The Wrong Side of Goodbye (Harry Bosch #19)

By Michael Connelly

I went with the family to New York and then onto LA for two weeks and I realised I needed a really good book, one that I can't put down, to read while we're flying. A quality Harry Bosch novel was the answer.
Although the release of the paperback is some way off I felt justified in getting that larger paperback version. Its 44 chapters and I began reading as we flew out of Ackland on the way to Houston and finished it on the flight coming back to Napier from Auckland.

It is a great story and it didn't end the way I thought it would. Not in the slightest. Harry Bosch is working for the San Fernando Police Department while still being active with a private investigation case. I felt that the 'Screen Cutter' case was a little weak but I realised that there needed to be space and time between the pages for the reflection on Bosch's character and the Vance case too. Not one of Connelly's better tales but still, I struggled to put it down.

Synopsis

Harry Bosch is California’s newest private investigator. He doesn’t advertise, he doesn’t have an office, and he’s picky about who he works for, but it doesn’t matter. His chops from thirty years with the LAPD speak for themselves.
Soon one of Southern California’s biggest moguls comes calling. The reclusive billionaire is nearing the end of his life and is haunted by one regret. When he was young, he had a relationship with a Mexican girl, his great love. But soon after becoming pregnant, she disappeared. Did she have the baby? And if so, what happened to it?
Desperate to know whether he has an heir, the dying magnate hires Bosch, the only person he can trust. With such a vast fortune at stake, Harry realizes that his mission could be risky not only for himself but for the one he’s seeking. But as he begins to uncover the haunting story–and finds uncanny links to his own past–he knows he cannot rest until he finds the truth.
At the same time, unable to leave cop work behind completely, he volunteers as an investigator for a tiny cash-strapped police department and finds himself tracking a serial rapist who is one of the most baffling and dangerous foes he has ever faced.

Author 

Michael Connelly began writing for the Los Angeles on the Crime Beat. He turned out his first novel in 1992, Bill Clinton was spotted purchasing Michael’s third novel, Concrete Blonde, in 1994 and he never looked back. 26 novels later and he’s still going. On a personal note, with the title “The wrong side of goodbye” I’m a little nervous about reading the 2016 novel for fear of Harry dying off… no comments giving that away people, I’m hoping to address that demon over Christmas.

Books by the same author

There are so many novels he's written, a full list can be found here. But I'm going to focus on what I consider to be the most significant in terms of Harry Bosch's character development.

The Black Echo (1992)
The Last Coyote (1995)
A Darkness More Than Night (2001)
Nine Dragons (2009)
The Drop (2011)
Switchblade (2014)