial killer tick. Something about Irish Catholic guilt and childhood abuse and Druid rituals? There are some loosely connected ideas, but the dots never really completely connect. I also can't figure out why any of the people who knew him as a child and knew he had some serious psychological issues and propensity toward violence, when they realized he was being suspected of murdering a bunch of women, didn't try to do something. I don't care how much you love someone. You don't let someone kidnap, torture, and murder innocent people.
THE ENDING
In the end, for all the emphasis on tech, what finally does the bad guy in is his own ego and a weird hunch the detectives get because of how he handled a patient (who was nearly one of his victims, but got away) in the hospital where he works. They couldn't track him down by searching his victims' e-mail accounts, finding his e-mail address, and tracking him back that way. Instead, they have to go on a "gut feeling" based on none of that tech stuff, put Margaret in a dangerous situation alone with a known serial killer, and hope to turn up something in the course of Margaret's "date" with a guy they're pretty sure is a psycopath. Yup. that's pretty much par for the course for this book.
The whole thing ends on a boat with a helicopter and a fist fight. Of course. The bad guy gets shot and ends up disappearing into the water at night, but his body is never found. Gee, I wonder if there's going to be a sequel to this book.
Everything about this book was awful. I only kept reading it because I was on vacation with friends, and my friends got a big kick out of my reading the particularly awful passages aloud to the group. It only gets 2 stars because it started out with a really good idea, and then quickly degenerated into a cliche, clueless mess. The only real mystery with this book is how it got published in the first place.
October 12, 2020
This crime thriller is the first in the John Driscoll Thriller series.
Lieutenant John Driscoll is a homicide detective on the NYPD. His wife is in a vegetative state and his daughter is dead as the result of a car crash. He is dedicated to his job and his wife and has no life to speak of. Margaret Aligante is his work partner and she puts her life on the line to help John bring down a serial killer.
Moira Tiernan is a 15 year old computer whiz and general smartass who insinuates herself into the investigation. Her skills are impressive and before long she discovers the killer's online persona and the lures he uses to select his victims.
Dr. Colm Pierce, a wealthy Radiologist, is a serial killer with a severely troubled past. He is clever, arrogant and horribly vicious. He hides his evil persona with a handsome, charismatic appearance.
This is a real page turner and a memorable cast of characters for future books. However, this story is not for the faint of heart. The violence against the victims(all women) is disturbing and graphic.
Lieutenant John Driscoll is a homicide detective on the NYPD. His wife is in a vegetative state and his daughter is dead as the result of a car crash. He is dedicated to his job and his wife and has no life to speak of. Margaret Aligante is his work partner and she puts her life on the line to help John bring down a serial killer.
Moira Tiernan is a 15 year old computer whiz and general smartass who insinuates herself into the investigation. Her skills are impressive and before long she discovers the killer's online persona and the lures he uses to select his victims.
Dr. Colm Pierce, a wealthy Radiologist, is a serial killer with a severely troubled past. He is clever, arrogant and horribly vicious. He hides his evil persona with a handsome, charismatic appearance.
This is a real page turner and a memorable cast of characters for future books. However, this story is not for the faint of heart. The violence against the victims(all women) is disturbing and graphic.
August 2, 2019
1st. book and new author for me... 1st Series of a 2 book Series by this Author. Great Read, very well written, to the point you don't want to put it down till your done. It's a story about a serial killer who steals their bones... So on to book 2 and Final Series....
April 24, 2013
The premise of the book sounded oddly interesting, a murderer who keeps the bones of his victims and leaves the rest for the authorities to find. While it was gory in the beginning, as there are 3 murders in a short period of time, the book tapers off near the end and it seems like they catch the bad guy too easily. Also, the role of certain characters seems to exaggerated to be real, and I was having a hard time placing the book in a timeframe. On the latter point, the book was written after 2000, but the police force investigating has only limited knowledge of the internet. From what I know, government and police forces were among the early users of the internet, and the book was set in New York City, so it's not some rural, behind-the-times police force. On the former, the detectives enlist the help of a 14 year-old who they only met because the main detective was researching Druid rituals as a suspected motive for the killings and spoke with her father, a college professor on the subject. It is this child they rely on for all of their internet work.
This wasn't a bad book, I just figured with such a twisted sounding plot, it would be better written and less focused on these flaws that were glaring.
This wasn't a bad book, I just figured with such a twisted sounding plot, it would be better written and less focused on these flaws that were glaring.
August 14, 2016
Decent mystery. A little dated in terminology and references but otherwise kept your interest. A good cop and his team search for a murderer of women.
