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Harry Bosch #9
Lost Light
The vision has haunted him for four years--a young woman lying crumpled in death, her hand outstretched in silent supplication. Harry Bosch was taken off the Angella Benton murder case when the production assistant's death was linked with the violent theft of two million dollars from a movie set. Both files were never closed. Now retired from the L.A.P.D., Bosch is determined to find justice for Angella. Without a badge to open doors and strike fear into the guilty, he's on his own. And even in the face of an opponent more powerful and ruthless than any he's ever encountered, Bosch is not backing down.
385 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
4991 people are currently reading
12200 people want to read
About the author
Michael Connelly
379 books34.1k followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teachers was novelist Harry Crews.
After graduating in 1980, Connelly worked at newspapers in Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, primarily specializing in the crime beat. In Fort Lauderdale he wrote about police and crime during the height of the murder and violence wave that rolled over South Florida during the so-called cocaine wars. In 1986, he and two other reporters spent several months interviewing survivors of a major airline crash. They wrote a magazine story on the crash and the survivors which was later short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. The magazine story also moved Connelly into the upper levels of journalism, landing him a job as a crime reporter for the Los Angeles Times, one of the largest papers in the country, and bringing him to the city of which his literary hero, Chandler, had written.
After three years on the crime beat in L.A., Connelly began writing his first novel to feature LAPD Detective Hieronymus Bosch. The novel, The Black Echo, based in part on a true crime that had occurred in Los Angeles, was published in 1992 and won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel by the Mystery Writers of America. Connelly has followed that up with over 30 more novels.
Over eighty million copies of Connelly’s books have sold worldwide and he has been translated into forty-five foreign languages. He has won the Edgar Award, Anthony Award, Macavity Award, Los Angeles Times Best Mystery/Thriller Award, Shamus Award, Dilys Award, Nero Award, Barry Award, Audie Award, Ridley Award, Maltese Falcon Award (Japan), .38 Caliber Award (France), Grand Prix Award (France), Premio Bancarella Award (Italy), and the Pepe Carvalho award (Spain) .
Michael was the President of the Mystery Writers of America organization in 2003 and 2004. In addition to his literary work, Michael is one of the producers and writers of the TV show, “Bosch,” which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Michael lives with his family in Los Angeles and Tampa, Florida.
Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teachers was novelist Harry Crews.
After graduating in 1980, Connelly worked at newspapers in Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, primarily specializing in the crime beat. In Fort Lauderdale he wrote about police and crime during the height of the murder and violence wave that rolled over South Florida during the so-called cocaine wars. In 1986, he and two other reporters spent several months interviewing survivors of a major airline crash. They wrote a magazine story on the crash and the survivors which was later short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. The magazine story also moved Connelly into the upper levels of journalism, landing him a job as a crime reporter for the Los Angeles Times, one of the largest papers in the country, and bringing him to the city of which his literary hero, Chandler, had written.
After three years on the crime beat in L.A., Connelly began writing his first novel to feature LAPD Detective Hieronymus Bosch. The novel, The Black Echo, based in part on a true crime that had occurred in Los Angeles, was published in 1992 and won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel by the Mystery Writers of America. Connelly has followed that up with over 30 more novels.
Over eighty million copies of Connelly’s books have sold worldwide and he has been translated into forty-five foreign languages. He has won the Edgar Award, Anthony Award, Macavity Award, Los Angeles Times Best Mystery/Thriller Award, Shamus Award, Dilys Award, Nero Award, Barry Award, Audie Award, Ridley Award, Maltese Falcon Award (Japan), .38 Caliber Award (France), Grand Prix Award (France), Premio Bancarella Award (Italy), and the Pepe Carvalho award (Spain) .
Michael was the President of the Mystery Writers of America organization in 2003 and 2004. In addition to his literary work, Michael is one of the producers and writers of the TV show, “Bosch,” which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Michael lives with his family in Los Angeles and Tampa, Florida.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,499 reviews
December 29, 2024
Harry Bosch #9, Harry Bosch Universe #13: It's a new day for Bosch, he is finally out the game, after a swift exit that took place 'off-screen' between City of Bones and this peach of a read! Bosch sort of knew that he might be doing some private investigating once he was out, so when a 'disabled in the line-of-duty' retired cop gives him a line on a four year old cold case murder of a Hollywood film assistant Bosch finds himself back on his own personal sod-everyone-else approach to crime investigating as he gets right under and up the noses of his police comrades, the FBI, Hollywood and anyone else getting in his way of seeking out the truth!
This is most certainly crime fiction of the highest quality as the front of book blurb quote on my edition says. The denouement is peerless as it recalls every step and mist-step of the original and Bosch's case. It is such a well put together investigation coloured by Bosch's intense need for justice regardless of who gets trampled on during the pursuit. Possibly my favourite Bosch read so far, a 9 out of 12, Four Star read.
2024 read
This is most certainly crime fiction of the highest quality as the front of book blurb quote on my edition says. The denouement is peerless as it recalls every step and mist-step of the original and Bosch's case. It is such a well put together investigation coloured by Bosch's intense need for justice regardless of who gets trampled on during the pursuit. Possibly my favourite Bosch read so far, a 9 out of 12, Four Star read.
2024 read
January 13, 2018
The ninth Harry Bosch novel is unique in a couple of ways. To begin with, Harry is no longer a cop. He has abruptly resigned from the LAPD and is now a private citizen again. Secondly, while virtually all of the other novels in the series are told from the third-person point-of-view, this story is narrated in the first person by Harry himself.
Harry has been off the job for several months by the time the book opens. He has gone through the motions of getting a license as a P.I., but he's not actively pursuing it as a career. Mostly, he's just sleeping late and wondering what to do with himself. He finally decides to get busy by digging into an old, unsolved case that has haunted him for years.
While still a homicide detective, Bosch had been called to the scene of the murder of a young woman named Angella Benton. Benton had been violated before being killed, and in death, she was found lying on the floor with her hands outstretched, as if in prayer. Bosh discovered that the victim was a production assistant for a movie studio, and only a few days after Benton's murder, a brazen gang stole $2 million from a movie set belonging to the studio where Benton worked. The police brass quickly jumped to the conclusion that the young woman's murder was linked to the robbery. Thus the homicide investigation was taken away from Bosch, rolled into the investigation of the robbery, and assigned to other detectives. But neither case was ever solved.
Bosch has never forgotten the image of Benton's body lying on the floor and thus decides to investigate the case on his own in the hope of providing some justice, however belated, for the young victim. He's at an obvious disadvantage, though. Without a badge and the power of the city behind him, the investigation will be much more difficult, if not impossible. But then the task becomes infinitely harder when the Powers That Be in the police department discover that Bosch is nosing around the case and order him to stand down for reasons they will not explain.
Those who've read this series know that Bosch was never very fond of authority while employed by the LAPD and that he often disregarded orders and went his own way in search of the truth. In this case, of course, Harry will will persist in his investigation and soon finds himself in very serious trouble and in very grave danger.
This is a very good entry in the series, and it's especially fun to watch Harry work from outside of the system rather than from within. The book, which was published in 2003, also raises some very troubling questions about civil liberties in the post 9/11 era, and is critically important in other ways to the development of the main character. Lost Light should appeal to anyone who enjoys crime fiction, and no fan of the Harry Bosch series will want to miss it.
Harry has been off the job for several months by the time the book opens. He has gone through the motions of getting a license as a P.I., but he's not actively pursuing it as a career. Mostly, he's just sleeping late and wondering what to do with himself. He finally decides to get busy by digging into an old, unsolved case that has haunted him for years.
While still a homicide detective, Bosch had been called to the scene of the murder of a young woman named Angella Benton. Benton had been violated before being killed, and in death, she was found lying on the floor with her hands outstretched, as if in prayer. Bosh discovered that the victim was a production assistant for a movie studio, and only a few days after Benton's murder, a brazen gang stole $2 million from a movie set belonging to the studio where Benton worked. The police brass quickly jumped to the conclusion that the young woman's murder was linked to the robbery. Thus the homicide investigation was taken away from Bosch, rolled into the investigation of the robbery, and assigned to other detectives. But neither case was ever solved.
Bosch has never forgotten the image of Benton's body lying on the floor and thus decides to investigate the case on his own in the hope of providing some justice, however belated, for the young victim. He's at an obvious disadvantage, though. Without a badge and the power of the city behind him, the investigation will be much more difficult, if not impossible. But then the task becomes infinitely harder when the Powers That Be in the police department discover that Bosch is nosing around the case and order him to stand down for reasons they will not explain.
Those who've read this series know that Bosch was never very fond of authority while employed by the LAPD and that he often disregarded orders and went his own way in search of the truth. In this case, of course, Harry will will persist in his investigation and soon finds himself in very serious trouble and in very grave danger.
This is a very good entry in the series, and it's especially fun to watch Harry work from outside of the system rather than from within. The book, which was published in 2003, also raises some very troubling questions about civil liberties in the post 9/11 era, and is critically important in other ways to the development of the main character. Lost Light should appeal to anyone who enjoys crime fiction, and no fan of the Harry Bosch series will want to miss it.
January 8, 2023
4.5/5 Estrellas
Creo que pocas veces me he encontrado y me encontraré un personaje tan bien construido como Harry Bosch.
Este tío es un cabrón integral, no lo aguanta ni Dios, pasa por encima de quien haga falta para cumplir su misión, que no es otra que ningún asesinato quede sin resolver, que ningún asesino quede sin desenmascarar. La construcción de la compleja personalidad de Bosch, su infancia, su orfandad, la guerra de Vietnam, sus difíciles relaciones personales, es parte indisoluble de cada una de estas grandes novelas que nos regala Connelly.
En esta entrega, Bosch se encuentra retirado de la Policía de Los Ángeles, pero como buen "culo inquieto" empieza a investigar un antiguo caso sin resolver, con la colaboración de un ex-compañero, al que lo ha "retirado" una bala en las cervicales. Lo que parecía un anónimo asesinato que ya no interesaba a nadie, remueve un avispero de dimensiones colosales, del que pronto es consciente que va a ser difícil salir, al menos de una pieza. Y la motivación principal de gran parte de los crímenes, vuelve a surgir: el dinero, jodido dinero.
