The Waiting by Michael Connelly

 

First Line: She liked waiting for the wave more than riding the wave.

 

It's not a good way to start the day: when Renée Ballard goes back to her car after a morning's surfing, she finds it broken into and her badge, gun, and ID stolen. She can't report it without giving her enemies in the department ammunition to end her career as a detective. She works the burglary alone, finally going to Harry Bosch for help.

 

In the meantime, she and the Open/Unsolved Unit of the LAPD have gotten a DNA connection between a recently arrested man and a serial rapist and killer who went quiet twenty years ago. Could this young man be the son of the infamous Pillowcase Rapist? Even Renée doesn't expect the secrets and legal hurdles their investigation kicks up.

 

While all this is going on, Renée takes on a new volunteer to the cold case unit: Bosch's daughter, Maddie, now a patrol officer. But Maddie has an ulterior motive for accessing the city's old records: she's uncovered new evidence in a case that may be the most iconic in the city's history.

 

~

 

It's always a bit like Christmas when there's a new Ballard & Bosch mystery, and The Waiting put a big smile on my face. As Harry Bosch ages, I cherish every scene he's in, and although I know our time with him is undoubtedly limited, I really appreciate how Connelly is passing Harry's torch on to Renée Ballard and Harry's daughter, Maddie. 

Renée is more than happy to add Maddie to her handpicked team. Having another person with a badge will make her own job easier. Now if another team member, Colleen Hatteras, would stop being a bit of a thorn in Renée's side! Renée has done a fantastic job with her team. Since many of the cold cases are so old that the killers the team identifies are already dead or incarcerated, Renée has put a limit to the ones they'll work-- none should go back further than 1975.

The various cases that the team works are woven together beautifully, and Connelly always manages to teach me something about the bad guys. (Beware of some of those apps you love to use...) The case that Maddie came to the cold case team to work is indeed probably the most iconic in Los Angeles' history, and it was interesting to see how Connelly worked that out.

With another engrossing story under my belt, I'm back to waiting for the next time I'll see Renée, Maddie, and Harry. It can't be soon enough for me.

The Waiting by Michael Connelly

eISBN: 9780316563819

Little, Brown and Company © 2024

eBook, 387 pages

 

Police Procedural, #6 Ballard & Bosch

Rating: A+

Source: Net Galley

Two Kinds of Truth by Michael Connelly

 

First Line: Bosch was in cell 3 of the old San Fernando jail, looking through files from one of the Esme Tavares boxes, when a heads-up text came in from Bella Lourdes over in the detective bureau.

 

Harry Bosch works the cold case files at the San Fernando Police Department. The entire department is called out to investigate the shooting deaths of two pharmacists. It's a case that will take Bosch undercover and deep into the billion-dollar world of prescription drug abuse. But this isn't the only case that needs his attention.

 

A serial killer that Bosch put behind bars years ago while he was in the LAPD is telling everyone that Bosch framed him, and he seems to have the evidence to prove it. Bosch didn't leave the LAPD on good terms, so his former colleagues seem more intent on proving the serial killer is right. But if this one case is overturned, every case that Bosch has ever solved will be put under the microscope. It's up to Bosch to clear his name as these two cases wind around each other like barbed wire.

~

Of all the mysteries I've read in my lifetime, I have to say that Harry Bosch is my favorite detective. His intelligence, his persistence, and his humanity have made him an icon, and his "Everybody counts or nobody counts" is a mantra I use when I find myself eyeing the fast lane on the judgmental vigilante road.

Two Kinds of Truth highlights Bosch's humanity in the way he reacts when he learns that his assumption is wrong in the pharmacy murders and how he reaches out to one of the addicts he meets while undercover. When his daughter learns about the allegations made by the serial killer on Death Row and she actually thinks Harry might have planted evidence, the blow is visceral-- not just for Harry but for the reader as well. Connelly is a master at drawing his readers into the warp and weft of his stories. 