October 21, 2019
Quick read. New series with Lt and his team of detectives after a killer who bones his murder victims. Good descriptions of NYC, some romantic interest as well. Found the teenage female character a bit too savvy for someone so young, maybe if she were a few yrs older it would be more likely. Will check out other book in the series, if I see it.~
March 7, 2012
Well, I had never heard of this author before my sister gave me a few books that she thought I might like. I might just check out a few more.
For a debut novel/series this was pretty well done. From the outset our hero Driscoll is a likeable enough guy who has had more than his share of tragedy and misfortune. The villan was heartless and fairly gruesome even by seriel killer standards, and although I did not get get a full picture of him untill late in the book O'Callaghan did manage to tie up his loose ends rather neatly. Outside of Driscoll however I did not connect very deeply with any of his supporting cast members, and found many to be very shallow or hollow. I was drawn to his loyalty towards his wife, and then very disappointed at the way he rationalized his right to have an affair due to her condition. Unfortunataly while this mirrors several real life scenerios I have encountered, his stature greatly diminshed in my eyes due to this decision. The crappy advice of his therapist, priest and wanna be girl friend (I am sure she represented his wife well, LOL) were very disheartening, and I felt his decision was out of character from the previously very ethical character development that was taking place...But perhaps I am old school and believe that till death do us part, for better and worse, in sickness and health, AND FORESAKING ALL OTHERS does not merely apply when things are going well. Oh well, enough of my ethical rant. I also found the forced adulterous relationship a bit shallow and contrived. I did not feel any real substance and/or sizzle that made we want to see these 2 develop even if the marriage were not a factor. I also found the allowed involvement of a 14 y/o girl into crime scene investigation and negligiantly placed into harms way, showed me much less professionalism from Driscoll than was consistant with the rest of the story. He should have been fired imediately...Instead what we had a was a decent story, high on action with a few unbelievable glitches along the way.
Not a bad story by any stretch, and I would recommend it to any fans of the seriel killer genre, and crime/mystery enthusiasts. I would just suggest your excpectations be tempered a little going in. I might perhaps rate this alongside of David Wiltse's, John Becker series, but don't excpect this to wow you on a level that is par with the top series going around.
For a debut novel/series this was pretty well done. From the outset our hero Driscoll is a likeable enough guy who has had more than his share of tragedy and misfortune. The villan was heartless and fairly gruesome even by seriel killer standards, and although I did not get get a full picture of him untill late in the book O'Callaghan did manage to tie up his loose ends rather neatly. Outside of Driscoll however I did not connect very deeply with any of his supporting cast members, and found many to be very shallow or hollow. I was drawn to his loyalty towards his wife, and then very disappointed at the way he rationalized his right to have an affair due to her condition. Unfortunataly while this mirrors several real life scenerios I have encountered, his stature greatly diminshed in my eyes due to this decision. The crappy advice of his therapist, priest and wanna be girl friend (I am sure she represented his wife well, LOL) were very disheartening, and I felt his decision was out of character from the previously very ethical character development that was taking place...But perhaps I am old school and believe that till death do us part, for better and worse, in sickness and health, AND FORESAKING ALL OTHERS does not merely apply when things are going well. Oh well, enough of my ethical rant. I also found the forced adulterous relationship a bit shallow and contrived. I did not feel any real substance and/or sizzle that made we want to see these 2 develop even if the marriage were not a factor. I also found the allowed involvement of a 14 y/o girl into crime scene investigation and negligiantly placed into harms way, showed me much less professionalism from Driscoll than was consistant with the rest of the story. He should have been fired imediately...Instead what we had a was a decent story, high on action with a few unbelievable glitches along the way.
Not a bad story by any stretch, and I would recommend it to any fans of the seriel killer genre, and crime/mystery enthusiasts. I would just suggest your excpectations be tempered a little going in. I might perhaps rate this alongside of David Wiltse's, John Becker series, but don't excpect this to wow you on a level that is par with the top series going around.
May 15, 2010
Creepy and Compelling, a wonderful ride!
A serial killer who likes bones is leaving victims boneless. Bodies are being found, with no connection between them, except for one thing: their bodies are boneless.
The heat is being turned up, and Lt. John Driscoll can feel it. A relentless hound, Driscoll works the case right down to the nitty-gritty, determined to find the killer and put him away for life.
But John is a battling his own demons. Years before, an accident took away his daughter, Nicole, and left his wife, Colette, in a coma. He misses Nicole every day, and sits by his wife’s bed almost nightly.