Me llama la atención la animadversión entre Agencias Federales, entre Agencias y Policía, rivalidad que raya el odio más puro, que traslucen muchas de las novelas de Connelly. Parece que la colaboración entre las distintas fuerzas de seguridad en USA, es más un ejercicio de poder y de quien tiene autoridad sobre quien, que la voluntad de resolver los crímenes ¿Será así en realidad?
Tras esta profunda reflexión, me retiro a cargar en mi saca la siguiente entrega de esta gran serie.
P.D.: En esta entrega no salen los de asuntos internos.....me alegro.
Creo que pocas veces me he encontrado y me encontraré un personaje tan bien construido como Harry Bosch.
Este tío es un cabrón integral, no lo aguanta ni Dios, pasa por encima de quien haga falta para cumplir su misión, que no es otra que ningún asesinato quede sin resolver, que ningún asesino quede sin desenmascarar. La construcción de la compleja personalidad de Bosch, su infancia, su orfandad, la guerra de Vietnam, sus difíciles relaciones personales, es parte indisoluble de cada una de estas grandes novelas que nos regala Connelly.
En esta entrega, Bosch se encuentra retirado de la Policía de Los Ángeles, pero como buen "culo inquieto" empieza a investigar un antiguo caso sin resolver, con la colaboración de un ex-compañero, al que lo ha "retirado" una bala en las cervicales. Lo que parecía un anónimo asesinato que ya no interesaba a nadie, remueve un avispero de dimensiones colosales, del que pronto es consciente que va a ser difícil salir, al menos de una pieza. Y la motivación principal de gran parte de los crímenes, vuelve a surgir: el dinero, jodido dinero.
Me llama la atención la animadversión entre Agencias Federales, entre Agencias y Policía, rivalidad que raya el odio más puro, que traslucen muchas de las novelas de Connelly. Parece que la colaboración entre las distintas fuerzas de seguridad en USA, es más un ejercicio de poder y de quien tiene autoridad sobre quien, que la voluntad de resolver los crímenes ¿Será así en realidad?
Tras esta profunda reflexión, me retiro a cargar en mi saca la siguiente entrega de esta gran serie.
P.D.: En esta entrega no salen los de asuntos internos.....me alegro.
February 24, 2014
This is no news to those who read Michael Connelly - the man can write. "Lost Light" is tense, complicated and also has moments of compassion.
Connelly's presentation of violent excesses of FBI post-9/11 terror policing was frightening. Does it really happen that way?
My wife and I had the opportunity to meet Connelly at the recent Key West Literary Seminar. He is a quiet, very nice man, who was also an interesting speaker, and he did the most amazing thing. Walking up to me on the street, when I had no idea he even knew me, he said "Lew, I have something to show you." He took out his cell phone and scrolled to a photo of my novel The Heretic. "I found this in my room," he said. I was stunned by this kindness. Of course I gave him a copy and hope he someday has time to read it.
Connelly's presentation of violent excesses of FBI post-9/11 terror policing was frightening. Does it really happen that way?
My wife and I had the opportunity to meet Connelly at the recent Key West Literary Seminar. He is a quiet, very nice man, who was also an interesting speaker, and he did the most amazing thing. Walking up to me on the street, when I had no idea he even knew me, he said "Lew, I have something to show you." He took out his cell phone and scrolled to a photo of my novel The Heretic. "I found this in my room," he said. I was stunned by this kindness. Of course I gave him a copy and hope he someday has time to read it.
March 27, 2016
This is the ninth Harry Bosch novel and it marks a big turning point in his life as he has left the police force. During the course of the book he begins working as a private investigator which actually suits him better because he is a man who likes to work alone. I enjoyed this one very much largely because Harry is always in control. He continually outwits his opponents who include members of the FBI and the police. When he finally solves the case the reader breathes easily again and then Harry turns up a shocker of a twist and exposes two more murderers. Great stuff. Oh and of course there is a little bit of his personal life and another surprise in the final pages. Yet another excellent book in this great series.
November 13, 2024
5★
“I was living like a jazz musician waiting for a gig. I was staying up late, staring at the walls and drinking too much red wine. I needed to either pawn my instrument or find a place to play it.
. . .
But over the weeks and months came the realization that one identity was greater, that it superseded the other. My mission remained intact. My job in this world, badge or no badge, was to stand for the dead.
Harry’s on his own – I mean, really on his own. He’s officially retired, sitting in his rebuilt house that was destroyed in the ’94 LA earthquake, and he knows that as much as he enjoys taking saxophone lessons from Sugar Ray McK in the old fellow’s retirement home, he can’t shake being haunted by unsolved murders that demand justice.
One of the most memorable was Angella Benton, only 24 when she was found murdered, with her body seeming to plea for help.
“... they were directed upward from her head, as if she were reaching out to someone, almost beseechingly, begging for something. They looked like hands from a Renaissance painting, like the hands of the damned reaching heavenward for forgiveness. In my life I have worked almost a thousand homicides and no positioning of a fallen body ever gave me such pause.”
No badge, no authority, but plenty of connections. He did get his private investigator’s licence when he retired, which he says all retired cops seem to do – just in case. I can understand why. Even if they aren’t haunted, as Harry is, or bored, as others may be, somebody is bound to turn to them for help when they’ve got trouble.
The LAPD and the FBI are still creating sparks when they bump up against each other, and Harry still has an enduring suspicion of the tactics of FBI agents, but then he tends to suspect everyone. He is particularly wary of the FBI’s BAM team who carry out investigations By Any Means.
It’s not as if the FBI ever respected his badge much, but at least it gave him some protection. He had a department to back him up. Now, they can throw him in a secret cell on the ninth floor and throw away the key.
I like that he’s alone and vulnerable now but as determined as ever. He’s cleaned up his act, and is still like a schoolboy when it comes to his ex-wife, Eleanor, a former FBI agent who now has a good life making a profitable living in Las Vegas as a poker player. He makes excuses to fly to Vegas and drop in on her and try to find out more about her life, but she remains cagey, though friendly.
He’s very human, thoughtful, often fool-hardy, but smart. I don’t know when he sleeps and he seems to live on coffee. He is loyal, easily moved, and philosophical, but he is no pushover.
There is plenty of physical action and suspense. Nowhere is safe.
“When I opened the closet door I was suddenly shoved backwards with great force by a man who had been waiting in there for me…
He shoved the barrel in so deep under my jaw that I had to stop talking. The pain sent shards of red glass across my vision…
‘I’ve got your gun right here, Bosch. And I’m going to turn you into another suicide statistic if you don’t — ’ There was a sudden crashing sound from the hallway and I knew it was the front door coming in off its hinges.”
This is not a quiet investigation, but then his never are. I think if this happened to be the first book you picked up and you couldn’t find any earlier ones, you’d still enjoy the story. Connelly’s good at filling in enough blanks so that this stands on its own. And if you should read this first, it won’t spoil the earlier books for you. Each has its own complete crime and solution, while the characters grow and change.
I happened to watch an early part of the Bosch TV series that I assumed would start at the beginning of the books, but it included something from many years later in his life. I was surprised, but it didn’t spoil the stories I’m reading now as I catch up to that point.
Connelly is terrific, and at least Harry has a cellphone now, dear old-school investigator that he is.
Below are my reviews of the earlier Harry Bosch books.
(#1) My review of The Black Echo
(#2) My review of The Black Ice
(#3) My review of The Concrete Blonde
(#4) My review of The Last Coyote
(#5) My review of Trunk Music
(#6) My review of Angels Flight
(#7) My review of A Darkness More Than Night
(#8) City of Bones My review of City of Bones
“I was living like a jazz musician waiting for a gig. I was staying up late, staring at the walls and drinking too much red wine. I needed to either pawn my instrument or find a place to play it.
. . .
But over the weeks and months came the realization that one identity was greater, that it superseded the other. My mission remained intact. My job in this world, badge or no badge, was to stand for the dead.
Harry’s on his own – I mean, really on his own. He’s officially retired, sitting in his rebuilt house that was destroyed in the ’94 LA earthquake, and he knows that as much as he enjoys taking saxophone lessons from Sugar Ray McK in the old fellow’s retirement home, he can’t shake being haunted by unsolved murders that demand justice.
One of the most memorable was Angella Benton, only 24 when she was found murdered, with her body seeming to plea for help.
“... they were directed upward from her head, as if she were reaching out to someone, almost beseechingly, begging for something. They looked like hands from a Renaissance painting, like the hands of the damned reaching heavenward for forgiveness. In my life I have worked almost a thousand homicides and no positioning of a fallen body ever gave me such pause.”
No badge, no authority, but plenty of connections. He did get his private investigator’s licence when he retired, which he says all retired cops seem to do – just in case. I can understand why. Even if they aren’t haunted, as Harry is, or bored, as others may be, somebody is bound to turn to them for help when they’ve got trouble.
The LAPD and the FBI are still creating sparks when they bump up against each other, and Harry still has an enduring suspicion of the tactics of FBI agents, but then he tends to suspect everyone. He is particularly wary of the FBI’s BAM team who carry out investigations By Any Means.
It’s not as if the FBI ever respected his badge much, but at least it gave him some protection. He had a department to back him up. Now, they can throw him in a secret cell on the ninth floor and throw away the key.
I like that he’s alone and vulnerable now but as determined as ever. He’s cleaned up his act, and is still like a schoolboy when it comes to his ex-wife, Eleanor, a former FBI agent who now has a good life making a profitable living in Las Vegas as a poker player. He makes excuses to fly to Vegas and drop in on her and try to find out more about her life, but she remains cagey, though friendly.
He’s very human, thoughtful, often fool-hardy, but smart. I don’t know when he sleeps and he seems to live on coffee. He is loyal, easily moved, and philosophical, but he is no pushover.
There is plenty of physical action and suspense. Nowhere is safe.
