The Law of Innocence

Mickey Haller leaves the bar after celebrating a victory when he is pulled over.  He has been a non-drinker for years and thinks the cop is just harassing him.  However, his license plate is missing.  Then the officer noticed something leaking from the trunk of the car.  It's blood.  The Mickey refused permission to open the trunk, the officer did so and discovered a body.  Mickey finds himself in jail and charged with the murder of a former client.  Though everyone on his team and all his family are certain he has been framed, the prosecution case is strong.  The victim was shot in Mickey's garage at a time when he was clearly home.  Though familiar with the saying that a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client, Mickey elects to defend himself.  This is no easy task while incarcerated.  Luckily, he has his team doing the legwork outside and even his half-brother Harry Bosch is on the case.  To make matters worse, Covid-19 is a top story and jail guards have started wearing masks.  Can Mickey beat the charges by placing the blame on another party?  Can he overcome the multiple roadblocks that Prosecutor 'Deathrow' Dana Berg keeps placing in front of him?  Even if he can win the trial, can he escape being viewed as a murderer who got away with it?  He wants his innocence confirmed, not merely a not guilty verdict.

A very tense thriller that gives Mickey the experience that all his clients have suffered.  Another excellent story from Michael Connelly.  Though Bosch appears, his part is limited and it feels like he wasn't that much help.  This is something of a Best of Haller story in that so many characters from previous novels return.  Also, for a lawyer, Mickey gets beat up a lot.  In one novel, he was driven off the road, an accident that killed his driver.  In another, he was severely beaten.  Mickey finds himself in the hospital a lot.  Who knew the life of a defense attorney was so dangerous?

Highly recommended.

The Wrong Side of Goodbye

The story opens in Vietnam as several men race to a helicopter for evac.  The chopper has hardly risen into the air when snipers shoot it down.  As the helicopter plummets, the medic whispers, "Vibianna."  It crashes in a rice patty. leaving a flaming wreck.

Harry Bosch works as a private investigator, but only to keep himself busy.  He has been summoned to a security firm office by a former colleague and offered $10,000 just to meet with a noted local billionaire.  He accepts.  The billionaire is in his eighties and in poor health.  He never married and his vast fortune has no heir.  Or does it?  He asks Harry to find out what happened to a girl with whom he had an affair when he was in college.  She was pregnant when they parted ways.  Perhaps he has an heir?  The girl's name was Vibianna.  In addition to PI work, he also has a part-time job working cases for San Fernando PD, a tiny jurisdiction within Los Angeles.  He mostly works cold cases.  His search for Vibianna distracts him from the rape case he was working with Detective Bella Lordes at SFPD and she has suddenly gone missing!

An excellent Bosch story with two engaging mysteries to solve.  Recommended.

The Crossing

No longer with LAPD, Bosch has time on his hands.  His half-brother, Mickey Haller, needs an investigator as his has been put out of commission thanks to a car accident.  Bosch is less than keen on working for the defense; he has spent his career on the prosecution side of cases.  However, a brief look at the case and he is intrigued.  Though DNA evidence appears to make it a slam dunk case, Bosch is troubled by the lack of opportunity to meet.  Typically, such crimes have a crossing point, an incident where the killer encountered the victim and began stalking them.  He can find no instance.  Soon, it is clear that the car accident that took down the last investigator was not accidental.  Someone doesn't want Harry poking his nose into the case.

Here is another page-turning thriller by Connelly, an excellent crossover case with the Lincoln Lawyer.  Recommended.

