The Narrows

By Michael Connelly

Another wonderful piece by Connelly. He continues to dig the the depths of what makes Harry, Harry. At the same time we follow a case that grips you by the throat and never lets you go until the very end. It seems that the Poet has returned and is out to get the beautiful profiler, Rachel Walling. Unfortunately for the Poet, Rachel happens to be someone close to Harry Bosch and that will be his downfall, I'm sure of it.

Synopsis

Harry Bosch confronts a villian who's long been in hiding... he's called the Poet.
Former FBI agent Rachel Walling has recieved the call she's been dreading for four years. The Poet is back. Has has not forgotten her. And he has a special present for her.
Harry Bosch is adjusting to life in Las Vegas as a private investigator and a new father. He gets a call, too, form the widow of a friend who died recently, someone who worked on the famous case tracking the killer known as the Poet...

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)

Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch #14)

By Michael Connelly

Nine Dragons, certainly for me, is one the top five Harry Bosch books when it comes to looking more deeply into the protagonists soul. When I started the series I figured, though the writing was good, the stories would weaken. I mean, how much stuff can happen to one guy? In one lifetime? Really? But the way Connelly writes, the depth of his characters, the interactions between them is remarkable. I don't feel like I'm reading a novel, more like experiencing it. Another good Connelly, Bravo!

Synopsis

Detective Harry Bosch is called to investigate the murder of a store owner in a tough LA neighbourhood. For Harry, it's a trip down memory lane:he's been to Fortune Liquors before and remembers Mr Li - a man who offered him santuary during LA's notorious riots. Now the debt must be repaid.
Mr Li left a clue to his murderer's identity, a clue that leads Harry into a parallel criminal universe ruled by the Triads. But as he gets closer to this shady underworld, the Triads send Harry a devastating message - they have taken something of his, something he holds very dear. As Harry's life implodes, he must risk everything to track a killer who knows how to get under his skin...

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)

The Drop (Harry Bosch #15)

By Michael Connelly

This happens to be one of my favourite books in the series. The way Harry juggles two cases and the insight it gives into the type of man he is. When one of the cases brings Harry in close proximity to his nemesis Irving, there are sure to be fireworks. I worried that with might be the final Bosch novel but I needn't have worried. There's still plenty of life left in this story.
Synopsis
When evidence links the brutal murder in 1989 to a convicted rapist named Clayton Pell, the case should be watertight. Pell's DNA was found on the victim - but he was only eight years olds at the time.

This is not the only mystery Harry Bosch has to solve. A man jumped - or was pushed -from a window. The victim's fatheris Councilman Irving, who's been intent on destroying Harry's career for years. Now Irving wants Harry to head up the investigation.

Harry uncovers traces of two of the city's deepest secrets: a killer operating for as many as three decades without being detected, and a conspiracy that goes back into the dark history of the police department.

 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)

Switchblade (Harry Bosch #16.5)

By Michael Connelly

I spent a lot of time on the road a year or two ago and as you know I am a huge Michael Connelly fan. So it was good to hear he had a couple of audiobooks out at the time. As far as the timeline goes Switchblade explains in detail what is going on in Harry Bosch's life when he bumps into Michael Haller during The Gods of Guilt. It's only a short story, but it's a goodie.

Synopsis

LAPD Detective Harry Bosch seeks justice for the forgotten in this original story from #1 New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly.
An anonymous tip puts Bosch on a case that has remained unsolved for decades, the vicious stabbing of a teenage boy whose body was found in an abandoned Old Hollywood restaurant.  Cold cases are often the toughest: With no body, no murder scene, and no fingerprints, Bosch nevertheless gets lucky when DNA evidence from the murder weapon points to a known killer. But the DA insists that science alone is not enough — he needs the case to be bulletproof before he’ll take it to court.

Determined to speak for those who can no longer speak for themselves, Bosch has one chance to wrench a confession out of a cold-blooded killer, or risk letting him walk free for good.

 (www.michaelconnelly.com)

 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)

A Darkness more than Night (Harry Bosch #7)

By Michael Connelly

As the name implies Connelly reaches into the darkest recesses of Harry Bosch past. I read this novel a while back but what I enjoyed about it was the interaction between Bosch and McCaleb as McCaleb investigates Bosch for murder.

Terry McCaleb and Graciela Rivers have married and have an infant daughter named Cielo, and McCaleb's fishing charter business is running full-time on Catalina Island. Nevertheless, sheriff's deputy Jaye Winston brings McCaleb a file involving a murder scene filled with exotic elements and asks McCaleb to take a look at it, as the police have gotten nowhere. As McCaleb analyzes the clues, they seem to point straight toward Harry Bosch, whom McCaleb knows from a previous investigation before his retirement. Bosch is currently a key witness in a separate high-profile murder case involving a movie director, and author/reporter Jack McEvoy, who wrote The Poet, is covering the case. (Wikipedia)

Synopsis

Terry McCaleb's enforced quiet lefestyle on the island of Catalina is a far cry from the hectic excitement of his former role as an FBI profiler. However, when small-time criminal Edward Gunn is found dead McCaleb becomes embroiled in a disturbing and complex case... leading him to cross the path of Harry Bosch.
This infamous detective has always teetered on the brink of darkness in order to get inside the head of the killer. Is it possible that her has stepped across that finely drown line and embraced darkness?