“When I opened the closet door I was suddenly shoved backwards with great force by a man who had been waiting in there for me…
He shoved the barrel in so deep under my jaw that I had to stop talking. The pain sent shards of red glass across my vision…
‘I’ve got your gun right here, Bosch. And I’m going to turn you into another suicide statistic if you don’t — ’ There was a sudden crashing sound from the hallway and I knew it was the front door coming in off its hinges.”
This is not a quiet investigation, but then his never are. I think if this happened to be the first book you picked up and you couldn’t find any earlier ones, you’d still enjoy the story. Connelly’s good at filling in enough blanks so that this stands on its own. And if you should read this first, it won’t spoil the earlier books for you. Each has its own complete crime and solution, while the characters grow and change.
I happened to watch an early part of the Bosch TV series that I assumed would start at the beginning of the books, but it included something from many years later in his life. I was surprised, but it didn’t spoil the stories I’m reading now as I catch up to that point.
Connelly is terrific, and at least Harry has a cellphone now, dear old-school investigator that he is.
Below are my reviews of the earlier Harry Bosch books.
(#1) My review of The Black Echo
(#2) My review of The Black Ice
(#3) My review of The Concrete Blonde
(#4) My review of The Last Coyote
(#5) My review of Trunk Music
(#6) My review of Angels Flight
(#7) My review of A Darkness More Than Night
(#8) City of Bones My review of City of Bones
March 30, 2024
One more in a long string of successes!
Harry Bosch has always been true to his personal values - "Everyone matters or nobody matters". The unsolved mystery of Angella Benton's murder, a case he had been pulled off four years earlier had always bothered him. Now retired after almost 30 years of dealing with the disillusionment and hypocrisy of police administration, he decided to indulge his whim, his curiosity and his dogged, determined sense of personal mission. The investigation of the stone cold Angella Benton murder seemed like a good way to test drive his newly minted private investigator's license even if it meant he was his own client.
When Bosch re-examines the trail of clues, the now dusty murder book and the thread of his initial investigations, he quickly comes to believe that Benton's murder was somehow tied to the theft of $2 million in cold, hard cash that was used as a prop in a movie being shot by the company Benton worked for. Bosch understands that if he can solve one crime, he'll solve the other but he also sees that there are two million really good reasons for the bad guys to ensure that, one way or another, Bosch is unsuccessful in his investigations.
Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch novels are never short on exciting, convoluted, credible and compelling plot lines. LOST LIGHT is certainly no exception to that rule. But, as always, this Harry Bosch novel is a rich, complex, dark, angst driven, psychological study that continues to build Harry Bosch into the kind of multi-layered character that mystery fans will be reading and writing about for many, many years to come.
A twist in the side plot involving Bosch's on-again, off-again relationship with his ex-wife, former FBI agent, Rachel Walling, provides a whole new layer of story and plot potential in Bosch's private life that, to the certain delight of Bosch fans, Connelly will undoubtedly be drawing upon in future novels.
On an interesting side note, one of Bosch's primary informants on the Benton case is one of the original two investigating officers. Sadly, the officer is now a quadriplegic as a result of a gunshot wound received in the course of his duties. Aside from being an integral part of this richly plotted novel, Connelly's portrayal of the life of a quadriplegic and his supportive caregiver wife is almost heart-breaking in its realism.
Nine novels into the long-running Harry Bosch canon and Connelly is showing no signs of weakness or abatement in a string of successes. Highly recommended. Up next is THE NARROWS.
Paul Weiss
Harry Bosch has always been true to his personal values - "Everyone matters or nobody matters". The unsolved mystery of Angella Benton's murder, a case he had been pulled off four years earlier had always bothered him. Now retired after almost 30 years of dealing with the disillusionment and hypocrisy of police administration, he decided to indulge his whim, his curiosity and his dogged, determined sense of personal mission. The investigation of the stone cold Angella Benton murder seemed like a good way to test drive his newly minted private investigator's license even if it meant he was his own client.
When Bosch re-examines the trail of clues, the now dusty murder book and the thread of his initial investigations, he quickly comes to believe that Benton's murder was somehow tied to the theft of $2 million in cold, hard cash that was used as a prop in a movie being shot by the company Benton worked for. Bosch understands that if he can solve one crime, he'll solve the other but he also sees that there are two million really good reasons for the bad guys to ensure that, one way or another, Bosch is unsuccessful in his investigations.
Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch novels are never short on exciting, convoluted, credible and compelling plot lines. LOST LIGHT is certainly no exception to that rule. But, as always, this Harry Bosch novel is a rich, complex, dark, angst driven, psychological study that continues to build Harry Bosch into the kind of multi-layered character that mystery fans will be reading and writing about for many, many years to come.
A twist in the side plot involving Bosch's on-again, off-again relationship with his ex-wife, former FBI agent, Rachel Walling, provides a whole new layer of story and plot potential in Bosch's private life that, to the certain delight of Bosch fans, Connelly will undoubtedly be drawing upon in future novels.
On an interesting side note, one of Bosch's primary informants on the Benton case is one of the original two investigating officers. Sadly, the officer is now a quadriplegic as a result of a gunshot wound received in the course of his duties. Aside from being an integral part of this richly plotted novel, Connelly's portrayal of the life of a quadriplegic and his supportive caregiver wife is almost heart-breaking in its realism.
Nine novels into the long-running Harry Bosch canon and Connelly is showing no signs of weakness or abatement in a string of successes. Highly recommended. Up next is THE NARROWS.
Paul Weiss
January 27, 2018
Harry Bosch, newly retired and living the quiet life, was called by a cop from his past. The cop had been badly injured in a robbery gone wrong, while his partner had died. But he had something he wanted Bosch to do - and when he heard what it was, Harry remembered the case vividly. It was one he'd not forgotten; the murder of a young woman which was his case for a few days before it was handed on to another department. It was never solved - Harry decided he would quietly re-open the case and search for answers himself.
Harry's progress was hampered by the fact that he no longer held a badge. But he didn't let that stop him. It also seemed as if he was ruffling some feathers higher up with Harry being warned to stay away. His determination to find justice for Angella Benton was what kept him going - plus the fact that what he was finding made him realise there was much more involved than the murder that had drawn him in...
Lost Light by Michael Connelly is the 9th in the Harry Bosch series and just as entertaining as usual. With a relatively slow beginning, the pace built until the grand finale! The twists and turns were to be expected, and they were good! A thoroughly enjoyable ride, and one I highly recommend.
Harry's progress was hampered by the fact that he no longer held a badge. But he didn't let that stop him. It also seemed as if he was ruffling some feathers higher up with Harry being warned to stay away. His determination to find justice for Angella Benton was what kept him going - plus the fact that what he was finding made him realise there was much more involved than the murder that had drawn him in...
Lost Light by Michael Connelly is the 9th in the Harry Bosch series and just as entertaining as usual. With a relatively slow beginning, the pace built until the grand finale! The twists and turns were to be expected, and they were good! A thoroughly enjoyable ride, and one I highly recommend.
December 29, 2024
Излязъл в пенсия преди година, Хари Бош се чуди с какво точно да се занимава, освен с уроци по саксофон.
И тогава получава обаждане от бивш колега, останал парализиран след неуспешен въоръжен обир преди няколко години.
Бош е като ловджийско куче - загризе ли случай на убийство, не пуска докато не го разреши!
Конъли ни предлага за пореден път отлична криминална история, която аз с удоволствие препрочетох.
И тогава получава обаждане от бивш колега, останал парализиран след неуспешен въоръжен обир преди няколко години.
Бош е като ловджийско куче - загризе ли случай на убийство, не пуска докато не го разреши!
Конъли ни предлага за пореден път отлична криминална история, която аз с удоволствие препрочетох.
July 28, 2023
Harry Bosch is now retired but in true form he's still working. Letting go of a four-year-old murder case linked to a violent theft is not an option.
February 1, 2024
3,5 Un thriller reușit, povestea unei obsesii care te bântuie până îi găsești răspunsul. Rezolvarea cazului a fost o surpriză.
November 5, 2023
Luz perdida
Otra buenísima novela de Connelly con su personaje estrella Harry Bosch que hace la novena.
En esta ocasión el detective se ve en la obligación moral de investigar un caso antiguo que está en punto muerto. A medida que avanza se da cuenta que hay gente que no quiere que siga con la investigación. Nada nuevo bajo el sol desde luego, lo que cambia es la posición de Bosch que va a entrar en el caso desde otra posición a la habitual.
En esta novela hay un cambio importante en la serie. Bosch ya no es policía, se ha retirado. Lo que quiere decir que es más libre de hacer lo que quiera y a la vez se le cierran más puertas al no poder mostrar una placa.
Pero no es lo único que cambia en esta serie, ahora pasamos de pura novela policíaca a novela negra. La narración cambia, ya no vemos a Bosch de lado, ahora la narración es en primera persona con él de protagonista. Lo cual me ha gustado mucho, le da otro aire, me imagino a los seguidores de Connelly cuando se publicó esta novela que habría división de opiniones. No sé cómo serán las siguientes, creo que continuará de esta manera porque Bosch ya no está en la policía, ahora es un detective privado y la pega más esa narración.
Por lo demás, se nota que esta serie hay que seguirla desde el principio y por orden. Nos encontramos con demasiados personajes de episodios pasados que vuelven, y no me refiero solo a los compañeros de Bosch. En esta aparece un agente que fue muy protagonista en 'Pasaje al paraíso', por no hablar del amor del detective.
No se disfruta tanto de esta sin haber leído la anterior. Otro aliciente más de enganche de la serie porque, aunque los casos sean nuevos cada vez, Bosch tiene relación con gente que aparecen y desaparecen en las novelas y a los que Connelly recurre para llenar la vida de su protagonista.
Otra buenísima novela de Connelly con su personaje estrella Harry Bosch que hace la novena.
En esta ocasión el detective se ve en la obligación moral de investigar un caso antiguo que está en punto muerto. A medida que avanza se da cuenta que hay gente que no quiere que siga con la investigación. Nada nuevo bajo el sol desde luego, lo que cambia es la posición de Bosch que va a entrar en el caso desde otra posición a la habitual.