The Burning Room

The Open-Unsolved Unit has doubled in size.  All the partner pairs have been split to welcome aboard a slate of rookies.  Bosch has been paired with Lucy Soto, a young officer who was promoted to detective in the wake of a shootout that killed her partner.  Bosch has doubts about her, thinking her elevation is more of a political move than a meritorious one.  She bypassed a lot of officers with more experience.  On this particular day, Bosch is at the autopsy of a man who was shot 10 years earlier.  Despite living 10 years after his injury, his death is classified a homicide.  Though originally assumed to be a random drive-by shooting, the recovery of the bullet that was lodged in the victim's spine leads to a different conclusion.  There other case involved an arson from 1993.  This is the inspiration for the most recent - and final - season of the TV series.  However, beyond the initial setup of an arson and dead residents, there are no similarities.  The book storyline is much more satisfying.  Of note, Rachel Walling makes a brief appearance, hinting at what Jack McAvoy has been doing since leaving the LA Times.

Bosch has had a series of unappealing partners since he left Jerry Edger.  Lucy Soto proved to be a nice change of pace and an excellent partner.  All in all, another great book by Connelly.  Highly recommended.

Bosch, Season 7

Amazon's long-running series came to an end with the latest installment.  Harry Bosch (Titus Welliver) investigates an arson case that resulted in 5 deaths, most notably that of Sonia Hernandez, a 10 year-old girl who was found dead of smoke inhalation next to a locked emergency exit.  His daughter, Maddie (Madison Lintz), is still working for Honey "Money" Chandler (Mimi Rogers), a noted defense attorney.  Chandler's latest client floats a deal that puts him, Chandler, and Maddie in mortal danger.  Jerry Edgar (Jamie Hector) is haunted by his misdeeds from last season and is often more of a liability than an asset; can he make things right with the department and, more importantly, Bosch?  Lt. Grace Billets (Amy Aquino) is known to be lesbian and some of the officers have started to obliquely harass her.  Her captain proves less than sympathetic even as the harassment gets worse.  It's still an old boys club.  Lastly, there is Chief Irvin Irving (Lance Reddick).  He had dropped out of the mayoral race last season and put his support behind the new mayor, Susanna Lopez.  The agreement had been that she would support him for a second term as chief, but she is now balking.  Can Irving corral enough votes on the police commission to retain his job?

This felt more political than previous seasons.  The apartment building management company hired a new landlord to chase off drug dealers and unspecified others.  They were driving out illegals too with notions of gentrifying the area.  They deny any blame for the locked emergency door.  Apartment managers bad.  From hedge fund managers to small businessmen, we find they are crooked and evil; business is bad.  Obviously, this is a crime drama so we are going to encounter criminals, victims, and cops, but this too often felt like political messaging.  Again and again, police proved to be bad.  There were the cops who were harassing the lesbian cop and women cops in general: cops bad, especially the white and Asian ones.  Then there was the sellout of Sonia's murder case because there were bigger fish to fry.  The FBI torpedoes Bosch's efforts to clear the case by taking witnesses and suspects into federal custody: law enforcement bad.  Chief Irving, who is a far more likeable and forthright character than he is in the books, tosses principles aside to retain his job: political machinations, not freely-cast votes, determine the outcomes.  Considering the level of corruption shown among the police in this season, one wonders why Maddie is so eager to join them?

Welliver is still awesome as Bosch and carries this stinker of a season.  The villains were weak or mostly absent.  When they are taken down, it is mostly a yawner.  We didn't see enough of them to care when justice came.  As an interesting side note, the character of Money Chandler was both introduced and murdered in The Concrete Blonde (Book 3).  She has had a far more successful career in the TV series and has stood-in for Bosch's half-brother, Mickey Haller, AKA The Lincoln Lawyer.  The rights for Mickey must still reside with Lionsgate.

There are plans for a spinoff series which currently has Bosch, his daughter, and Honey Chandler slated to return.  I hope it turns things around.

The Black Box

It is May 1992 in Los Angeles and the riot is in full swing.  Harry Bosch and partner Jerry Edgar are in the back of a squad car as they go from crime scene to crime scene.  There is not time for real investigations, just an opportunity to photograph the scene and collect any obvious evidence.  Perhaps the murders can be solved after the riot.  They arrive at an alley where National Guard troops have found the body of a Danish photographer.  Before they can do more than a cursory investigation and locate a single 9mm cartridge, they are called to another murder.

