Scan barcode
anissawren's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Gun violence, and Police brutality
Moderate: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Child death, Domestic abuse, Racism, and Kidnapping
kimreadz's review against another edition
3.0
Slow start, but a good book
I 'inherited' this book and decided to read it before giving it away. I thought the book got off to a slow start and it took me awhile to get interested. (I have never read a 'Harry Bosch' book, so maybe if I had, I would have gotten into the plot a bit sooner. I'm not normally a reader of this genre, but I have to say, once I got past the slow start, they book held my interest. A lot of suspense, a lot of mystery and a bit of 'revenge'. The solving surprised me a little, but it was a nice change from what I've been reading lately, where everything is predictable. If you are a fan of crime solver mysteries, you will enjoy this book.
I 'inherited' this book and decided to read it before giving it away. I thought the book got off to a slow start and it took me awhile to get interested. (I have never read a 'Harry Bosch' book, so maybe if I had, I would have gotten into the plot a bit sooner. I'm not normally a reader of this genre, but I have to say, once I got past the slow start, they book held my interest. A lot of suspense, a lot of mystery and a bit of 'revenge'. The solving surprised me a little, but it was a nice change from what I've been reading lately, where everything is predictable. If you are a fan of crime solver mysteries, you will enjoy this book.
robyncoops's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
laurenjcarter28's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.5
pziemlewicz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
fosterwalrus's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
bluryeyed2's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.5
raymond_murphy's review against another edition
3.0
This is a seminal book in terms of the Bosch arc, whereas the mystery itself is kind of weird.
I honestly have no idea whether I read this before this instance or not.
I honestly have no idea whether I read this before this instance or not.
lesserjoke's review against another edition
3.0
This Harry Bosch title is told in first-person narration, which is a slight but noticeable deviation from the third-person-limited perspective of the last eight novels. It's not immediately clear why the new POV has been adopted, although it may have to do with the change in the protagonist's lifestyle after (spoiler alert for the previous volume) he abruptly quit the LAPD at the end of City of Bones. The former police detective is still an investigator -- with an official PI license, though for now he's just looking into open cases from his own career and not taking on clients -- but he's operating without the safety net and institutional clout that the department has always given his activities in the past.
The plot that unfolds is quintessential Bosch. He can't let go of the unsolved murder of a young woman everyone else has forgotten, but his poking around stirs up the powerful interests of the FBI and an anti-terrorism taskforce, who try to pressure him into dropping it. In the process he's beaten and taken to an off-books "black site," and while some of these agents are clearly dirty, it feels like a sharper critique of law enforcement overall than author Michael Connelly has typically provided before. Writing in 2003, he appears particularly concerned about the jurisdictional overreach that followed 9/11, and I'll be interested to see how that thread develops over the remainder of the series. (It has certainly aged better than a scene of early internet research here, pulling every news item marked with keyword 'terrorist.')
None of the twists in the investigation is all that shocking, and a big development in Harry's home life seems overly obvious in advance, even if it hadn't been spoiled for me by the Amazon streaming adaptation frontloading it into the backstory of its pilot episode. But what's left is a solid enough story in an interesting new key for its champion, and a major milestone along his personal journey.
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
The plot that unfolds is quintessential Bosch. He can't let go of the unsolved murder of a young woman everyone else has forgotten, but his poking around stirs up the powerful interests of the FBI and an anti-terrorism taskforce, who try to pressure him into dropping it. In the process he's beaten and taken to an off-books "black site," and while some of these agents are clearly dirty, it feels like a sharper critique of law enforcement overall than author Michael Connelly has typically provided before. Writing in 2003, he appears particularly concerned about the jurisdictional overreach that followed 9/11, and I'll be interested to see how that thread develops over the remainder of the series. (It has certainly aged better than a scene of early internet research here, pulling every news item marked with keyword 'terrorist.')
None of the twists in the investigation is all that shocking, and a big development in Harry's home life seems overly obvious in advance, even if it hadn't been spoiled for me by the Amazon streaming adaptation frontloading it into the backstory of its pilot episode. But what's left is a solid enough story in an interesting new key for its champion, and a major milestone along his personal journey.
Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter
aeeckhardt's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0