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)

The Late Show (Ballard #1)

by Michael Connelly

I missed seeing Michael Connelly in New York by 24 hours which I something of a disappointment for me. However, what I did manage to do was to order myself an autographed edition of his latest thriller.
I began to wonder whether or not I was going to like this new protagonist. Bosch is a hard act to follow. But I think he nailed it. Of course, no character beats Harry, in my opinion, but Renée sure beats Cassie Black and Henry Pierce. Perhaps she is on par with Terry or possibly even Mickey. Either way, I really enjoyed it.
Renée is a cop working the dusk to dawn shift. It a move away from RHD after her reporting on a superior for sexual harassment charge fell on deaf ears. She has a grandmother, who raised her, and a dog she saved from the pound. From this novel I've deduced that she lives alone in her van, she sleeps the day way in a tent on the beach until she gets tired of handing over her cases to the day shift. She holds onto a case and gets drawn into a mass shooting by purely being at the hospital when the witness was pulled out of the amulance. She's as dedicated to the job as Bosch is but has a whole raft of different issues. I'm looking forward finding out more.

Synopsis

Renée Ballard works the midnight shift in Hollywood, beginning many investigations but finishing few, as each morning she turns everything over to the daytime units. It's a frustrating job for a once up-and-coming detective, but it's no accident. She's been given this beat as punishment after filing a sexual harassment complaint against a supervisor.
But one night Ballard catches two assignments she doesn't want to part with. First, a prostitute is brutally beaten and left for dead in a parking lot. All signs point to a crime of premeditation, not passion, by someone with big evil on his mind. Then she sees a young waitress breathe her last after being caught up in a nightclub shooting. Though dubbed a peripheral victim, the waitress buys Ballard a way in, and this time she is determined not to give up at dawn. Against orders and her partner's wishes, she works both cases by day while maintaining her shift by night.
As the investigations entwine, Ballard is forced to face her own demons and confront a danger she could never have imagined. To find justice for these victims who can't speak for themselves, she must put not only her career but her life on the line.
Propulsive as a jolt of adrenaline and featuring a bold and defiant new heroine, The Late Show is yet more proof that Michael Connelly is "a master of the genre" (Washington Post).

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)

The Black Echo (Harry Bosch #1)

By Michael Connelly

 His is Michael Connelly's first novel and when I first tried reading it I found it hard going. Perhaps I was too young, too inexperienced or the human connection that I look for in a novel just wasn't there. either way, I just couldn't connect. Years later, after reading The Last Coyote I felt I' had made a proper connection with the Hartry Bosch character and I was hooked, going back to the beginning and reading through all of the series with barely a single break.

Synopsis

"Bosch stared at the photograph until fatigue and alcohol pulled him down ... almost dreamlike. He remembered that last tunnel and he rememebered Billy Meadows."
One Sunday LAPD homicide detective Hieronymus 'Harry' Bosch gets a call-out on his pager. A body has been found in a drainage tunnel off Mullolland Drive, Hollywood. The body looks like yet another OD, but Bosch isn't convinced. The one new puncture wound amidst the scars of old tracks strikes an odd note. And something else: Harry knows him. Billy Meadows wasa fellow tunnel rat out in Vietnam, running against the VC and against the fear they used to call the Black Echo. Harry let Meadows down once, he won't do it again.

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)

The Last Cyote (Harry Bosch #4)

By Michael Connelly

This must have been the first Connelly novel that started a decade-long obsession with the Harry Bosch character. One of the things that I think makes this novel one of the top five is the emotional depths that we explore of the main protagonist. If Connelly wrote an 'origin story' for Harry Bosch his, surely, is it. This for me is, by far my favourite Harry Bosch novel.

Synopsis

The binder contained the case file on the October 28, 1961, homicide of Marjorie Phillips Lowe. His mother.
Suspended from the LAPD pending psychiatric treatment, his house condemned and his girlfriend long gone, Harry Bosch has time on his hands...
With nothing better to do, Harry opens the ancient file on his prostitute mother's murder and is irresistibly drawn into the shadowy past. Confronting his personal shame at his mother's profession, he discovers a trail leading to the high-ups in the Hollywood Hills and finds that the flames of ancient passion don't die, they kindle fresh fires.

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)

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)

The Crossing (Harry Bosch #18)

By Michael Connelly 

I’ve been waiting to read this book for some time. I’ve managed to collect all of Michael’s books in paperback and I had to wait, ever so patiently for The Crossing to come along in the same sized paperback.
Well, here it is and I managed to read it in about 9 days, a record for me. But to be honest I really, really, struggle to put down a Harry Bosch Novel once I’ve started.
I’m not sure what it is about them that appeals so much. Someone aasked me that the other day and I’ve been reflecting on it since:

• Perhaps it’s the pace of writing, the action and momentum of the investigation. 
• Perhaps it’s the tightly drawn characters that I relate to so easily. 
• Perhaps it’s the mission Harry’s on, his quest for truth that appeals. 
• Perhaps it’s that I’ve known him fro so long. I feel I know him, seen his daughter grow up. Feel his love, his loss. 
• Yes, perhaps it’s his wounded soul I relate to. 

The novel The Crossing stands alone. I’m sure it would, but with 25 novels leading up to this, 23 years of growth and development I can’t help but think I’ve felt a deeper understanding, a deeper connection through all that reading, all that time. Thanks Michael, you belted out another cracker.

Synopsis 

Detective Harry Bosch has retired from the LAPD, but his helf-brother, defense attorney Mickey Haller, needs his help. The murder rap against his client seems ironclad, but Mickey is sure it’s a setup. Though it goes against all his instincts, Bosch takes the case. With the secret of his former LAPD partner Lucia Soto, he turns the investigation inside the police department. But as Bosch gets closer to discovering the truth, he makes himself a target.

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.


Who is you favourite Crime Writer? 

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)