It is 2012 and Bosch is working Open Unsolved.  There has been a match on the cartridge he found 20 years before.  Multiple gang murders can be linked to the gun and Bosch learns of a gangbanger who is doing time in San Quentin for one of those murders.  He learns who gave him the gun and who he returned it to.  That man is dead and the gun hasn't been part of a crime since, as far as LAPD knows.  As Harry pursues the case, he finds roadblocks from his Lieutenant and even the Chief of Police.  It is nearly the 20 year anniversary of the LA Riots and it would look bad if the only crime solved was that of a white woman.  Despite a bogus investigation by Internal Affairs, Harry presses the case and even goes rogue to keep his momentum.

Definitely a good read but I must be getting too familiar with Connelly.  I picked out the twist in the opening and was a bit miffed that Harry didn't.  Recommended.

The Drop

Detective Harry Bosch and partner David Chu work in the open-unsolved unit.  A DNA match from a 20 year-old crime is assigned to them.  However, the matched drop of blood belongs to a man - a sex offender - who was only 8 years-old at the time of the crime.  Did forensic mix up a sample?  He is told to look into it quietly.  Before he leaves to tackle the case, his superior informs him that his DROP (Deferred Retirement Option Plan) has been partially approved.  Bosch is at mandatory retirement but gets an additional 39 months through the DROP.  Bosch and Chu have hardly begun their case when they are summoned to the chief's office.  George Irving, son of Bosch's longtime nemesis and former Assistant Chief Irvin Irving, has been found dead, an apparent suicide.  On the other hand, there are indications that he may have been dropped while unconscious.

The two cases are independent of one another, which makes this feel like two books in one.  The investigation of George Irving dominates the first part of the book while the DNA match consumes the second half.  Each bleeds over but one is clearly the dominant case at those points in the book.  Bosch's latest partner is another disappointment.  The departure of Jerry Edgar and Kiz Rider has resulted in mediocre replacements.  Connelly has put a lot less effort into Iggy Ferras and David Chu.  Both feel more like a burden than a partner.  Maybe Bosch is becoming a crotchety old man compared to his younger partners.

Though the title is simple, it is probably one of the best titles ever.  Everything is a drop, just not the same kind of drop.  I wonder if he came up with the title and then the various links.

Highly recommended.

The Reversal

Mickey Haller is called to a meeting with the district attorney of Los Angeles.  The state supreme court has reversed a 25 year-old verdict.  Jason Jessup, a tow-truck driver, was convicted of abducting and murdering a 12 year-old girl.  Modern DNA testing has determined that a semen stain on her dress does not match Jessup.  Jessup intends to sue the city for millions.  The DA would like Haller to take the case as an independent prosecutor and retry the case.  As a defense lawyer, Haller is initially stunned by the offer but he sees some positives.  He can advance his ex-wife Maggie MacPherson's career by giving her 2nd seat at the prosecution table.  Plus, his daughter can finally see him working for the 'good guys' for a change.  He accepts.  Next, he calls upon his half-brother, Harry Bosch, to serve as investigator.  Of course, Mickey is new to the prosecution game and doesn't demand bail for Jessup, much to the shock and dismay of his ex-wife.  Jessup is allowed to wander LA while he awaits trial.  Haller quickly realizes that he has taken a potentially unwinnable case.  If he loses, the blame will not fall on the district attorney's office.

An unusual turn for both Haller and Bosch but very engaging.  Not only is it a good read, but it provides great insight on the workings of the courts and law enforcement.  Highly recommended.

