Engaging, exciting crime mystery with a wonderful feel good ending.REVIEWER’S OPINION:As I was listening to this book over a few days, I was always eager to get back to it. I felt like I was living an exciting life. I had feelings of hope, anticipation, and excitement throughout those days. At the end of the book I was happy. I felt elation. Life is good. I was energized. That makes this a great book. These are the kind of feelings I expect and hope to get from romance novels. So the fact that I’m getting them from a crime mystery amazes me. There is no romance in this. Connelly is my standard for good mystery and suspense writing. I wish more romance authors would write like him, just add some good romantic relationship development, and that would be perfect.In this book many things happened that I didn’t expect during Bosch’s solving of the mystery. I loved the things he did to survive when several men with guns tried to kill him. He had no gun. That was special. It was a well done action scene.I had one complaint. Maybe it was partly because I was doing this as an audiobook and could have missed it. I know “who” killed Angela but I wasn’t clear about the “motive” for her murder. I believe it was a distraction so the authorities would spend more time on her murder than on another crime. I don’t know if she knew anything about the other crime. If someone has answers, I’d appreciate your telling me in a comment below.This is the first Bosch book that was written in first person. It worked well. So far I’m happy with either first or third by this author.NARRATOR:The narrator Len Cariou was very good. Although I did notice he had an accent which took me out of the story, because I kept wondering about the source of his accent. I have since learned he is Canadian. His accent reminds me of the north and northeastern US. He uses the vowel sound in “cot” as the sound for caught, father, coffee. For example “talk” sounds like “tahk.” It wasn’t bad, but it just didn’t fit a “west coast Harry Bosch.” I prefer Dick Hill’s narration for that. A couple seconds of jazz music between chapters was a nice touch.STORY BRIEF:In books 1 to 7 Bosch is a Los Angeles police homicide detective. In this book 8 Bosch has retired and decides to solve a four-year-old unsolved murder case that still bothers him. Although he obtained a private investigator’s license, he is doing this for himself. Angela was a production assistant for a movie. She was murdered. A few days later $2 million was stolen from the movie set. A list of serial numbers for the bills was distributed. One of the bills was found in the hands of terrorist Aziz. He was arrested by the FBI, and the FBI took over the case. The FBI has prohibited the local police and Bosch from working on the case. An FBI agent working on the case disappeared three years ago. Her associates believe she was murdered. So far the FBI has not solved the murders or the robbery. Bosch intends to.DATA:Unabridged audiobook length: 9 hrs and 37 mins. Narrator: Len Cariou. Swearing language: strong but not frequently used. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: one, referred to after the fact, not shown. Setting: 2002 mostly Los Angeles and southern, California, plus Las Vegas, Nevada. Book Copyright: 2003. Genre: crime mystery. Ending: Exciting and feel good.OTHER BOOKS - FOUR SERIES (Bosch, McEvoy, McCaleb, Haller):I recommend reading the Harry Bosch books in order, but it would be ok to try “The Last Coyote” or “Lost Light” first, just to see if you like the style. Then go back and read the rest in order. Following is my recommended reading order. I’ve included four series within this list because there is a date flow and the characters interact. All of these books could be read as stand-alones, but reading them in order provides richer character development. All books below are full length. I am not listing his short stories.3 stars. The Black Echo (Bosch #1)3 ½ stars. The Black Ice (Bosch #2)4 stars. The Concrete Blonde (Bosch #3)5 stars. The Last Coyote (Bosch #4)4 stars. Trunk Music (Bosch #5)4 stars. Angels Flight (Bosch #6)4 ½ stars. Blood Work (McCaleb #1) Bosch is not in this.3 ½ stars. A Darkness More Than Night (McCaleb #2) (Bosch #7) McCaleb is the primary investigator, but he interacts with Bosch.3 ½ stars. City Of Bones (Bosch #8)5 stars. Lost Light (Bosch #9)5 stars. The Poet (McEvoy #1) Bosch is not in this. Read this any time before “The Narrows.”4 stars. The Narrows (McEvoy #2 sequel to The Poet) (Bosch #10) Bosch is the main investigator.4 ½ stars. The Scarecrow (McEvoy #3)3 stars. The Closers (Bosch #11)3 ½ stars. Echo Park (Bosch #12)4 stars. The Overlook (short, half-length) (Bosch #13)4 ½ stars. The Lincoln Lawyer (Haller #1) Bosch is not in this.4 stars. The Brass Verdict (Haller #2) (Bosch #14) Bosch has a small part in this.4 ½ stars. Nine Dragons. (Bosch #15) Haller has a small part in this.3 stars. The Reversal. (Haller #3) (Bosch #16) Mostly Haller. Bosch has a secondary role.3 stars. The Fifth Witness (Haller #4)5 stars. The Drop (Bosch #17)5 stars. The Black Box (Bosch #18)5 stars. The Gods of Guilt (Haller #5)BOOKS NOT IN ABOVE SERIES:4 ½ stars. Void Moon2 stars. Chasing the Dime