Connelly balances his two cases with the staggering scope of prescription drug abuse on one hand while dazzling readers with Mickey Haller's legal sleight of hand in proving his half-brother did not plant evidence to put a serial killer behind bars. This is another compelling addition to this long-running series, and-- the older Bosch gets-- the more I hope he will prove to be immortal.

[Note: As much as I love reading the books, I have to admit that I now prefer listening to the audiobooks narrated by Titus Welliver. I am a fan of the Bosch TV series, and Welliver has become Bosch in my mind.]

Two Kinds of Truth by Michael Connelly

Narrated by Titus Welliver

ASIN: B071FJF4S4

Hachette Audio © 2017

Audiobook. 9 hours, 55 minutes.

 

Police Procedural, #20 Harry Bosch

Rating: A

Source: Purchased from Chirp Audiobooks. 

Desert Star by Michael Connelly

 

First Line: Bosch had the pills lined up on the table ready to go.

 

When the chief of police tells Renée Ballard that she can write her own ticket if she comes back to the Los Angeles Police Department, she agrees. Now the head of the new Open-Unsolved Unit, she wants Harry Bosch on her hand-picked team.

 

Bosch agrees once Ballard tells him that he will be able to work the Gallagher Family cold case with the power of the LAPD behind him. The murder of an entire family and his inability to find their killer has haunted Bosch for years, but he finds himself unable to devote his time to a solution because the politician responsible for the formation of this new cold case unit is insisting that the team's focus be on finding the killer of his sister. 

 

When Ballard gets a DNA match between the politician's sister's case and another unsolved crime, the team is now working to find a serial killer who's operated undetected for decades. Although Bosch resents not being able to work his case, he knows he's going to have to help Ballard with the other case, the case where the political pressure is increasing by the day.

 

~

 

In Michael Connelly's latest Ballard & Bosch mystery, the new Open-Unsolved Unit is housed in the same building as the records of over 6,000 cold cases-- an area Bosch calls "the Library of Lost Souls", a poetic and sobering name. Desert Star shows us just what type of work it takes from each member of the team to work a cold case in order to bring closure to grieving families.

 

Naturally, the powers-that-be go back on their promises and insist on adding people to her team that Ballard doesn't want as well as deciding what her caseload focus should be. This adds tension to an already fraught situation since Ballard's right-hand man (Bosch) keeps going rogue and doing his own thing. 

 

As always, Connelly provides masterful twists and turns. When all evidence seemed to be pointing squarely at one character early on, I thought to myself, "It can't be that easy!"-- and it wasn't. I knew I could count on Connelly. 

By the end of Desert Star, I was left with one disturbing question: What does the future hold in store for Harry? He is one character whom I want to be immortal... even though I know that he can't be.

Desert Star by Michael Connelly

Narrated by Titus Welliver, Christine Lakin, and Peter Giles 

ASIN: B09X295Y68

Little, Brown & Company © 2022

Audiobook. 9 hours, 37 minutes.

 

Police Procedural, #5 Ballard & Bosch mystery

Rating: A-

Source: Purchased from Audible.

 

 

Desert Star wildflowers mentioned by Michael Connelly

 

The Dark Hours by Michael Connelly

 

First Line: It was supposed to rain for real and that would have put a damper on the annual rain of lead.

 

New Year's Eve finds Renée Ballard and her partner sheltering from the annual rain of lead as thousands of revelers in Los Angeles fire their guns into the air. Minutes after midnight, she's called to the scene of a street party where an auto shop owner has been fatally hit by a bullet. 

 

It doesn't take Renée long to see that the bullet didn't fall from the sky. In fact this shooting is tied to an earlier case first investigated by Harry Bosch. She's also on the trail of the Midnight Men, tag-team rapists who leave terrorized women, but no evidence, behind.

Determined to solve both cases, she finds no help in a police department hard hit by the pandemic, social unrest, low morale, and inertia. Her best resource is Harry Bosch, and Renée doesn't hesitate to accept his offer of help.