En esta novela hay un cambio importante en la serie. Bosch ya no es policía, se ha retirado. Lo que quiere decir que es más libre de hacer lo que quiera y a la vez se le cierran más puertas al no poder mostrar una placa.
Pero no es lo único que cambia en esta serie, ahora pasamos de pura novela policíaca a novela negra. La narración cambia, ya no vemos a Bosch de lado, ahora la narración es en primera persona con él de protagonista. Lo cual me ha gustado mucho, le da otro aire, me imagino a los seguidores de Connelly cuando se publicó esta novela que habría división de opiniones. No sé cómo serán las siguientes, creo que continuará de esta manera porque Bosch ya no está en la policía, ahora es un detective privado y la pega más esa narración.
Por lo demás, se nota que esta serie hay que seguirla desde el principio y por orden. Nos encontramos con demasiados personajes de episodios pasados que vuelven, y no me refiero solo a los compañeros de Bosch. En esta aparece un agente que fue muy protagonista en 'Pasaje al paraíso', por no hablar del amor del detective.
No se disfruta tanto de esta sin haber leído la anterior. Otro aliciente más de enganche de la serie porque, aunque los casos sean nuevos cada vez, Bosch tiene relación con gente que aparecen y desaparecen en las novelas y a los que Connelly recurre para llenar la vida de su protagonista.
January 28, 2023
বছরের প্রথম বই, তাও নিজের অনুবাদে পড়লাম। তাহলে বোঝাই যায় বই পড়ার অবস্থা কেমন!
যেটাই হোক, কনেলি গল্প বলার এক্সপার্ট লস্ট লাইটে আবারও প্রমাণ করলেন। পুরোটাই ছিল রোলার কোস্টার রাইড, আর কনেলির কাজগুলোর মধ্যে এটার তদন্ত প্রক্রিয়াই সম্ভবত সেরা। আর যারা টুইস্ট খোঁজেন তাদের জন্য রয়েছে একটা দারুণ টুইস্ট, যা মোটেও প্রেডিক্টেবল না। সবমিলিয়ে দারুণ একটা বই হতে চলেছে বাংলাদেশের অনুবাদপ্রেমীদের জন্য।
যেটাই হোক, কনেলি গল্প বলার এক্সপার্ট লস্ট লাইটে আবারও প্রমাণ করলেন। পুরোটাই ছিল রোলার কোস্টার রাইড, আর কনেলির কাজগুলোর মধ্যে এটার তদন্ত প্রক্রিয়াই সম্ভবত সেরা। আর যারা টুইস্ট খোঁজেন তাদের জন্য রয়েছে একটা দারুণ টুইস্ট, যা মোটেও প্রেডিক্টেবল না। সবমিলিয়ে দারুণ একটা বই হতে চলেছে বাংলাদেশের অনুবাদপ্রেমীদের জন্য।
January 18, 2023
I almost always get halfway into Bosch books and think, okay, this is a police procedural, it’s better than most, but it's a three-star book, but I almost always end up four-starring them, after he makes things come together, getting the action right, and taking my breath away with something he does no one else does. I was thinking about detective and mystery stories a bit as I am reading them more now and can see the general attraction, especially in an Age of Anxiety; in most literary fiction, there’s less resolution, but in detective fiction, you get these explanations in the end from the detective to show how everything makes sense, all it’s all interconnected. From chaos to a kind of comfort.
In this, #9 of the Hieronymous Bosch series, Bosch is retired, learning to play the sax, (and there’s so much jazz in this book!), but he has what all retired detectives have, that unsolved case that he must solve. A murdered FBI detective, and he thinks it must be tied to a 2 million dollar heist (as in almost all of these books, they will be). The book is framed by this quote and meditation on it:
“There is no end of things in the heart. . . she understood it to mean that if you took something to heart, really brought it inside those red velvet folds, then it would always be there for you. No matter what happened, it would be there waiting. She said this could mean a person, a place, a dream. A mission. Anything sacred. She told me that it is all connected in those secret folds. Always. It is all part of the same and will always be there, carrying the same beat as your heart.”
This applies to Bosch’s ex Eleanor Wish, who left him to be a pro card player in Vegas, and to his work, to want to make things right, do the right thing, which contrasts in this 2003 book with descriptions of some post-9/11 police brutality. BAM, they call it, by any means. Bosch himself feels hampered by bureaucratic rules, but he is never needlessly brutal (though he can be pushed to the brink, too).
In the end, things surprised me in a couple ways, as Connelly knows how to do.
Patricia, by Art Pepper (one of Bosch’s favorite jazz musicians, about Pepper’s daughter, which plays into this book):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ml0YQ...
In this, #9 of the Hieronymous Bosch series, Bosch is retired, learning to play the sax, (and there’s so much jazz in this book!), but he has what all retired detectives have, that unsolved case that he must solve. A murdered FBI detective, and he thinks it must be tied to a 2 million dollar heist (as in almost all of these books, they will be). The book is framed by this quote and meditation on it:
“There is no end of things in the heart. . . she understood it to mean that if you took something to heart, really brought it inside those red velvet folds, then it would always be there for you. No matter what happened, it would be there waiting. She said this could mean a person, a place, a dream. A mission. Anything sacred. She told me that it is all connected in those secret folds. Always. It is all part of the same and will always be there, carrying the same beat as your heart.”
This applies to Bosch’s ex Eleanor Wish, who left him to be a pro card player in Vegas, and to his work, to want to make things right, do the right thing, which contrasts in this 2003 book with descriptions of some post-9/11 police brutality. BAM, they call it, by any means. Bosch himself feels hampered by bureaucratic rules, but he is never needlessly brutal (though he can be pushed to the brink, too).
In the end, things surprised me in a couple ways, as Connelly knows how to do.
Patricia, by Art Pepper (one of Bosch’s favorite jazz musicians, about Pepper’s daughter, which plays into this book):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ml0YQ...
October 28, 2024
Not one of the Bosch series has earned less than four stars from me but this entry managed to earn a fifth star for a few unexpected twists in both Bosch’s investigation and his personal life.
The ninth book of this superbly written crime procedural finds Bosch on the other side of the LAPD, FBI, Homeland Security and a few really bad guys. No rest for this retired detective. Haunted by a case that got away, Bosch pulls out all the stops to solve the murder of a young movie production assistant. An especially bittersweet thread features an LAPD colleague who was shot in the line of duty and struggles to find relevance in his life.
Note to Amazon— this book would make a great fourth (or fifth) season!
(Reviewed 2/7/19)
The ninth book of this superbly written crime procedural finds Bosch on the other side of the LAPD, FBI, Homeland Security and a few really bad guys. No rest for this retired detective. Haunted by a case that got away, Bosch pulls out all the stops to solve the murder of a young movie production assistant. An especially bittersweet thread features an LAPD colleague who was shot in the line of duty and struggles to find relevance in his life.
Note to Amazon— this book would make a great fourth (or fifth) season!
(Reviewed 2/7/19)
October 29, 2016
Harry Bosch is about eight months into his retirement from the LAPD and decides to do some follow up on one of his old cold cases. It's one that's haunted him because of the way the victim, Angella Benton, was found at the scene. It didn't take long for him to realize that he opened the proverbial "Pandora's Box" after a chance move put him in the crosshairs of several law enforcement agencies. You know Harry...that just energized him.
This was the first story in the series where Harry's narrating the story in first person. I must admit being rattled a bit because I no longer get to guess what's behind his perspectives and behaviors because he's telling me! The best part of this story is getting to know him better at a whole new level.
The case was really interesting with a few shocking twists, some I saw coming and others catching me flatfooted. The new narrator, Len Cariou, did a very good job and I think I can get used to him. I had a hard time putting this one down and I'm dying to get into the next book.
This was the first story in the series where Harry's narrating the story in first person. I must admit being rattled a bit because I no longer get to guess what's behind his perspectives and behaviors because he's telling me! The best part of this story is getting to know him better at a whole new level.
The case was really interesting with a few shocking twists, some I saw coming and others catching me flatfooted. The new narrator, Len Cariou, did a very good job and I think I can get used to him. I had a hard time putting this one down and I'm dying to get into the next book.
April 24, 2023
Another great one in the Harry Bosch series. It threw me for a loop because it's written in 1st person. I was not expecting that. Until now we've only encountered Harry in 3rd person. It sounds strange in 1st person and although it allowed us some insight into what Harry is feeling, it did not give us insight into his analytical mind as he was solving the case. So, a bit disappointing that way.
In this one, it has been several months since Harry has retired from the LAPD. He's now a Private Investigator and decides to take up the cold case of a murdered production assistant, four years previous. His investigation brings his into contact with other ex-LAPD detectives, the FBI, Homeland Security and his ex-wife, professional poker player Eleanor Wish.
True to form Harry eventually fits together all the pieces that he missed last time around. Harry as a P.I. gets a solid ending. Harry, as a man gets an unexpected ending that should change the tone of all future Harry Bosch books.
The narrator, Len Cariou, was great. The music in between chapters was terrible. 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5.
Now I'm out of Audible credits so I'll have to listen to non-Bosch books for the next 3+ weeks.
In this one, it has been several months since Harry has retired from the LAPD. He's now a Private Investigator and decides to take up the cold case of a murdered production assistant, four years previous. His investigation brings his into contact with other ex-LAPD detectives, the FBI, Homeland Security and his ex-wife, professional poker player Eleanor Wish.
True to form Harry eventually fits together all the pieces that he missed last time around. Harry as a P.I. gets a solid ending. Harry, as a man gets an unexpected ending that should change the tone of all future Harry Bosch books.
The narrator, Len Cariou, was great. The music in between chapters was terrible. 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5.
Now I'm out of Audible credits so I'll have to listen to non-Bosch books for the next 3+ weeks.
June 27, 2020
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.
And, the single most extraordinary passage in all of Michael's fine work
“There is no end of things in the heart.