Time saver tip: if you've read my review of any Harry Bosch book, you've read 'em all. Since I don't reveal plots and reserve my comments to the overall book/author, characterization, style, etc...I just don't feel the need to repeat myself as in most cases series books if any good at all do remain consistent. The star ratings might change, but not my opinion of the series as a whole.Michael Connelly is a well know and very popular author in the mystery/detective and police procedural genres. Exploding onto the scene in the early nineties with his first six novels, and topping it off just recently with his 18th Bosch novel (The Black Box), Connelly has garnered most awards worth getting. Let's face it, the awards are well deserved, especially for those first novels (more on that later). Having emerged onto the fictional world after a career as a journalist, culminating with his job as crime reporter for the LA times, and admitting to becoming interested in writing fiction as a result of reading Raymond Chandler early on in his journalistic career, Michael Connelly has since involved himself in several collaborations: notable the television series Level 9, and as co-writer with Val McDermid's Wire In the Blood series (and that spawned the wildly popular grim, noir BBC television series of the same name). If you're into Noir than this TV series is a must see.Connelly has a knack for writing suspenseful tales that take quite a few twists and turns before being resolved with a stellar Who-Done-It that has most readers guessing till the very end (at least in his earlier books).Heironymous (Harry) Bosch, the hero in this series, is named after a Renaissance painter who specialized in earthly sins, debauchery, fanciful and gruesome visions of hell, violent consequences from high above if not detailed looks at the tortures reserved for earthly residents. Score 1 for Connelly in choosing a very apropos name for our own tortured detective Harry Bosch.Bosch is a complicated and conflicted character, a character that slowly develops across this series but whose emotive origin lies in the Viet Cong tunnels where Harry got his education in fear: underground, claustrophic, dark, drenched with blood, gruesome deaths, peopled with a savage enemy crawling within the absence of all light, hunting for the American soldiers like bloodthirsty rats. From these dark tunnels emerges Harry Bosch, LAPD detective, bent on setting the world right. From this darkness where pacific military command has sent Bosch to discover the inevitable conflict between a military order and the reality of carrying out that order, we find a detective in perpetual defiance of LAPD authority.The Harry Bosch series, for me, are divided into two sets: the first 4 books, and the rest that follow. As mentioned earlier, the classic early 90's novels were better for me. Books starting with The Black Echo on through The Last Coyote all inherit the tortuous origins of Harry's artistic namesake. Reading these books I could actually feel my heart begin to race as I sped towards the inevitable ending, ones that actually kept you guessing to the very end. One reviewer (sorry, can't remember who it was) says the following of these earlier book titles:[...]Even the titles of the books used to be cleverer. Compare The Drop (a simple reference to Deferred Retirement Option Plan) to The Concrete Blonde (a reference to both lady justice statue on the courthouse and the body of a blonde entombed in concrete. [...]Compare that to the later books in the series where we find a Harry Bosch notably mellower in his older age, where we find endings easily guessed at, where procedure begins to trump a superb plot. Bosch no longer smokes, doesn't drink and drive, doesn't slap people around anymore, where his defiance of LAPD authority is tempered by retirement, and let's face it, where my heart just doesn't race as often anymore. Let's say that his later novels are beginning to show an author's haste (is it me, or are the novels shorter and shorter?)Don't get me wrong, I still love reading the latest Bosch novel. Where the earlier novels have a few things that can be improved on (dialogue could have been better) the later novels are polished, almost a little too much so. After 18 Bosch novels, is Connelly tiring? Maybe.Beginning with the last 90's novel (Angels Flight) in which we are introduced to Bosch's latest romantic interest, Eleanor Wish, with whom Bosch is to have a daughter this mellowing process takes root. Connelly is absolutely right to introduce this notable character shift in Bosch from this book forward because as I can attest to in my own personal life: when you see your child born, a fundamental shift takes place in a man. For me, I was reborn from a devilish bachelor into a man who now bore the responsibility of an innocent life. It completely turned around my life for the better. And so it is with Harry Bosch. It is the presence of his daughter that transforms him from Heironymous to Harry.Overall, I highly recommend this series.