~

Sometimes there's not much to say when a book is as good as The Dark Hours. This is vintage Connelly, plain and simple. Renée Ballard and Harry Bosch are cut from the same cloth. They're characters a reader can always depend on: focused, dedicated, and determined to bring bad guys to justice even if it means coloring outside the lines a bit.

There are four main characters in The Dark Hours: Ballard, Bosch, Los Angeles, and the pandemic. Connelly does a superb job in showing readers the harrowing effect the pandemic has had on LA's police department. It has, in effect, been defunded because of all the overtime spent on trying to contain all the social unrest. Many officers don't care any more. They keep their heads down and do the bare minimum to warrant receiving a paycheck. They are the antithesis of Ballard, who refuses to stop until justice is done.

The story unfolds inexorably, and leaves Renée with a huge decision to make concerning her future. I'm fairly certain which path she will choose, but as long as she continues to work with Harry Bosch in any capacity, I'll be happy because I consider these two characters to be family.

Marvelous characters, excellent story, and the audiobook was a treat to listen to. You can't ask for more.

The Dark Hours by Michael Connelly

Narrated by Christine Lakin and Titus Welliver

ASIN: B08WRKY4Z7

Audiobook. 11 hours, 4 minutes.

 

Police Procedural, #4 Renée Ballard mystery

Rating: A+

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

The Wrong Side of Goodbye by Michael Connelly

 

First Line: They charged from the cover of the elephant grass toward the LZ, five of them swarming the slick on both sides, one among them yelling, "Go! Go! Go!" -- as if each man needed to be prodded and reminded that these were the most dangerous seconds of their lives.

 

Harry Bosch may be working part-time as a detective in San Fernando, but he's also a private investigator. He's extremely picky about the cases he takes on, so he doesn't advertise, but that doesn't keep word from spreading, and he's summoned to the estate of one of southern California's biggest moguls. The man is in his eighties, has six months to live, and a ton of regrets. Foremost on his mind is whether or not he has an heir. 

 

Harry reluctantly takes on the case and soon finds himself piecing together a 65-year-old mystery that's nowhere near as simple-- or as cold-- as he thought it was going to be.  

~

I've loved Harry Bosch since something compelled me to buy a copy of The Black Echo years ago at a local bookstore. Bosch is a fixture in my life. One of my vertebrae even. I was thrilled at the quality of Amazon Prime's Bosch television series. But for some unknown reason, I allowed myself to get a bit behind in reading the books. Probably because Mickey Haller made an appearance, and I'm not a big fan of his. I know-- excuses, excuses. But I knew the books would always be there, and they'd always be good. 

For the past few years, I've been conducting a private war with audiobooks. So many readers seem to swear by them, but I'd never found a book narrated by someone who didn't put me to sleep. I don't have trouble with insomnia, so this entire "war" has been frustrating-- until I noticed an audiobook copy of The Wrong Side of Goodbye. The price was really good, so I took a look at the small print. Narrated by Titus Welliver... I love that man's voice! I bought the audiobook so fast I think I broke the internet for a second or two.

Listening to this book was being allowed to relax in heaven for a while. Seriously! I haven't felt this good about being read to since I was small enough to crawl into my mother's lap to listen to her read me a story.

Of course, the story is excellent, vintage Connelly. Harry has two cases keeping him busy: his P.I. case for the billionaire, and a case involving a serial rapist called the "Screen Cutter" in the San Fernando Valley. Most writers would think they'd hit the jackpot with just one of those storylines, but Connelly has them both and he handles both brilliantly.

What I love the most about Connelly's storytelling is the personal details he adds. It's the personal that brings the reader's emotions to the fore, that really makes the reader engage with the story and the characters. Why Harry won't eat Vietnamese food. Bob Hope, Connie Stevens, and Neil Armstrong going out to entertain the troops during the Vietnam War. That sculpture at the conclusion of the book...

With this audiobook experience being such a wonderful one, you know what I did, don't you? I have the next Harry Bosch lined up, and I'm looking forward to listening to Titus Welliver's voice telling me another story. I have finally been converted, at least where Harry is concerned.