Somebody once told me that. She said it came from a poem she believed in. She understood it to mean that if you took something to heart, really brought it inside those red velvet folds, then it would always be there for you. No matter what happened, it would be there waiting. She said this could mean a person, a place, a dream. A mission. Anything sacred. She told me that it is all connected in those secret folds. Always. It is all part of the same and will always be there, carrying the same beat as your heart.
I am fifty-two-years old and I believe it. At night when I try to sleep but can’t, that is when I know it. It is when all the pathways seem to connect and I see the people I have loved and hated and helped and hurt. I see the hands that reach for me. I hear the beat and see and understand what I must do. I know my mission and I know there is no turning away or turning back. And it is in those moments that I know there is no end of things in the heart.”
― Michael Connelly, Lost Light
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.
And, the single most extraordinary passage in all of Michael's fine work
“There is no end of things in the heart.
Somebody once told me that. She said it came from a poem she believed in. She understood it to mean that if you took something to heart, really brought it inside those red velvet folds, then it would always be there for you. No matter what happened, it would be there waiting. She said this could mean a person, a place, a dream. A mission. Anything sacred. She told me that it is all connected in those secret folds. Always. It is all part of the same and will always be there, carrying the same beat as your heart.
I am fifty-two-years old and I believe it. At night when I try to sleep but can’t, that is when I know it. It is when all the pathways seem to connect and I see the people I have loved and hated and helped and hurt. I see the hands that reach for me. I hear the beat and see and understand what I must do. I know my mission and I know there is no turning away or turning back. And it is in those moments that I know there is no end of things in the heart.”
― Michael Connelly, Lost Light
June 15, 2016
Another good addition to the series & interesting since he's now retired. I wondered what he'd do & this wasn't a surprise. Well, his actions weren't, but the mystery was in many ways. It was very good, twisty, & expertly set up. Each sharp corner had a good foundation that made sense afterward. They usually weren't telegraphed too obviously, though. A couple were just inevitable & there were a couple of coincidences, but they were very well done.
The Narrows comes next. I look forward to listening to it.
Thanks to Jonetta (see the comments below) I've come up with a more complete list for reading this series. I went back & read a couple of the short stories in order, too. I HIGHLY recommend reading this series as listed below. I can only vouch for it to this point, but it does allow the best immersion into the HB universe. (If you have read the series & have suggestions for a different order, please let me know.)
Connelly, Michael - Reading Order
01 - The Black Echo (Harry Bosch #1), 1992
02 - The Black Ice (Harry Bosch #2), 1993
03 - The Concrete Blonde (Harry Bosch #3), 1994
04 - The Last Coyote(Harry Bosch #4), 1995
05 - The Poet (Jack McEvoy #1), (1996)
06 - Trunk Music (Harry Bosch #5), 1997
07 - Blood Work (Terry McCaleb #1), 1998
08 - Angels Flight (Harry Bosch #6), 1999
09 - Void Moon (Cassie Black #1) (2000)
9.5 - Cielo Azul(2001) in Suicide Run, 2011 Moved because
10 - A Darkness More Than Night (Harry Bosch #7, also Terry McCaleb #2), 2001
11 - City Of Bones (Harry Bosch #8), 2002
11.5 - Christmas Even (2002) in Angle of Investigation (2011)
12 - Lost Light (Harry Bosch #9), 2003
13 - The Narrows (Harry Bosch #10), 2004
14 - The Lincoln Lawyer (Mickey Haller #1), 2004
15 - The Closers (Harry Bosch #11), 2005
15.5 - Angle of Investigation (2005) in Angle of Investigation (2011)
16 - Echo Park (Harry Bosch #12), 2006
17 - The Overlook (Harry Bosch #13), 2007
17.4 - Father’s Day (2007) in Angle of Investigation (2011)
17.5 - Suicide Run(2007) in Suicide Run, 2011
17.6 - One Dollar Jackpot(2007) in Suicide Run, 2011
18 - The Brass Verdict (Harry Bosch #14, also Mickey Haller #2), 2008
19 - Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch #15), 2009
20 - The Scarecrow (Jack McEvoy #2), 2009
21 - The Reversal (Mickey Haller #3), 2010 (Harry Bosch #16,
21.5 - The Perfect Triangle, 2010 Mickey Haller short story
21.6 - Blue on Black - Harry Bosch Short Story 2010
22 - The Fifth Witness (Mickey Haller #4 – Harry Bosch appeared only briefly, 2011)
23 - The Drop (Harry Bosch #17), 2011
23.5 - Blood Washes Off, 2011 - Harry Bosch Short Story
24 - The Black Box (Harry Bosch #18), 2012
24.5 - A Fine Mist of Blood, 2012 - Harry Bosch Short Story
24.6 - The Safe Man (2012) (SS)
25 - The Gods of Guilt (Mickey Haller #5 – Harry Bosch appeared only briefly), 2013
25.5 - Switchblade, 2014 (Harry Bosch #18.5)
26 - The Burning Room (Harry Bosch #19), 2014
26.1 - The Crooked Man, 2014 (Harry Bosch short story, published in In The Company of Sherlock Holmes)
27 - The Crossing (Harry Bosch #20), 2015
28 - The Wrong Side of Goodbye (Harry Bosch #21), 2016
The Narrows comes next. I look forward to listening to it.
Thanks to Jonetta (see the comments below) I've come up with a more complete list for reading this series. I went back & read a couple of the short stories in order, too. I HIGHLY recommend reading this series as listed below. I can only vouch for it to this point, but it does allow the best immersion into the HB universe. (If you have read the series & have suggestions for a different order, please let me know.)
Connelly, Michael - Reading Order
01 - The Black Echo (Harry Bosch #1), 1992
02 - The Black Ice (Harry Bosch #2), 1993
03 - The Concrete Blonde (Harry Bosch #3), 1994
04 - The Last Coyote(Harry Bosch #4), 1995
05 - The Poet (Jack McEvoy #1), (1996)
06 - Trunk Music (Harry Bosch #5), 1997
07 - Blood Work (Terry McCaleb #1), 1998
08 - Angels Flight (Harry Bosch #6), 1999
09 - Void Moon (Cassie Black #1) (2000)
9.5 - Cielo Azul(2001) in Suicide Run, 2011 Moved because
10 - A Darkness More Than Night (Harry Bosch #7, also Terry McCaleb #2), 2001
11 - City Of Bones (Harry Bosch #8), 2002
11.5 - Christmas Even (2002) in Angle of Investigation (2011)
12 - Lost Light (Harry Bosch #9), 2003
13 - The Narrows (Harry Bosch #10), 2004
14 - The Lincoln Lawyer (Mickey Haller #1), 2004
15 - The Closers (Harry Bosch #11), 2005
15.5 - Angle of Investigation (2005) in Angle of Investigation (2011)
16 - Echo Park (Harry Bosch #12), 2006
17 - The Overlook (Harry Bosch #13), 2007
17.4 - Father’s Day (2007) in Angle of Investigation (2011)
17.5 - Suicide Run(2007) in Suicide Run, 2011
17.6 - One Dollar Jackpot(2007) in Suicide Run, 2011
18 - The Brass Verdict (Harry Bosch #14, also Mickey Haller #2), 2008
19 - Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch #15), 2009
20 - The Scarecrow (Jack McEvoy #2), 2009
21 - The Reversal (Mickey Haller #3), 2010 (Harry Bosch #16,
21.5 - The Perfect Triangle, 2010 Mickey Haller short story
21.6 - Blue on Black - Harry Bosch Short Story 2010
22 - The Fifth Witness (Mickey Haller #4 – Harry Bosch appeared only briefly, 2011)
23 - The Drop (Harry Bosch #17), 2011
23.5 - Blood Washes Off, 2011 - Harry Bosch Short Story
24 - The Black Box (Harry Bosch #18), 2012
24.5 - A Fine Mist of Blood, 2012 - Harry Bosch Short Story
24.6 - The Safe Man (2012) (SS)
25 - The Gods of Guilt (Mickey Haller #5 – Harry Bosch appeared only briefly), 2013
25.5 - Switchblade, 2014 (Harry Bosch #18.5)
26 - The Burning Room (Harry Bosch #19), 2014
26.1 - The Crooked Man, 2014 (Harry Bosch short story, published in In The Company of Sherlock Holmes)
27 - The Crossing (Harry Bosch #20), 2015
28 - The Wrong Side of Goodbye (Harry Bosch #21), 2016
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May 1, 2025
4-Stars Again for Harry Bosch #9 - Lost Light
"I liked This Early Harry Bosch Story a Lot!"
Like millions of other crime/mystery readers, I am a total fan of Michael Connelly's writing and of the inimitable character of Harry Bosch.
I started reading Harry Bosch in 1992 when Michael Connelly released "#1, Black Echo" (3-Stars) and in 1993 "#2, Black Ice" (4-Stars) and I have read and/or heard every Harry Bosch book more than once and a few more than twice. I am yet to watch more than two episodes of the TV series, but I did enjoy them and in particular Titus Welliver's excellent interpretation of the Bosch character. Welliver is the perfect narrator of the later books and as I listen to the earlier books, I see and hear Titus Welliver as Bosch.
Late in 2024 I decided to re-hear a selection of the early Harry Bosch novels. I commenced this plan with "#3, The Concrete Blonde" (5-Stars), followed by "#4, The Last Coyote" (5-Stars), then "#5, Trunk Music" (4-Stars). I ended the re-listen as I had not intended it to be a 'binge' and continued my usual program.
In April 2025 I recommenced my re-hearing plan. I skipped "#6, Angels Flight" because I could not tolerate the subject matter again (vile abuse of children) and I have now re-heard "#8, City of Bones" (4-Stars), "#9 Lost Light" (4-Stars) and I am 30% into "#10, The Narrows", with "#7, A Darkness More Than Light" ready to hear when I have finished "The Narrows"... or not🤩.
There is no doubt that I am an absolute fan of writing of Michael Connelly and the activities Harry Bosch.