Together, with a rag-tag team, they work together to bring down the man who is terrorizing New York, a cunning killer who has every intention of not getting caught.
**Incredible plot, a great mix of characters, definitely a novel to read!!!
I absolutely loved this book! Mystery, suspense, gruesome scenes, there is no slowing down with this book. From chapter 1 to chapter 91, there’s no stopping; good guys and bad man alike. Not only the case, but John’s personal life as well.
Guilt is riding John hard, for as his wife lies comatose, feelings for Sergeant Margaret Aligante are growing as well. And Margaret has ghosts of her own past haunting her; the thought of being with John is terrifying.
But they work through it, putting feelings aside to deal with the case.
The killer creeped me out so well, I had goose bumps on top of goose bumps. Characters completely different from one another, but all with personalities that make them stand out. Scenery and object are not overly described, just enough that you get a sense of what your seeing, a picture forming inside your mind, but not so much that you’re losing yourself in adjectives and adverbs and growing bored. Just the perfect blend.
This is definitely a story that shouldn’t be missed!
Rating: 5 Stars!
A serial killer who likes bones is leaving victims boneless. Bodies are being found, with no connection between them, except for one thing: their bodies are boneless.
The heat is being turned up, and Lt. John Driscoll can feel it. A relentless hound, Driscoll works the case right down to the nitty-gritty, determined to find the killer and put him away for life.
But John is a battling his own demons. Years before, an accident took away his daughter, Nicole, and left his wife, Colette, in a coma. He misses Nicole every day, and sits by his wife’s bed almost nightly.
Together, with a rag-tag team, they work together to bring down the man who is terrorizing New York, a cunning killer who has every intention of not getting caught.
**Incredible plot, a great mix of characters, definitely a novel to read!!!
I absolutely loved this book! Mystery, suspense, gruesome scenes, there is no slowing down with this book. From chapter 1 to chapter 91, there’s no stopping; good guys and bad man alike. Not only the case, but John’s personal life as well.
Guilt is riding John hard, for as his wife lies comatose, feelings for Sergeant Margaret Aligante are growing as well. And Margaret has ghosts of her own past haunting her; the thought of being with John is terrifying.
But they work through it, putting feelings aside to deal with the case.
The killer creeped me out so well, I had goose bumps on top of goose bumps. Characters completely different from one another, but all with personalities that make them stand out. Scenery and object are not overly described, just enough that you get a sense of what your seeing, a picture forming inside your mind, but not so much that you’re losing yourself in adjectives and adverbs and growing bored. Just the perfect blend.
This is definitely a story that shouldn’t be missed!
Rating: 5 Stars!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 6, 2016
Colm Pierce is a completely deranged serial killer whose trademark is that he removes all of the bones from the body of his victims. He also removes the heads, hands and feet. He has the ability to easily attract women, women who later become victims in his bizarre killing scenario.
Lieutenant John Driscoll is placed in charge of the investigation, working with fellow cop Margaret. His personal story is a sad one. His 14-year-old daughter was killed in an auto accident six years earlier; his beloved wife, Colette, has been in a coma ever since. He cares for her at home; there is no hope that she is going to awake some day and resume life as they knew it.
Lieutenant John Driscoll is a compelling character. One can certainly empathize with his home situation and his need for a loving relationship. However, the interaction between John and Margaret was a real distraction to me. First of all, they worked together on the same team, so taking their interest in each other to the next level was totally unprofessional. Margaret acted like a jealous schoolgirl instead of the talented cop that she really was.
There were several elements in the book that derailed what was an essentially good effort. First of all, it was difficult to read the graphic details of the killer’s work. I found myself doing a lot of skimming when I reached those disturbing sections. As mentioned, the romantic angle was not convincingly portrayed. At times, it became almost soap opera territory, e.g., when Margaret and John have their first kiss, he receives a page that his wife has stopped breathing.
The book had potential that wasn’t quite reached. I found myself moving through the book rapidly.
Lieutenant John Driscoll is placed in charge of the investigation, working with fellow cop Margaret. His personal story is a sad one. His 14-year-old daughter was killed in an auto accident six years earlier; his beloved wife, Colette, has been in a coma ever since. He cares for her at home; there is no hope that she is going to awake some day and resume life as they knew it.
Lieutenant John Driscoll is a compelling character. One can certainly empathize with his home situation and his need for a loving relationship. However, the interaction between John and Margaret was a real distraction to me. First of all, they worked together on the same team, so taking their interest in each other to the next level was totally unprofessional. Margaret acted like a jealous schoolgirl instead of the talented cop that she really was.