The Wrong Side of Goodbye by Michael Connelly

Narrated by Titus Welliver

ASIN: B01K3EKBXS

Hachette Audio © 2016

Audiobook. 10 hours, 21 minutes.

 

Police Procedural, #19 Harry Bosch mystery

Rating: A

Source: Purchased through Chirp Books.  

The Night Fire by Michael Connelly

First Line: Bosch arrived late and had to park on a cemetery lane far from the gravesite.

Jack Thompson was Harry's mentor when Harry was a rookie homicide detective. When Jack dies, his widow gives Harry a murder book, one that Thompson took with him when he left the LAPD twenty years before.

The murder book concerns the unsolved killing of a troubled young man, and Harry takes it to Detective Renée Ballard for her help. What was it about this case that lit Thompson's fire all those years ago? While working her own cases on the midnight shift, Ballard begins making inquiries and finds that aspects of the initial investigation just don't add up.

Bosch and Ballard are forming a tight bond as they become a formidable investigative team. It doesn't take them long before they are asking themselves the question: Did Thompson steal the murder book to work the case in retirement, or to make sure it never got solved?

One of the things that Harry Bosch's mentor, Jack Thompson, told him was, "Take every case personally and you get angry. It builds a fire. It gives you the edge you need to go the distance every time out." It's something that Harry has done time and time again, and readers are seeing that Renée Ballard is cut from the same cloth.

The Night Fire is a mystery that kept me guessing, and I loved how all the various subplots were woven together. It takes skill to tell so many stories in such a way that isn't confusing, but long-time fans of Michael Connelly know that he's a master of the craft.

One of the underlying themes of The Night Fire is the fact that you can always learn things about the people you thought you knew well. No one wears all their experiences, all their emotions, out in plain sight for everyone to see. During the course of their investigation, both Bosch and Ballard discover that they have a lot of learning to do about their fellow police officers.

Harry Bosch has had a very special place in my heart since I first met him in the first book in the series, The Black Echo-- twenty-three books ago. I've tried to adopt Harry's mantra ("Everybody counts or nobody counts.") in my daily life. If you've never met him and don't feel like dealing with all the books in such a long-running series, I urge you to start with The Late Show. You'll be introduced to another wonderful character, Renée Ballard, who's really a young female version of Harry. And when they start working together, it's a match made in readers' heaven. Please don't miss it!

The Night Fire by Michael Connelly

eISBN: 9780316457484

Little, Brown and Company © 2019

eBook, 417 pages

Police Procedural, #3 Renée Ballard mystery

Rating: A

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

Dark Sacred Night by Michael Connelly

First Line: The patrol officers had left the front door open.

Detective Renée Ballard's partner is on bereavement leave, and since no one on the late show (night shift) is replaced, she's working alone. During the wee hours one morning, she returns to Hollywood Station to find a stranger rifling through the old file cabinets. The intruder is Harry Bosch who's working a cold case that's gotten under his skin.

Ballard won't let him go through the department records, but after Bosch leaves, she takes a look at the case herself and feels an instant, empathetic connection to it. She wants in. Now Ballard and Bosch are working together to find out what happened to Daisy Clayton, a teenage runaway who was brutally murdered and thrown away like a piece of trash. During the course of their investigation, they form a fragile trust which is going to be tested when the case takes an unexpected-- and dangerous-- turn.

I loved Connelly's first Renée Ballard novel, The Late Show, and had no doubt that she and Harry Bosch would get along well after a bit of introductory posturing (mostly on Renée's part). After all, Ballard is a younger, female version of Bosch. All she needs is his experience, and if the two of them work together very much, she's going to get it.

It's fun watching these two get to know each other. Bosch takes one look at Ballard's deep tan and knows she's not the typical detective who works the late show. He even makes Ballard laugh-- and it's so unusual for her to do that that it startled me. When Ballard is around Harry, she pays attention and soaks up how he does things like a sponge. Once again, as I read Dark Sacred Night, I loved watching how Renée sees things, how she interacts with people. There's no such thing as a throwaway human being to Renée or to Harry, so I predict some interesting cases ahead for the two of them to work.