Audiobook: 09:20 Hours - Narrator: Len Cariou
Extracts from My Listening Activity:
April 26, 2025 @ 7.0%: "Harry is following up on an old, unsolved case on his own and as yet he has not re-connected with his department since his retirement."
April 28, 2025 @ 80.0%: "Great listening while I was confined to bed. The story dragged a bit at times, but served very well as a 'retired-detective-procedural'. I'll finish this today, but not before I load up "Harry Bosch #10, The Narrows" to continue the series."
April 30, 2025 @ 99.0% : "Another good listen to an early Harry Bosch novel. 4-Stars + review to come."
"I liked This Early Harry Bosch Story a Lot!"
Like millions of other crime/mystery readers, I am a total fan of Michael Connelly's writing and of the inimitable character of Harry Bosch.
I started reading Harry Bosch in 1992 when Michael Connelly released "#1, Black Echo" (3-Stars) and in 1993 "#2, Black Ice" (4-Stars) and I have read and/or heard every Harry Bosch book more than once and a few more than twice. I am yet to watch more than two episodes of the TV series, but I did enjoy them and in particular Titus Welliver's excellent interpretation of the Bosch character. Welliver is the perfect narrator of the later books and as I listen to the earlier books, I see and hear Titus Welliver as Bosch.
Late in 2024 I decided to re-hear a selection of the early Harry Bosch novels. I commenced this plan with "#3, The Concrete Blonde" (5-Stars), followed by "#4, The Last Coyote" (5-Stars), then "#5, Trunk Music" (4-Stars). I ended the re-listen as I had not intended it to be a 'binge' and continued my usual program.
In April 2025 I recommenced my re-hearing plan. I skipped "#6, Angels Flight" because I could not tolerate the subject matter again (vile abuse of children) and I have now re-heard "#8, City of Bones" (4-Stars), "#9 Lost Light" (4-Stars) and I am 30% into "#10, The Narrows", with "#7, A Darkness More Than Light" ready to hear when I have finished "The Narrows"... or not🤩.
There is no doubt that I am an absolute fan of writing of Michael Connelly and the activities Harry Bosch.
Audiobook: 09:20 Hours - Narrator: Len Cariou
Extracts from My Listening Activity:
April 26, 2025 @ 7.0%: "Harry is following up on an old, unsolved case on his own and as yet he has not re-connected with his department since his retirement."
April 28, 2025 @ 80.0%: "Great listening while I was confined to bed. The story dragged a bit at times, but served very well as a 'retired-detective-procedural'. I'll finish this today, but not before I load up "Harry Bosch #10, The Narrows" to continue the series."
April 30, 2025 @ 99.0% : "Another good listen to an early Harry Bosch novel. 4-Stars + review to come."
July 15, 2015
The Hook. - Happily enjoying my way through the Harry Bosch series
The Line “There is no end of things in the heart.” the opening line and one that Bosch says someone once said to him. My search attributes it to Ezra Pound in Exile’s Letter. It’s just a beautiful quote.
The Sinker - Lost Light reeled me in quite quickly. There’s something about this one. It got under my skin in a good way. Maybe it’s due to the two cold cases Bosch encounters. The first is the death of Angela Benton, a case Harry worked on years ago that he couldn’t let go. This investigation leads right into another cold case, a missing federal agent. Maybe it’s that there’s quadriplegic, a cop who was injured in the line of duty and some question whether his wife is abusing him. Maybe it’s the appearance of Bosch’s ex-wife, Eleanor Wish (there’s always hope) and something she’s holding back. Maybe it’s just darn good storytelling by Connelly, who always gets the feel of LA right, reveals a bit in each outing about Bosch, and who brings the man to life with his love of art, books and jazz. You can find the playlist Michael Connelly’s Website Extras.
This outing finds the fifty-two year old Bosch having resigned, sick of the politics and day to day grind. I was a bit surprised by this but it works. One scene I really related to was how Bosch felt that he is no longer wearing the badge. You do a job for 25+ years and then you’re on the outside looking in.
“I no longer carried a badge but I still carried a thousand different habits and instincts that came with the badge. Like a reformed smoker whose hand digs inside his shirt pocket for the fix that is no longer there, I constantly found myself reaching for the comfort of my badge. For almost thirty years of my life I had been part of an organization that promoted isolation from the outside world that cultivated the “us vs. them” ethic. I had been part of the cult of the blue religion and now I was out, excommunicated, part of the outside world. I had no badge. I was no longer part of us. I was one of them.”
I also enjoyed hearing from “Kiz” Rider again. In addition the bit part character, Sugar Ray McKenzie, a former jazz performer is an interesting touch. Now living in a retirement home he’s teaching Bosch to play the saxophone. The story of that instrument is a nice addition to the story.
Nothing brings to mind the challenges of reading or listening like a series. I started out reading the series and have a certain picture of the characters in my head, particularly Bosch. The first I listened to was narrated by Dick Hill and that was good, not quite Bosch to me, but good. Then the publisher switched narrators to Len Cariou. At first I wasn’t buying it but now he’s got my ear. From what I can determine Cariou continues the series. I like his narration; he’s now Bosch for me. He paces well and changes his voice just enough so you know who’s talking. I honestly never associated Cariou with the role of Henry Reagan, the Commissioner’s dad. Fingers crossed that the publisher leaves well enough alone and Cariou carries on. Add to my confusion the Amazon series and you gunk up my picture of Bosch though I have the varied media. Another plus in the audio published by Hachette is that each segment begins and ends with a bit of jazz.
The Line “There is no end of things in the heart.” the opening line and one that Bosch says someone once said to him. My search attributes it to Ezra Pound in Exile’s Letter. It’s just a beautiful quote.
The Sinker - Lost Light reeled me in quite quickly. There’s something about this one. It got under my skin in a good way. Maybe it’s due to the two cold cases Bosch encounters. The first is the death of Angela Benton, a case Harry worked on years ago that he couldn’t let go. This investigation leads right into another cold case, a missing federal agent. Maybe it’s that there’s quadriplegic, a cop who was injured in the line of duty and some question whether his wife is abusing him. Maybe it’s the appearance of Bosch’s ex-wife, Eleanor Wish (there’s always hope) and something she’s holding back. Maybe it’s just darn good storytelling by Connelly, who always gets the feel of LA right, reveals a bit in each outing about Bosch, and who brings the man to life with his love of art, books and jazz. You can find the playlist Michael Connelly’s Website Extras.
This outing finds the fifty-two year old Bosch having resigned, sick of the politics and day to day grind. I was a bit surprised by this but it works. One scene I really related to was how Bosch felt that he is no longer wearing the badge. You do a job for 25+ years and then you’re on the outside looking in.
“I no longer carried a badge but I still carried a thousand different habits and instincts that came with the badge. Like a reformed smoker whose hand digs inside his shirt pocket for the fix that is no longer there, I constantly found myself reaching for the comfort of my badge. For almost thirty years of my life I had been part of an organization that promoted isolation from the outside world that cultivated the “us vs. them” ethic. I had been part of the cult of the blue religion and now I was out, excommunicated, part of the outside world. I had no badge. I was no longer part of us. I was one of them.”
I also enjoyed hearing from “Kiz” Rider again. In addition the bit part character, Sugar Ray McKenzie, a former jazz performer is an interesting touch. Now living in a retirement home he’s teaching Bosch to play the saxophone. The story of that instrument is a nice addition to the story.
Nothing brings to mind the challenges of reading or listening like a series. I started out reading the series and have a certain picture of the characters in my head, particularly Bosch. The first I listened to was narrated by Dick Hill and that was good, not quite Bosch to me, but good. Then the publisher switched narrators to Len Cariou. At first I wasn’t buying it but now he’s got my ear. From what I can determine Cariou continues the series. I like his narration; he’s now Bosch for me. He paces well and changes his voice just enough so you know who’s talking. I honestly never associated Cariou with the role of Henry Reagan, the Commissioner’s dad. Fingers crossed that the publisher leaves well enough alone and Cariou carries on. Add to my confusion the Amazon series and you gunk up my picture of Bosch though I have the varied media. Another plus in the audio published by Hachette is that each segment begins and ends with a bit of jazz.
January 13, 2025
My wife and I have been binge-watching certain shows that we never really had the chance to watch pre-coronavirus, for a variety of reasons. One Amazon Prime show that we just binge-watched (six seasons in three months—-a personal record) is “Bosch”, based on the novels by Michael Connelly.
Titus Welliver is superb as the taciturn, grumpy-but-likable asshole, L.A.P.D. homicide detective Heironymous “Harry” Bosch. He doesn’t fit the bill of the average action movie hero, but Connelly’s character, as he wrote him, never did either.
The show is an excellent cop show, if not one of the best I’ve ever seen. It’s police procedural at its most realistic, probably. It’s definitely one of the smartest cop shows ever written (Connelly is credited as an executive producer). Each season covers one or two cases, based (somewhat loosely) on one or two of Connelly’s books. Don’t watch the show expecting everything to match up with what you know about Bosch and his world. There are a lot of differences between the novels and the show, and not all of them may be acceptable to those readers who are purists.
If the show succeeds in anything, it’s reminding the viewers who are familiar with Connelly’s novels how damn good Connelly’s novels are. Lucky for me, I haven’t even come close to reading all of them.
I haven’t read one in a while, but I was reading them in order. “Lost Light” is the ninth book in the Bosch series.
Bosch has retired his badge. He’s a private detective now, which means he can, in some instances, do more than he could with a badge. In other cases, he must rely on his allies and connections still working in the L.A.P.D. Thankfully, he didn’t burn all his bridges when he left.
As a private dick, he can also choose his cases. The one he chooses is a cold case that he worked on years ago, the one that got away. It’s always bothered him that Angela Benton’s murderer was never caught. He is still haunted by her crime scene photos, especially the way her hands were placed, almost as if in prayer for her life.
Bosch’s investigation, as they always seem to do, leads him into very unexpected places. Benton, a production assistant for a big-budget Hollywood movie was mysteriously murdered days before armed men got away with $2 million from a movie set. Sadly, the heist took priority over Benton’s murder, and while the original investigators considered the possibility that the crimes were related, very little got done. It didn’t help that the two lead detectives on the case (neither of which were Bosch) were eating lunch at a diner that got held up by armed robbers. One of the detectives was killed in action, the other became a quadriplegic. Wrong place at the wrong time.