There were several elements in the book that derailed what was an essentially good effort. First of all, it was difficult to read the graphic details of the killer’s work. I found myself doing a lot of skimming when I reached those disturbing sections. As mentioned, the romantic angle was not convincingly portrayed. At times, it became almost soap opera territory, e.g., when Margaret and John have their first kiss, he receives a page that his wife has stopped breathing.
The book had potential that wasn’t quite reached. I found myself moving through the book rapidly.
October 26, 2011
This book started with promise but, the more I read, the worse it got. These are some of the problems I had with it:
The relationship between John Driscoll and his partner, Margaret, felt more like a business transaction than a romance. The conversations were stilted, forced and emotionless. Margaret risked her career to pursue John, who is her boss. This supposed tough female cop suddenly behaved like a lovesick teen around him, despite the fact that they'd been working together for years.
The part Moira, a fourteen-year-old girl, played in solving the case is beyond ridiculous. The professional police task force seemed more like a bunch of amateur sleuths. They needed a teenager to direct them through the Internet and were slow in responding to or investigating obvious leads.
The Internet plays a large role in the murders, yet the author treats this vast space as if it's a corner cafe.
The book has occasional high points but I had to sift through a lot of nonsense to find them.
The relationship between John Driscoll and his partner, Margaret, felt more like a business transaction than a romance. The conversations were stilted, forced and emotionless. Margaret risked her career to pursue John, who is her boss. This supposed tough female cop suddenly behaved like a lovesick teen around him, despite the fact that they'd been working together for years.
The part Moira, a fourteen-year-old girl, played in solving the case is beyond ridiculous. The professional police task force seemed more like a bunch of amateur sleuths. They needed a teenager to direct them through the Internet and were slow in responding to or investigating obvious leads.
The Internet plays a large role in the murders, yet the author treats this vast space as if it's a corner cafe.
The book has occasional high points but I had to sift through a lot of nonsense to find them.
June 30, 2009
This was a fan-freaking-tastic book! I will be adding O'Callaghan to my list of fav authors.
I loved his writing style, the way he developed the characters and gave us a glimpse into their past was fantastic.
I loved John Driscoll the main character. The writing made us feel his pain, love, his fears. I believe we have a lot to discover about him and hope to do so in future books.
This book is graphic, but it is about a seriel collector so it must be. I was not turned off by the descriptions instead it drove me to keep reading to find out what kind of pyscho was doing this. This is a must read for anyone who enjoys crime novels, suspense, or actually any book that is written at the superb level that Thomas O'Callaghan has displayed.
I loved his writing style, the way he developed the characters and gave us a glimpse into their past was fantastic.
I loved John Driscoll the main character. The writing made us feel his pain, love, his fears. I believe we have a lot to discover about him and hope to do so in future books.
This book is graphic, but it is about a seriel collector so it must be. I was not turned off by the descriptions instead it drove me to keep reading to find out what kind of pyscho was doing this. This is a must read for anyone who enjoys crime novels, suspense, or actually any book that is written at the superb level that Thomas O'Callaghan has displayed.
September 6, 2023
Bone Thief (The John Driscoll Thrillers), my second read from author Thomas O'Callaghan but it will not be the last. An excellently written crime thriller! I've already been to Amazon looking at his titles. After reading No One Will Hear Your Screams (John Driscoll Mystery) I knew I had to read more and this doesn't disappoinf. “I received a free Kindle copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review." The gifting of this book did not affect my opinion of it. I look forward to reading more from this author and in this series. (RIP Marley January 20, 2014 - July 24, 2018).
May 29, 2024
I found this book to have a promising plot but it was very poorly executed. My main issue with this book is the lack of detail concerning the important parts. For instance, when the killer grabs his first victim, we see him scoping her out in his car, and then conveniently skip to him having her tied up in his basement. We miss the action and descriptions of the most important aspects of a thriller/suspense novel. The characters are all wooden and poor written as well. I wouldn’t recommend reading this novel unless you want to fall asleep.
July 18, 2019
Personally I love the genre of mystery and psycho thriller. Taking the writing glitches aside the plot fits the bill in terms of list of things I would want in a typical thriller book. Little disappointed with the ending but overall it was gripping and well paced. The bone thief was creepy and his childhood story totally chilling.
March 4, 2020
What a gruesome killer, the bone thief. Somehow I think the end of the book is not the end of the psycho.
The ending didn't feel like an end...but a wait and see.
