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vira_sakhniuk's review against another edition
4.0
Solid crime story. Charismatic characters.
Feels like an episode of a good TV show.
Feels like an episode of a good TV show.
barbtries's review against another edition
4.0
I really liked this book, more than expected, because I was unable to get into the TV series. The writing is good, the plot is well done, the characters are authentic. Recommended. I will seek out and read the 2nd Bosch book and hope I enjoy it as much as this one.
dude1951's review against another edition
5.0
Well written crime drama with more than a few interesting plot twists. A very quick read for a 400 page book.
sdamyhill's review against another edition
3.0
Just meh. I didn't love it. I read it for what it was, nobody is winning a Nobel prize here. I was (sort of) entertained. The whole "gritty loner cop" thing was a bit too much. And at the risk of sounding pretentious, I found it maddeningly predictable. But I also found it entertaining, thus the three stars.
obsidian_blue's review against another edition
4.0
I really need to be better about making sure my Kindle is turned off with wifi and it shows that I have a book I am reading. I have read this one before, but it was nice to refresh my memory about the first Harry Bosch book. Connelly has come a long way with this character. I forgot how much I didn't like Harry and wondered why in the world I had even started this series. I ended up just copying over my review from the collection I read back in 2016. That said, I gave this four stars before, and now I really think it's more like a 3.5 star read. So going to round up to 4 stars since GR does not do half stars.
THE BLACK ECHO (4 stars)
The first book in the Harry Bosch series. This one takes a while to get moving, but once it does, boy does the whole story hum. It takes a while for readers to figure out what's going on. Prior to the events in this book, Bosch was in a different division until he made a mistake and shot a serial killer who he thought was reaching for a gun (The Dollmaker). Because of that, he is busted down to the Hollywood division and is partnered with someone who is more interested in selling houses, than solving crimes (J. Edgar). Called into a scene where it looks like an accidental overdose leads Bosch into his past and linking a present day crime with events that took place back in Vietnam.
Bosch is angry and bitter in this one, but also vulnerable (only around women he is interested in it seems). Being knocked down to a division that he hates, he still comes into work but seems to look his nose down on a heck of a lot of people. Frankly I wonder why he even wanted to be a cop in this one since his main purpose seems to be annoying the ever loving life out of all around him.
This book introduces Irving, J. Edgar, and Eleanor Wish (working at the FBI). Harry ends up partnering with Eleanor Wish in this one, and man oh man, the lovelorn act that Harry was doing was terrible. I agree with Moonlight Reader who said that most detective novels are pretty much the male version of romance novels (wish fulfillment) especially because I can't see what in the world attracted Eleanor to Harry. And due to the ending you realize it would have been smarter to not get involved at all.
I thought the writing in this one was really a bit too technical. I had the same issue while reading the first Lincoln Rhymes book. Some things, not all flew a bit over my head. It's pretty apparent that Michael Connelly did a great deal of research. The description of the L.A. that Harry inhabits gives the whole book a very noir feel to it. I honestly gave this book 4 stars though because some of the language and outdated thinking regarding women and gay men was off-putting. At one point when Bosch meets Eleanor Wish, he remarks how rare it is to see a woman armed with her weapon, unlike female detectives who carried their guns in their purses.
I did think the flow could have been a bit improved.
I really did rate this book so high because once Bosch realizes what is going on you think that he is going to be able to put a stop to what is going to happen. But we get a crazy ending that I definitely did not see coming.
THE BLACK ECHO (4 stars)
The first book in the Harry Bosch series. This one takes a while to get moving, but once it does, boy does the whole story hum. It takes a while for readers to figure out what's going on. Prior to the events in this book, Bosch was in a different division until he made a mistake and shot a serial killer who he thought was reaching for a gun (The Dollmaker). Because of that, he is busted down to the Hollywood division and is partnered with someone who is more interested in selling houses, than solving crimes (J. Edgar). Called into a scene where it looks like an accidental overdose leads Bosch into his past and linking a present day crime with events that took place back in Vietnam.
Bosch is angry and bitter in this one, but also vulnerable (only around women he is interested in it seems). Being knocked down to a division that he hates, he still comes into work but seems to look his nose down on a heck of a lot of people. Frankly I wonder why he even wanted to be a cop in this one since his main purpose seems to be annoying the ever loving life out of all around him.
This book introduces Irving, J. Edgar, and Eleanor Wish (working at the FBI). Harry ends up partnering with Eleanor Wish in this one, and man oh man, the lovelorn act that Harry was doing was terrible. I agree with Moonlight Reader who said that most detective novels are pretty much the male version of romance novels (wish fulfillment) especially because I can't see what in the world attracted Eleanor to Harry. And due to the ending you realize it would have been smarter to not get involved at all.
I thought the writing in this one was really a bit too technical. I had the same issue while reading the first Lincoln Rhymes book. Some things, not all flew a bit over my head. It's pretty apparent that Michael Connelly did a great deal of research. The description of the L.A. that Harry inhabits gives the whole book a very noir feel to it. I honestly gave this book 4 stars though because some of the language and outdated thinking regarding women and gay men was off-putting. At one point when Bosch meets Eleanor Wish, he remarks how rare it is to see a woman armed with her weapon, unlike female detectives who carried their guns in their purses.
I did think the flow could have been a bit improved.
I really did rate this book so high because once Bosch realizes what is going on you think that he is going to be able to put a stop to what is going to happen. But we get a crazy ending that I definitely did not see coming.
pixelcolejo's review against another edition
5.0
Black Echo was a wonderfully written book that shows the different facets of the LAPD. The story flowed very well and kept you guessing as to how the plot turns out. It blends the Vietnam War with how things were in the 1990s in Los Angeles and how all the characters were affected by it. I really love that Michael Connelly puts actual streets and cities in the Los Angeles area. Being from Los Angeles I know exactly where a lot of the places he describes in the book and makes the story all the more real. I don't want to give the story away, but I highly recommend reading.
mhwriter2024's review against another edition
4.0
Bosch's background as a tunnel rat in the Vietnam War comes back to haunt him when a homeless vet turns up dead. Very solid noir-style writing and plotting. Although the book is a tad overlong, Connelly keeps the plot wheels moving as the LAPD's internal affairs department and the FBI show up to complicate things. Bosch is a great character. The first in the book series; part of the 3rd season of the adaptations in the Bosch streaming series.(4.1-4.3/5.0 stars).
ljc51014's review against another edition
4.0
I like my detectives to be either Spenser-like or dark and emotionally wrenched, oh - or old ladies. Okay, I like them all. Bosch is definitely in the darker category.
carcookie12's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
a very tense book with very good plot. ties up nicely. very obviously a crime book from the 90s, and isn’t very nice to lgbtq people
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and War
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Pedophilia, and Transphobia
momotaa's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars?
I don't care for the way any of these police officers talk about people. They were all pretty shitty humans. I liked Bosch, he definitely wasn't coloring inside the lines and stuff, but I got him and he was good. I got pretty bored around the middle of the novel, I found the beginning and the ending really interesting and well written, but I felt it could have been shorter. I don't know if I will read more or not, maybe in the future. I do enjoy this author, maybe this series just isn't for me.
I don't care for the way any of these police officers talk about people. They were all pretty shitty humans. I liked Bosch, he definitely wasn't coloring inside the lines and stuff, but I got him and he was good. I got pretty bored around the middle of the novel, I found the beginning and the ending really interesting and well written, but I felt it could have been shorter. I don't know if I will read more or not, maybe in the future. I do enjoy this author, maybe this series just isn't for me.