9 Dragons

Harry Bosch is called to investigate a murder at a convenience store in South LA, a place he had been many years before.  He had visited the store after escaping a mob (Angels Flight) and was offered a kindness by the Chinese-American proprietor, the murder victim.  Needing the aid of an interpreter, David Chu of the Asian Gangs Unit (AGU) is called to the scene to interview the victim's wife.   It does not take long to discover that Mr. Li was paying protection to a Triad.  Bosch has hardly begun the case than he gets a call demanding he back off.  Ignoring the threat, he arrests the Triad bagman who was the likely suspect.  And then he received a video of his daughter, bound and gagged.  Madeline lives in Hong Kong with her mother, Elinor Wish.  Bosch is on the next flight to Hong Kong.  Here is Harry Bosch meets Taken.  Yes, Harry has a particular set of skills that make him a nightmare to those who would kidnap his daughter.  There are a lot of bodies and Harry calls upon Mickey Haller to represent him.

One of the staples of Harry Bosch is his insistence that there are no coincidences.  In fact, he cracks the case because of his belief that their are no coincidences.  However, the plot of this book has the most glaring coincidence of all time.  After this, Harry is going to need to seriously rethink his belief that their are no coincidences.

It is a quick and engaging read but, toward the end, it feels like Connelly was pressing up against a deadline.  The big case is explained after the fact.  On one page, Harry is racing off to arrest the culprit and on the next, it is a week later and he is recalling the fallout from that day.  Huh?  Not one of his stronger endings.  Still, a good book and definitely recommended.

The Brass Verdict

It's been two years since Mickey Haller was shot during The Lincoln Lawyer and it hasn't been a good two years.  Pain killers led to addiction and addiction led to not practicing law for a year now.  He thinks he's ready to make a comeback when an old associate, Jerry Vincent, is murdered.  To his amazement, he is assigned Vincent's caseload, which includes the high-profile Walter Elliot case.  Elliot, the head of Archway Studios, has been accused of murdering his wife and her lover.  It is the latest trial-of-the-decade.  To complicate matters, Detective Harry Bosch is investigating the murder of Vincent and constantly asks questions that give Haller pause regarding Elliot.  Would the person who murdered Vincent now target him?  Among his other problems are reporter Jack McAvoy (protagonist of The Poet), his perpetually disappointed ex-wife, his daughter who thinks he always represents the bad guys, and another ex-wife who is his accountant and dating his investigator.

Here is yet another page-turner from Michael Connelly.   Haller, who is a defense attorney, is a big shift from the usual prosecutorial view one gets in a Bosch novel; it's really amazing that Connelly can flip the table and write an equally exciting book.  It is entertaining to see Bosch from this perspective.  He comes across as very gruff and unfriendly when he isn't the point of view character.  Really, I thought he was a jerk and Mickey was entirely too deferential.  Jack McAvoy had already appeared as a nuisance for Bosch and now needles Haller.  Funny.

Outstanding book and highly recommended.

The Overlook

Bosch and new partner Ignacio "Iggy" Ferras are summoned to a homicide at midnight.  Dr. Stanley Kent has been found dead next to his car at an overlook of the city.  Harry has hardly begun to examine the scene when Rachel Walling of the FBI arrives.  When Kent's name was posted, the FBI was informed.  It turns out that Kent had access to cesium, a highly radioactive metal that is used in cancer treatments.  If such fell into the wrong hands, it could be used for a dirty bomb.  Harry and Rachel drive to the Kent residence to check on Mrs. Kent.  They find her naked and bound in the bedroom.  She explains how two hooded men had barged into the house and demanded access to her email.  The detectives soon found a picture of Mrs. Kent bound on the bed had been sent to Dr. Kent with a demand that cesium be provided at the overlook.  At that point, the FBI plans to exclude the LAPD.  The homicide is now secondary.  Harry pulls every string he can to stay on the case.  If he can solve the homicide, he should find the cesium.  While the FBI pursue Islamic terrorists, Bosch suspects that's a distraction.

An unusually short novel for Connelly, it is nonetheless very good.  It moves at a lightning clip and shows Bosch as the master detective.  It's not that he's Sherlock Holmes with the deductions but that he is a stickler for every detail.  Highly recommended.