The series is 2 part. One day, I will have to find part two and see if I was right.
In all the book was okay. A fairly fast read with short chapters.
The ending didn't feel like an end...but a wait and see.
The series is 2 part. One day, I will have to find part two and see if I was right.
In all the book was okay. A fairly fast read with short chapters.
May 16, 2021
I’m sorry but I couldn’t make it past murder number two—number one was bad enough, body left behind with all the bones, head, hands and feet missing. Murder two was stomach turning. It’s a serial killer on the loose so if you like such graphic details with your mysteries, go for it. I’m out of here.
November 3, 2021
The start of Bone Thief was rather gory. However, I liked the story of John Driscoll working to catch the serial killer with the aid of his squad and Margaret, in particular. His guilt over having feelings for Margaret while his wife was comatose forever was quite a struggle. At times I wondered if I should keep reading because of the violence, but soon I couldn't put the book down.
August 3, 2023
Super creepy. Every page feels like it was written by a depraved man with horrifying violent fantasies about women. The sexual tones are unnecessary. I read the whole thing hoping for redemption qualities and found none. It even hypersexualized a 14 year old.
February 25, 2018
I HATED this book! I finished it but I have & will never read another book by this author. Life is too short to read bad books.
July 25, 2018
I am yet to ascertain my feeling towards the book--- good, not-so-good or downright poor. However, as far as books are concerned, it was a worthwhile read.
January 3, 2019
My favorite book hands down
April 19, 2019
It was really good at the beginning, but the end just seemed kinda rushed to me.
June 2, 2020
Instantly hooked.
September 27, 2020
Really good mystery. Quick read.
February 6, 2021
Page turner!!
July 20, 2022
DNF. Was this a mystery or a story about accepting adultery? Terrible writing! Boring story.
April 7, 2024
Great book. I have never read this author before. I will look out for him in the future.
December 8, 2024
Started out strong and I had hope but the second half just went downhill. Unbelievable, annoying, and just disappointing.
June 12, 2009
Bone Thief was a unique serial killer story that kept me reading from beginning to end. Lieutenant John Driscoll has a life full of challenges. His wife is in a permanent coma from an accident which killed his daughter, his partner Margaret has feelings for him and a serial killer has come to New York. This killer is a collector and is leaving boneless bodies in different locations in the city. These gruesome finds have the people of New York terrified and Lieutenant Driscoll facing the heat. With help from a teenage hacker, Driscoll goes on the offensive hunting down his suspect. A dangerous game of cat-and-mouse begins with Margaret in the middle.
This book was one that I suspected I would enjoy before even beginning it. I tend to enjoy books about serial killers who are "collectors" and this book fell nicely into that category. The details were gruesome and the plot was full. It was an excellent read and I am looking forward to the second book in the series. John Driscoll is a captivating character. I thought his emotions were accurate and his suffering was depicted with realistic clarity. Grieving his daughter and caretaking for his wife have left him emotionally exhausted and his feelings for his partner Margaret complicate this by adding guilt to his already full plate. Margaret was not as enjoyable of a character for me. I thought she was a bit childish in her persistance of Driscoll and she seemed desperate for attention. Her usefulness in the case seemed to be nonexistant. She was more of a bait than a detective and this really put me off. Moira, on the other hand, was a fabulous character. While her role in the investigation was a bit unbelievable, her persona and attitude were right on target. Her connection with Driscoll was palpable and I completely understood his being drawn to her. Our killer, Colm, was perfection! He was charismatic, creepy and damaged; everything a solid serial killer should be. His methods were gruesome but his background allowed for this. His motive was not completely explained but it was understandable from the tidbits that were delivered through flashbacks. The revelation of his place in everyday society was shocking to me and I loved it! While the ending of the book was left a bit open, I thought this was a welcome change. I enjoy a book that doesn't necessarily end in a tidy resolution. Bone Thief definitely left the door open for a sequel and I would not be sad to see a reappearance of Colm. Overall, this book deserves a 5 star rating and I am happy to give it!