Connelly's pacing is swift and sure. He knows how to deliver fascinating cases and action sequences that have readers biting their fingernails. Moreover, Connelly doesn't believe in throwaway characters either. Readers never see a police officer named Tim Farmer during the course of Dark Sacred Night even though he plays an important role. We only get to read his descriptions of people on his field interview cards, but outside of Ballard and Bosch, Farmer is the most memorable character in the book to me.

There's little else for me to say other than I hope it's not long before these two detectives are working together again. Renée, send up that signal!

Dark Sacred Night by Michael Connelly

eISBN: 9780316486675

Little, Brown and Company © 2018

eBook, 448 pages

Police Procedural, #1 Ballard & Bosch mystery

Rating: A

Source: Purchased from Amazon.

On My Radar: Michael Connelly's Dark Sacred Night

Michael Connelly's first Renée Ballard mystery, The Late Show, was one of my Best Reads last year, so you know I had to be on the lookout for the next book in the series. Well, I found it and did one of my patented Happy Dances when I did.

Here's the information I was able to find:

Available October 30, 2018!

Synopsis:

"Renée Ballard is working the night beat again and returns to Hollywood Station in the early hours only to find a stranger rifling through old file cabinets. The intruder is retired detective Harry Bosch, working a cold case that has gotten under his skin. Ballard kicks him out, but then checks into the case herself and it brings a deep tug of empathy and anger.

Bosch is investigating the death of fifteen-year-old Daisy Clayton, a runaway on the streets of Hollywood who was brutally murdered and her body left in a dumpster like so much trash. Now, Ballard joins forces with Bosch to find out what happened to Daisy and finally bring her killer to justice."

Teaming Ballard with one of my all-time favorite characters, Harry Bosch, could be a stroke of genius, and I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of the book to read what happens. How about you? Did you become a Ballard fan after reading The Late Show? If you did, you must be waiting for Dark Sacred Night, too. 

 

Hurry up, October! 

The Brass Verdict by Michael Connelly

Title: The Brass Verdict
Author: Michael Connelly
ISBN: 9780316166294
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, 2008
Hardcover, 432 pages
Genre: Legal Thriller, #2 Mickey Haller
Rating: A
Source: Paperback Swap

First Line: Everybody lies.

Mickey Haller is just about to make his courtroom conduct when fellow defense attorney and friend Jerry Vincent is murdered. Vincent names Haller as the attorney he wants to take over any open cases he may have, and Vincent has one case that could put Mickey on Easy Street: the defense of Walter Elliott, a Hollywood studio head accused of murdering his wife and her lover.

As Haller prepares for this case, he learns that certain facts aren't adding up, and Vincent's killer may be after him, too. The person determined to find Vincent's killer is one LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, who has to fight his natural distrust of lawyers when dealing with Mickey. Bosch thinks nothing of using Haller as bait, but it doesn't take long for the two of them to realize that they are going to have to work together.

That's my job, to forge the blade. To sharpen it. To use it without mercy or conscience. To be the truth in a place where everybody lies.

Haller's belief that "everybody lies" has the same ring to it as Bosch's "Everybody counts, or nobody counts." For years Haller has wanted just one thing: to defend a client who is really innocent. Walter Elliott may be that innocent client.

I enjoyed Connelly's intricate plotting of the book, of the way Haller took over a dead man's cases, made sense of everything, and began putting together his defense for his new clients. His handling of the egomaniacal studio head was classic at times, since Elliott was used to being the one who called all the shots. Haller didn't let him get away with anything.

I always have been-- and always will be-- a Harry Bosch fan, and there just wasn't enough of Harry in this book. He seemed to be brought in more for the shock value at the end than anything else. But setting aside the insufficient time with one of my favorite characters, The Brass Verdict is a smooth, brilliant legal thriller that shouldn't be missed.

Buy from Amazon.
Buy from The Book Depository.
Buy from an Indie Bookseller.