Echo Park

13 years ago, Harry Bosch and his partner Jerry Edgar had worked on a high-profile case.  Marie Gesto had vanished and is presumed dead.  At the time, they were unable to solve it.  However, Harry never forgot and routinely checked the file out of archives and worked it.  It just so happened that he had it checked out when the district attorney needed it.  The recently arrested Raynard Waits, AKA the Echo Park Bagman, was willing to clear multiple homicides to avoid the death penalty; Gesto was one.  Before he hands over the file, Bosch maneuvers his way into the process.  Harry and his current partner, Kiz Rider, question Raynard Waits.  Bosch thinks the guy is lying.  The DA decides to test Waits.  If he can lead them to the body of Marie Gesto, that would clinch it.  The following day, Bosch, Rider, the DA, Waits' lawyer, Detective Olivas, a deputy sheriff with a shotgun, a camera man, and a forensic investigator drive out to a remote canyon with Raynard Waits in tow.  Wearing cuffs, Waits guides them unerring to a body.  On the way back, Waits was uncuffed so he could ascend a steep slope.  He used the opportunity to snatch a gun, kill two, and seriously wound Kiz.  Waits is on the loose.  Now Harry must find Waits' secret lair before he can kill again.

This book, combined with City of Bones, was the first to be adapted for the Amazon TV series.  Waits is one of the better villains in the series.  Highly recommended.

The Closers

Finding that retirement didn't suit him, Harry Bosch rejoined the LAPD.  Now working from Parker Center, he is back with his old partner, Kiz Rider, and assigned to the Open Unsolved unit.  Formerly known as cold cases, the new chief wants to put more resources toward solving old cases by use of new technology.  No sooner is Bosch at his desk than he has a DNA match for a murder from 1988.  The victim was a mixed-race teenaged girl and the blood belongs to a man who used to be part of a neo-Nazi gang.  Was this a racial killing?  And why is Assistant Chief Irvin Irving so interested?  Irving, a long time nemesis of Bosch, is upset by his return to the LAPD and declares that 'retreads' are more likely to blow out.  Irving is on the outs with the new police chief and hopes to ride Bosch's inevitable failure back to power.  The mystery to be solved is deeper than expected, exposing LAPD politics of the late 1980s.  The 1992 Riots were foreshadowed in the events of the late 80s.

It is good to have Bosch back on the force again. He is a cop and he cannot escape that. He had blundered in leaving and realizes that his mission - avenging angel for the murdered and speaker for the dead - requires a badge. The narrative has returned to third person, a welcome change.

A good read and highly recommended.

The Narrows

Harry Bosch is still retired though his old partner, Kiz Rider, is trying to convince him to return to the LAPD.  He's considering it.  Retirement has left an emptiness.  However, the widow of former FBI Agent Terry McCaleb has asked Bosch to investigate his death.  Someone had tampered with his heart meds which resulted in his death.  He soon finds himself in Las Vegas and meeting with Rachel Walling, an FBI agent whose career is in the doldrums thanks to The Poet.  In fact, the Poet is back and evidence shows that he stalked Terry McCaleb in the weeks leading to his death.  Harry and Rachel have an alliance of convenience to track down the Poet and foil him for good.

As with Lost Light, Bosch is written in first person.  Rachel and the Poet are both written in third person.  Again, this seems to be an awkward format and one that Connelly has used occasionally since The Poet.  Generally, I prefer a third person narrative but it should be consistent.

One of the best parts about the book is that it serves as Terry McCaleb's last case despite his being dead before the book begins.  As Bosch follows Terry's notes on the case and Rachel gathers clues about him from crime scenes, his last days are detailed.  His notes break the case for Bosch.

Another excellent book by Connelly and an unusual return of a villain.  Recommended.