This book was one that I suspected I would enjoy before even beginning it. I tend to enjoy books about serial killers who are "collectors" and this book fell nicely into that category. The details were gruesome and the plot was full. It was an excellent read and I am looking forward to the second book in the series. John Driscoll is a captivating character. I thought his emotions were accurate and his suffering was depicted with realistic clarity. Grieving his daughter and caretaking for his wife have left him emotionally exhausted and his feelings for his partner Margaret complicate this by adding guilt to his already full plate. Margaret was not as enjoyable of a character for me. I thought she was a bit childish in her persistance of Driscoll and she seemed desperate for attention. Her usefulness in the case seemed to be nonexistant. She was more of a bait than a detective and this really put me off. Moira, on the other hand, was a fabulous character. While her role in the investigation was a bit unbelievable, her persona and attitude were right on target. Her connection with Driscoll was palpable and I completely understood his being drawn to her. Our killer, Colm, was perfection! He was charismatic, creepy and damaged; everything a solid serial killer should be. His methods were gruesome but his background allowed for this. His motive was not completely explained but it was understandable from the tidbits that were delivered through flashbacks. The revelation of his place in everyday society was shocking to me and I loved it! While the ending of the book was left a bit open, I thought this was a welcome change. I enjoy a book that doesn't necessarily end in a tidy resolution. Bone Thief definitely left the door open for a sequel and I would not be sad to see a reappearance of Colm. Overall, this book deserves a 5 star rating and I am happy to give it!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 25, 2011
I admit, I don't really go for thrillers or detective stories, as I prefer books that deal with history and dramas. I actually bought this book on a whim because I wanted to test whether my card could buy ebooks and the synopsis seemed interesting enough. However, what started out as a whim turned out to be something I actually ended up enjoying quite a bit, and I certainly don't regret the money spent. It's also the first book I managed to complete on my iPad.
What I loved most of all about this book was the thrill of the chase. It was really fun trying to guess the killer's motives as well as his place in society, as his identity had already been revealed from the start, and seeing if my guesswork was correct. The vast amount of characters and their personalities really worked for me as well, from the victims, to the detectives, to the people who were interviewed based on their connection to the victims. I particularly liked the two main leads, John Discoll and Margaret Aligante, and their budding relationship as it progressed through the book. And I have to admit, I'm quite pleased than Discoll's blessed with suck legacy seems to have ended, and due to that, his character stood out by quite a bit. I also liked the descriptions of events that occurred within the book, from the descriptions of the victims fears (I felt particularly sadistic at that), to the action scenes to even just the talking scenes, as they really lead to a satisfactory conclusion.
At the same time, I wasn't too pleased at some parts of the book. In a sense, it seems that characterisation is a double-edged sword because it was mainly the characterisation of two characters that I didn't really like. For one, I could hardly stand Moira; she struck me as an overconfident and reckless brat who had little to no regard for authority, and I honestly felt that she deserved what happened to her. Another case in point was Cedric Thomlinson, one of the detectives. He had a problem with alcohol and guilt, and seemed to be blessed with suck as well, though on less of a scale than Discoll, and I felt that what I read of him wasn't enough to satisfy my curiosity. As a sequel seems to be planned, it would be good if more of his characterisation was explored.
In short, I liked this book, and I would recommend it as well. As for the moral of the story; do not screw with serial killers, particularly those who are know to be extremely sadistic. Respect authority, listen to the police, and try not to be too overconfident.
What I loved most of all about this book was the thrill of the chase. It was really fun trying to guess the killer's motives as well as his place in society, as his identity had already been revealed from the start, and seeing if my guesswork was correct. The vast amount of characters and their personalities really worked for me as well, from the victims, to the detectives, to the people who were interviewed based on their connection to the victims. I particularly liked the two main leads, John Discoll and Margaret Aligante, and their budding relationship as it progressed through the book. And I have to admit, I'm quite pleased than Discoll's blessed with suck legacy seems to have ended, and due to that, his character stood out by quite a bit. I also liked the descriptions of events that occurred within the book, from the descriptions of the victims fears (I felt particularly sadistic at that), to the action scenes to even just the talking scenes, as they really lead to a satisfactory conclusion.
At the same time, I wasn't too pleased at some parts of the book. In a sense, it seems that characterisation is a double-edged sword because it was mainly the characterisation of two characters that I didn't really like. For one, I could hardly stand Moira; she struck me as an overconfident and reckless brat who had little to no regard for authority, and I honestly felt that she deserved what happened to her. Another case in point was Cedric Thomlinson, one of the detectives. He had a problem with alcohol and guilt, and seemed to be blessed with suck as well, though on less of a scale than Discoll, and I felt that what I read of him wasn't enough to satisfy my curiosity. As a sequel seems to be planned, it would be good if more of his characterisation was explored.
In short, I liked this book, and I would recommend it as well. As for the moral of the story; do not screw with serial killers, particularly those who are know to be extremely sadistic. Respect authority, listen to the police, and try not to be too overconfident.
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