Years later, Bosch has picked the case up where it was left off, and someone from high up the chain of command doesn’t want him on it. Soon, a rogue—-and quite possibly psychotic—-FBI agent is breathing down Bosch’s neck to leave it alone. Bosch, of course, doesn’t take no for an answer.
As expected, “Lost Light” veers into some twisty territory, much like the zig-zagging roads of Mulholland Drive. This is contemporary noir at its finest.
Titus Welliver is superb as the taciturn, grumpy-but-likable asshole, L.A.P.D. homicide detective Heironymous “Harry” Bosch. He doesn’t fit the bill of the average action movie hero, but Connelly’s character, as he wrote him, never did either.
The show is an excellent cop show, if not one of the best I’ve ever seen. It’s police procedural at its most realistic, probably. It’s definitely one of the smartest cop shows ever written (Connelly is credited as an executive producer). Each season covers one or two cases, based (somewhat loosely) on one or two of Connelly’s books. Don’t watch the show expecting everything to match up with what you know about Bosch and his world. There are a lot of differences between the novels and the show, and not all of them may be acceptable to those readers who are purists.
If the show succeeds in anything, it’s reminding the viewers who are familiar with Connelly’s novels how damn good Connelly’s novels are. Lucky for me, I haven’t even come close to reading all of them.
I haven’t read one in a while, but I was reading them in order. “Lost Light” is the ninth book in the Bosch series.
Bosch has retired his badge. He’s a private detective now, which means he can, in some instances, do more than he could with a badge. In other cases, he must rely on his allies and connections still working in the L.A.P.D. Thankfully, he didn’t burn all his bridges when he left.
As a private dick, he can also choose his cases. The one he chooses is a cold case that he worked on years ago, the one that got away. It’s always bothered him that Angela Benton’s murderer was never caught. He is still haunted by her crime scene photos, especially the way her hands were placed, almost as if in prayer for her life.
Bosch’s investigation, as they always seem to do, leads him into very unexpected places. Benton, a production assistant for a big-budget Hollywood movie was mysteriously murdered days before armed men got away with $2 million from a movie set. Sadly, the heist took priority over Benton’s murder, and while the original investigators considered the possibility that the crimes were related, very little got done. It didn’t help that the two lead detectives on the case (neither of which were Bosch) were eating lunch at a diner that got held up by armed robbers. One of the detectives was killed in action, the other became a quadriplegic. Wrong place at the wrong time.
Years later, Bosch has picked the case up where it was left off, and someone from high up the chain of command doesn’t want him on it. Soon, a rogue—-and quite possibly psychotic—-FBI agent is breathing down Bosch’s neck to leave it alone. Bosch, of course, doesn’t take no for an answer.
As expected, “Lost Light” veers into some twisty territory, much like the zig-zagging roads of Mulholland Drive. This is contemporary noir at its finest.
October 3, 2017
Harry Bosch, Private Eye??? Really??? No more Detective Three Harry Bosch of the LAPD??? Hard to believe for us long-time readers of the series, but I guess we have to accept it.
After twenty-eight years with the LAPD, Harry Bosch has hung up his shield. In the last book, City of Bones, Harry left his badge and gun and walked out of the police station with the intention of retiring, but I never figured for a moment that it would stick. I felt sure he'd be back in the saddle in the next book. Well, he is, but it's a different horse.
As this book begins, Harry is fifty-two and has been retired for a couple of years, and he's getting a bit antsy. When he left the LAPD, he took some of his case files with him - cold cases that he hadn't been able to solve. They haunt him. His mission in life has always been to be an advocate for the murder victims, to give them a measure of justice. It rankles that in these particular cases he was not able to provide that justice.
One case especially rankles. A young woman named Angella Benton, a production assistant for a movie studio, was murdered four years previously and Bosch is still haunted by the memory of her defiled body lying on the tiles of the entry to her apartment building. Needing something to occupy his mind and his time, he decides to do a re-investigation of the case from the beginning and finally put the murderer away.
This story is told in first person voice, so we are present in Harry's mind, privy to his thoughts, throughout. It's an interesting and somewhat different perspective from the previous books.
As we follow Harry's thought processes, we learn pretty quickly that something doesn't quite add up. Something about the original investigation seems off. He goes to visit one of the cops who ran the investigation after Harry was taken off of it. The former cop is now a paraplegic having been injured in a shootout at a bar that happened just a couple of months after Angella was murdered.
Other coincidences begin to rear their heads. Two million dollars was stolen from the set of a movie that was being produced by the movie studio where Angella had worked. This, too, happened within weeks of her death.
Moreover, an FBI agent who handled financial inquiries and had been checking the serial numbers of the bank notes that were stolen disappeared around that time. She has never been found, either dead or alive.
It's all just too much coincidence and Harry's gut tells him that it really isn't.
As usual, his instincts are correct. He begins to link the various crimes together and eventually finds more than he bargained for. But most importantly in the world of Harry Bosch, he finds some justice for the murdered.
This was a very interesting entry in this series. Getting to see Harry from a different perspective added even more depth to a character who was already fully developed in my mind. He had been sick of the politics and the mind-numbing bureaucratic grind of the police department, but he had done that job for more than 25 years and it was, in many ways, his home. In fact, on many days it seemed like all he had going in his life. Now, he's on the outside looking in, and even though he remains true to his mission, his calling in life, he has to accomplish it without the protection of the badge. It's a strange new world for him. And for us.
One thing Harry hasn't lost is his contacts. There's his former partner Kiz Rider who plays a role in his new investigation. There's Roy Lindell, the FBI agent he had worked with before. And there is his former wife, Eleanor Wish, the former FBI agent who now makes a living gambling in Las Vegas. Harry still cares for her and harbors hopes that he might be able to get back with her. For her part, she seems to be hiding something from him. Harry and we don't learn what it is until the end.
Michael Connelly is just excellent at putting his plots together, tossing out clues along the way, and making us see and empathize with his characters. Not only Harry, but even the minor characters. Maybe more important to these stories, he has a real feel for Los Angeles, for the checkered history of the LAPD, and for the bureaucratic inter-wrangling that goes on between different law enforcement agencies, in this case the FBI and the police.
Lastly, and most importantly, he has a feel for the English language. It is a pleasure to read the words that he writes.
After twenty-eight years with the LAPD, Harry Bosch has hung up his shield. In the last book, City of Bones, Harry left his badge and gun and walked out of the police station with the intention of retiring, but I never figured for a moment that it would stick. I felt sure he'd be back in the saddle in the next book. Well, he is, but it's a different horse.
As this book begins, Harry is fifty-two and has been retired for a couple of years, and he's getting a bit antsy. When he left the LAPD, he took some of his case files with him - cold cases that he hadn't been able to solve. They haunt him. His mission in life has always been to be an advocate for the murder victims, to give them a measure of justice. It rankles that in these particular cases he was not able to provide that justice.
One case especially rankles. A young woman named Angella Benton, a production assistant for a movie studio, was murdered four years previously and Bosch is still haunted by the memory of her defiled body lying on the tiles of the entry to her apartment building. Needing something to occupy his mind and his time, he decides to do a re-investigation of the case from the beginning and finally put the murderer away.
This story is told in first person voice, so we are present in Harry's mind, privy to his thoughts, throughout. It's an interesting and somewhat different perspective from the previous books.
As we follow Harry's thought processes, we learn pretty quickly that something doesn't quite add up. Something about the original investigation seems off. He goes to visit one of the cops who ran the investigation after Harry was taken off of it. The former cop is now a paraplegic having been injured in a shootout at a bar that happened just a couple of months after Angella was murdered.
Other coincidences begin to rear their heads. Two million dollars was stolen from the set of a movie that was being produced by the movie studio where Angella had worked. This, too, happened within weeks of her death.
Moreover, an FBI agent who handled financial inquiries and had been checking the serial numbers of the bank notes that were stolen disappeared around that time. She has never been found, either dead or alive.
It's all just too much coincidence and Harry's gut tells him that it really isn't.
As usual, his instincts are correct. He begins to link the various crimes together and eventually finds more than he bargained for. But most importantly in the world of Harry Bosch, he finds some justice for the murdered.
This was a very interesting entry in this series. Getting to see Harry from a different perspective added even more depth to a character who was already fully developed in my mind. He had been sick of the politics and the mind-numbing bureaucratic grind of the police department, but he had done that job for more than 25 years and it was, in many ways, his home. In fact, on many days it seemed like all he had going in his life. Now, he's on the outside looking in, and even though he remains true to his mission, his calling in life, he has to accomplish it without the protection of the badge. It's a strange new world for him. And for us.
One thing Harry hasn't lost is his contacts. There's his former partner Kiz Rider who plays a role in his new investigation. There's Roy Lindell, the FBI agent he had worked with before. And there is his former wife, Eleanor Wish, the former FBI agent who now makes a living gambling in Las Vegas. Harry still cares for her and harbors hopes that he might be able to get back with her. For her part, she seems to be hiding something from him. Harry and we don't learn what it is until the end.
Michael Connelly is just excellent at putting his plots together, tossing out clues along the way, and making us see and empathize with his characters. Not only Harry, but even the minor characters. Maybe more important to these stories, he has a real feel for Los Angeles, for the checkered history of the LAPD, and for the bureaucratic inter-wrangling that goes on between different law enforcement agencies, in this case the FBI and the police.
Lastly, and most importantly, he has a feel for the English language. It is a pleasure to read the words that he writes.
December 7, 2022
This was an edgy Bosch thriller that I found to be a well rounded plot. In the aftermath of Bosch's abrupt retirement from the LAPD, Bosch found himself back in pursuit of an old unsolved murder that continues to remain in the back of his mind. It almost haunts him. Like most detectives, it's always that one unsolved case or cases that still remain close to them no matter how long ago they served in the department. With Bosch now doing private investigations, he is met with obstacle after obstacle that he never had to deal with when he was an active duty police detective. While there are some advantages to being a private citizen, there are of course disadvantages as well which Bosch learned the hard way.