Lost Light

Harry Bosch has been retired from the LAPD for nearly a year when he starts investigating one of his unsolved cases.  A production assistant on a movie had been murdered and it looked like a sex crime.  Bosch had hardly started investigating when that very movie production was subject to a $2 million heist.  It now looked like the murder had been a smoke screen for the heist so it was rolled into the investigation at Robbery Homicide Division.  Bosch was off the case but never forgot it.  The detectives who had taken over were later shot in a botched robbery while having lunch; one was dead and the other was a quadriplegic.  Despite being warned off the case, Bosch dug in.  The case had drawn interest from the FBI and the newly-minted Homeland Security apparatus.  Was terrorism related to the heist?  Had it been coincidence that the officers on the case were shot?

As usual, this is a Connelly mystery where everything ties together.  No coincidences.  Well, maybe there are some coincidences, Bosch has to admit but he still thinks they are rare.  Of note, there are more bad actors in law enforcement.  This is a common trope for Connelly and has finally gotten old for me.  In order to hide the villain in plain sight, the villain is a cop, FBI agent, or the like.  Sure seems like there are a lot of bad eggs.

Unlike all previous Bosch novels, this one is told in the first person.  Not a fan.  I didn't much like Jack McAvoy in The Poet, which was also first person.  At one point, Bosch complains about new law enforcement rules that came about since 9/11; this seems more like Connelly ranting than Bosch.  Bosch has a history of crossing lines to solve crimes but now he's a stickler for limiting law enforcement.  Yeah, that didn't sound quite right.

Despite these complaints, it is still an excellent book and well worth the read.  Recommended.

City of Bones

A resident in Laurel Canyon reports that his dog found a bone on the nearby hill and that it is a human bone.  Though doubtful, Bosch goes to check on it.  The resident who found it is a retired medical doctor who declares that it is a humerus.  Harry climbed the hill and located more remains.  The next day, an archeological dig is brought in to excavate.  Soon, the bones of a 10 to 12 year-old boy are found and they tell a tale of long-term child abuse.  Dating puts the death between 1975 and 1985.

Harry's marriage is confirmed to be over and he gets involved with a rookie cop met at the scene.  Julia is old for a rookie, having spent time as a lawyer and world traveler before becoming a cop.  She is eager to learn.  In fact, she is impatient to get to Bosch's level rather than driving is a black & white where she deals with domestic disturbances.

The story is gripping as the history of the boy is revealed and the story of his tragic life becomes clear.  Even the hard-boiled Bosch finds himself emotional.  His partner Jerry Edgar, who is a father, is unforgiving of all those who had known the boy.

Of note, this story was used as the first season of the TV Series.  That version is different from this one but also quite good.

Highly recommended.

A Darkness More than Night

Former FBI Agent Terry McCaleb, last seen in Blood Work, has taken up a new life on Catalina Island with his wife Graciella, adopted son Raymond, and new baby daughter.  Rather than profiling serial killers, he makes a living with his charter boat.  Then Jaye Winston, who worked with him in Blood Work, arrives to ask him to help on another murder case.  Edward Gunn had been arrested by Harry Bosch some years ago during the events of Concrete Blonde but walked thanks to the intervention of Lt. Harvey Pounds.  Oddly enough, Pounds is also dead and his case is open.  After a bit of investigating, McCaleb suspects Bosch!

Meanwhile, Bosch is part of the prosecution at a murder trial of noted director David Story. Story is accused of strangling an aspiring actress and then posing her body as if she accidentally killed herself. Bosch is the chief investigator and also heard Story admit to the crime. He is the linchpin of the prosecution's case against Story. As such, it would be disastrous if he were suddenly implicated in the murder of Edward Gunn.

Jack McEvoy, last seen in The Poet, is reporting on the Story case for a local paper when he gets a tip about Bosch being under investigation. He confronts both Bosch and McCaleb, both of whom want to know who his source is. He intends to write the story which will be published during the defense phase of the Story trial.