What do You think about Lost Light (2004)?
Great novel! Sustained suspense, fine character work!We've read just two of Connelly's novels so far: "City of Bones", featuring his series leading man detective Harry Bosch, and "Void Moon" (not a Bosch story). We found the latter to be a fine read, and the Bosch wasn't bad either, except we didn't have any prior background with Harry and weren't too sure we really enjoyed him that much. "Lost Light" fixes that in a hurry, as Connelly takes the time to really draw out Bosch's character AND biography for us. Harry has recently "pulled the pin" (retired) from the LAPD, and now as a non-working but licensed private-eye with lots of time on his hands, decides to revisit a 4-year old cold case murder from when he was on the force. He soon becomes embroiled in factors seemingly related: a missing FBI agent, a missing two million dollars in cash from a movie-making stunt; and a totally disabled policeman confined to a miserable life in a wheelchair who feeds Harry small doses of clues as his memory (and willingness to share) improves. Bosch demonstrates incredible intellect in putting together the strayest of clues, all the while being hounded to mind his own business (to the point of being jailed!) by various FBI and Homeland Security types. Gaining some leverage on a federal agent through a little videotaping helps immensely in getting at the facts! Meanwhile, Harry's personal life, including his relationship with several of his ex-partners, and most importantly, his ex-wife, are described thoroughly enough that we get to know the man, not just the clever investigator. His longing desire to re-unite with his ex- is beautifully handled, and a striking revelation at book's end will have Harry's fan club panting for the next novel in the set! We consider this one of the best books we've read lately. Sustained suspense about a crime we're made to care about; the close look at Harry the human (not just the cop); and the intricate, well-paced plot, combine to produce a novel very tough to put down. We can see from this example why Connelly is an Edgar winning author and one who has built a tremendous fan base. Count us in!
—Jerry
Yet another roller-coaster ride from Michael Connelly. Wonderful stuff, with a surprise final few pages (that we all knew was coming sooner or later). That part especially made me very happy.The twists and turns come as expected, but in first-person narrative here. I thought this might be intrusive, but it was just fine after a few pages. And, now, thinking about it, the wonderful ending works much better as first-person .... I wonder if Connelly planned that from the beginning?I very much enjoyed seeing Eleanor Wish again. Her character, and that of Brasher in the previous book, are terrific. Strong and smart - just the way I love women.Throughout, you will find wonderful lines, piercing deep into the human heart.... Great stuff.
—William
As usual, from this author and as any other book in this series, this is again a good and entertaining book, a motion picture type of book with plenty of action, with a well constructed plot unfolding under our eyes, with interesting characters, some even funny in their dialogue and with a thrilling story to be told, with a lot of twists and turns and not least with a grand finale that would probably take you by surprise.This time our main protagonist Harry Bosch, is now a retired homicide detective, a former cop with no badge and with no authority to ask questions, to intimidate the suspects or to arrest, this time he's acting more as a private eye, working for himself, not being hired by anyone, trying to solve a robbery murder case just because the case was hunting him as not being solved yet, sitting almost forgotten in a filing cabinet drawer in a police office with no one in particular trying to find closure for the murder victim.It's interesting the way the author now explores how is to be or act just as a simple citizen, same like anyone else, with no power of a police badge or institution behind our main protagonist. He's now faced to deal with regular issues, like any other regular guy, from filling up his car with gas, and in fact paying from his pocket with his money for that gas, so he can drive around during his investigation, to dealing with active police officers or FBI agents and facing their mentality of "us against them"... the author makes a good case that is worth mentioning...I would have rated 3.5 or 3.75 if I could, but this is not an option.. I don't really think it deserves a full 4 stars, because it's really noting outstanding about it, it's just like a good movie we watch and then we move on to some other things.But, again, it's a good book, entertaining and fun and it will worth your time if you like this style...
—Gabe