Here is a book that brings back three of Connelly's protagonists in a case that, once again, has no coincidences. Highly recommended.

Angels Flight

It is 2 in the morning and Harry Bosch is waiting for a call from his wife.  She went out last night and he hasn't seen her.  When the phone rings, he is surprised to find that it is Deputy Chief Irvin Irving.  Howard Elias, a high profile lawyer who made a career of suing the LAPD, has been murdered.  Elias was about to go to trial on a case involving cops torturing a black suspect so everyone suspects a cop killed him.  The city is on edge and there are fears of a repeat of the 1992 riots.  Because police themselves are high on the suspect list, Internal Affairs Division is called in to assist.  Detective Chastain, a long-standing nemesis to Bosch, is suddenly his subordinate in this explosive case.  They have hardly gotten started when the FBI are brought in to allay fears that the LAPD would whitewash the case.

 

Not as good as previous books.  The plot is too intricate and comes across less real than others in the series.  The inclusion of Eleanor leaving Bosch is unsatisfactory and felt tacked on to provide additional stress.  Bosch's love life is a constant disaster.  To date, he has been involved with Eleanor (felon), Jazz (felon), Sylvia (the wife of a cop who he killed), and Theresa (coroner).  He sure can pick 'em.  Much like The Black Echo, everything matters.  There are no loose ends and just about everyone proves to be corrupt.  It is a very dark picture he paints.  One does not expect cops to have a sunny disposition.

 

Were it not for Jeffery Epstien, the pedophile ring among the wealthy elite that is exposed in the book would have been farfetched.  Nope, turns out Connelly was onto something despite writing this book in 1999.

 

Overall, a good book and worth your time.

Trunk Music

Bosch has spent the last 18 months either on leave or stuck on the burglary table as he is eased back into the department after the events of The Last Coyote.  He has also managed to get his house rebuilt.  With the death of Lt. Pounds, Lt. Grace Billets has taken over Hollywood Division.  She proves to be a refreshing change from Pounds.  Finally back on homicide, Harry gets his first call.  A man is dead in the trunk of his car, two bullets in the back of his head.  A little investigation shows he laundered money for the mob and was scheduled for an IRS audit.  Harry and partner Jerry Edgar head to Las Vegas.  To Bosch's shock, he discovers that Eleanor Wish played poker with the dead man on occasion.  He had had an affair with her in The Black Echo.  The stars seem to align and a suspect is nabbed in Las Vegas but then everything goes sideways.

 

Another great book by Michael Connelly.  Excellent pacing, great characters, and there are no coincidence.  Well, except maybe at the very end.  Highly recommended.

 

The Last Coyote

Bosch has been sent for psychological evaluation after he assaulted his commanding officer.  Lt. Harvey Pounds was more a bureaucrat than a cop and Harry had had enough, shoving the man face first through his office window.  That his year-long relationship with Sylvia had crashed simultaneous with the Northridge Quake (1994) that resulted in his house being condemned didn't help matters.  Suspended pending the evaluation, Bosch decided it was time to solve his mother's murder.  Though he was not supposed to access any police files, he nonetheless retrieved the 33 year old case.  He was quickly infuriated by the half-assed job the detectives had done.  He tracked one of them down in Florida but when he returned to LA, he learned that Lt. Pounds was dead and he was the prime suspect.

Referenced throughout the previous books, the unsolved murder of Harry's mother is finally explored.  It proves to be a real puzzler that offers multiple potential perpetrators and an apparent political cover up.  As the book is told from Harry's point of view, the reader necessarily follows his current reasoning.  This isn't really a case where there are several suspects and one might determine the right one.  However, the conclusion does remind me of The Concrete Blonde, providing likely suspects that fit Harry's current theory.  My one quibble is that Bosch is caught off guard repeatedly.  Despite knowing there is a cop killer on the loose, he isn't paranoid enough.

Like the previous three books in the series, this one is a great read with excellent pacing.  Recommended.