While the focus was on an unsolved murder that is possibly linked to an old heist, Bosch is met with threats to include those close to him that are looking to derail him from his mission in finally closing this case. It is the very reason why Bosch wants to solve it because he knows that when the threats arise, he is getting closer to the truth.
This is that one case that only Bosch can solve as it could bring closure to a plethora of mysteries surrounding a murder linked to a Hollywood set. Just because Bosch is no longer on the force does not mean he has lost his skills and abilities to get to the truth even if it may come at the risk of his life! Lost Light is another great crime thriller that Bosch fans will be drawn into with a surprise at the very end. Highly recommended!
While the focus was on an unsolved murder that is possibly linked to an old heist, Bosch is met with threats to include those close to him that are looking to derail him from his mission in finally closing this case. It is the very reason why Bosch wants to solve it because he knows that when the threats arise, he is getting closer to the truth.
This is that one case that only Bosch can solve as it could bring closure to a plethora of mysteries surrounding a murder linked to a Hollywood set. Just because Bosch is no longer on the force does not mean he has lost his skills and abilities to get to the truth even if it may come at the risk of his life! Lost Light is another great crime thriller that Bosch fans will be drawn into with a surprise at the very end. Highly recommended!
July 31, 2023
খুব কম বই আছে যেগুলো পড়লে আমার মনে রেশ থাকে অনেকক্ষন। এই বইটা সেইরকম। অনন্য, অসাধারণ।
হ্যারি বশ রিটায়ার্ড করেছে এক বছর হলো। রিটায়ার্ড করলেও তার মনের ন্যায়বিচারক সত্ত্বাটি মরেনি। এ কারনেই চার বছর আগের অ্যাঞ্জেলা বেন্টন মার্ডার কেসের কথা সে ভুলতে পারে না। এদিকে বেন্টন হত্যার ঠিক চার দিনের মাথায় হলিউডের এক সিনেমার সেট থেকে ডাকাতি হয় দুই মিলিয়ন ডলার। দুইটা কেসই আজও এক রহস্য। বশ ঠিক করলো বেন্টন হত্যা রহস্য উন্মোচন করবে। কিন্তু একটা মামুলি হোমিসাইড কেস তাকে এমন এক প্রতিপক্ষের সামনে দাড় করালো যারা আইন আদালত, বিচার বিভাগ সবকিছুর উর্ধ্বে। কিন্তু হ্যারির সাথে পাঙ্গা নেয়াও এত সহজ না। এ যেন ব্যাজবিহীন ওয়ান ম্যান আর্মির একক যুদ্ধ।
সত্যি বলতে বইটা আমার এত ভালো লেগেছে যে কাল রাত একটা পর্যন্ত পড়ে শেষ করেছি। অসাধারণ কাহিনী, অসাধারণ হ্যারির swag, তীক্ষ্ণতা, বুদ্ধিমত্তা। এটা এ পর্যন্ত পড়া আমার কাছে হ্যারি বশের বেস্ট কেস। যার কথা বিশেষভাবে না বললেই নয় তিনি হলেন ইশরাক অর্ণব, দারুন অনুবাদ করেছেন। এই বইটা আরো বহুবার পড়ার ইচ্ছা রইলো।
হ্যারি বশ রিটায়ার্ড করেছে এক বছর হলো। রিটায়ার্ড করলেও তার মনের ন্যায়বিচারক সত্ত্বাটি মরেনি। এ কারনেই চার বছর আগের অ্যাঞ্জেলা বেন্টন মার্ডার কেসের কথা সে ভুলতে পারে না। এদিকে বেন্টন হত্যার ঠিক চার দিনের মাথায় হলিউডের এক সিনেমার সেট থেকে ডাকাতি হয় দুই মিলিয়ন ডলার। দুইটা কেসই আজও এক রহস্য। বশ ঠিক করলো বেন্টন হত্যা রহস্য উন্মোচন করবে। কিন্তু একটা মামুলি হোমিসাইড কেস তাকে এমন এক প্রতিপক্ষের সামনে দাড় করালো যারা আইন আদালত, বিচার বিভাগ সবকিছুর উর্ধ্বে। কিন্তু হ্যারির সাথে পাঙ্গা নেয়াও এত সহজ না। এ যেন ব্যাজবিহীন ওয়ান ম্যান আর্মির একক যুদ্ধ।
সত্যি বলতে বইটা আমার এত ভালো লেগেছে যে কাল রাত একটা পর্যন্ত পড়ে শেষ করেছি। অসাধারণ কাহিনী, অসাধারণ হ্যারির swag, তীক্ষ্ণতা, বুদ্ধিমত্তা। এটা এ পর্যন্ত পড়া আমার কাছে হ্যারি বশের বেস্ট কেস। যার কথা বিশেষভাবে না বললেই নয় তিনি হলেন ইশরাক অর্ণব, দারুন অনুবাদ করেছেন। এই বইটা আরো বহুবার পড়ার ইচ্ছা রইলো।
April 17, 2023
Number 9 in the series. Harry is retired and investigates a case he was taken off. Who murdered Angela? Who stole the $2 million? Where did the FBI disappear too? Once again Connolly weaves a story of several layers and pulls it all together. Very entertaining.
SPOILERS AHEAD
Follow the money is always a good lead. Angela’s murder was misdirection and it worked for four years. The shootout at Harry’s house resulting in the death of Milton the bully from the FBI and three of the robbers was classic Harry. The lone wolf with his own agenda. He then figured out who killed the FBI agent and how Cross the dirty cop now a paraplegic from the neck down murdered the FBI agent. The one flaw in the story for me is why the robbers didn’t wait a year and kill Cross as he was still a loose end. Still a good story.
SPOILERS AHEAD
Follow the money is always a good lead. Angela’s murder was misdirection and it worked for four years. The shootout at Harry’s house resulting in the death of Milton the bully from the FBI and three of the robbers was classic Harry. The lone wolf with his own agenda. He then figured out who killed the FBI agent and how Cross the dirty cop now a paraplegic from the neck down murdered the FBI agent. The one flaw in the story for me is why the robbers didn’t wait a year and kill Cross as he was still a loose end. Still a good story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 29, 2021
Wasn't a bad crime novel but got very lukewarm feelings for it. Not an series I'm interested in reading more of but I think I've got another Michael Connelly book on my shelf, so I'll give that a try to
February 8, 2022
Solid ninth novel of the always entertaining Harry Bosch series that hits all the usual notes and even adds a couple more to the score. Good stuff!!
4 Pavement Pounding Stars
4 Pavement Pounding Stars
January 12, 2021
Cada vez me gusta más esta saga... 4,5 estrellas. Aún me resisto a darle las 5, pero sólo por el entretenimiento que me ha dado bien podría asignárselas.
Novena entrega de la saga sobre Harry Bosch. Esta vez, después del drástico cambio en su vida con que acabó la última novela, vuelve a la carga con otro caso que tendrá varias ramificaciones y que acabarán a lo grande. FBI, terrorismo, robos, corrupción... no se ha quedado nada fuera de este libro.
Pero los cambios no se quedan sólo en la vida personal del protagonista. Michael Connelly pasa a narrar por primera vez en primera persona lo que vive Harry Bosch. Pasamos de tener un narrador omnipresente a tener que escuchar, ver y sentir todo desde el punto de vista de Harry, lo que le da un toque más personal a sus vivencias.
Son 400 páginas que se devoran. Muy recomendable, pero si uno quiere leerlo es mejor empezar desde el primero para ver y entender quiénes son algunos personajes y qué papel tuvieron en la vida del protagonista.
Novena entrega de la saga sobre Harry Bosch. Esta vez, después del drástico cambio en su vida con que acabó la última novela, vuelve a la carga con otro caso que tendrá varias ramificaciones y que acabarán a lo grande. FBI, terrorismo, robos, corrupción... no se ha quedado nada fuera de este libro.
Pero los cambios no se quedan sólo en la vida personal del protagonista. Michael Connelly pasa a narrar por primera vez en primera persona lo que vive Harry Bosch. Pasamos de tener un narrador omnipresente a tener que escuchar, ver y sentir todo desde el punto de vista de Harry, lo que le da un toque más personal a sus vivencias.
Son 400 páginas que se devoran. Muy recomendable, pero si uno quiere leerlo es mejor empezar desde el primero para ver y entender quiénes son algunos personajes y qué papel tuvieron en la vida del protagonista.
December 3, 2016
LOST LIGHT is book #9 in the Harry Bosch series. Harry is no longer with the L.A. Police Dept., but he is still pursuing a cold case, the murder four years ago of a young woman named Angella Benton. Without a badge, Bosch must undergo the humiliation of having doors slammed in his face. Benton was employed as a production assistant by Alexander Taylor, a producer of blockbuster action films, and the opening scene is a stunning display of Taylor's arrogance.
Harry was on the set of one of Taylor's productions following up on the Benton murder the day $2 million in hundred dollar bills was stolen by four armed gunmen. His team explored whether there might have been a connection between the heist and the murder but came up empty.
As always, the city of Los Angeles sets much of the mood of the story. Taylor's films aren't works of art. “But in Hollywood they were far more important than art. They were profitable. And that was the bottom line of all bottom lines.”(Location 45) The impersonal face of the city is reflected in Harry's tenuous relationships. Harry has been retired for only a short time, but already he is out of the loop. Kiz, whom he had mentored, is still angry at his abrupt departure from the force. She left Robbery-Homicide where the real action is, and holds an administrative job with headquarters, a step up the career ladder. She delivers a message to Harry from the top brass. Back off of the case. He's no longer on the force. Who exactly is this message from? Kiz won't say anymore; She's part of management now. Later, Harry muses: “Hollywood....It was a place of takers and users, of broken sidewalks and dreams. You build a city in the desert, water it with false hopes an false idols, and eventually this is what happens. The desert reclaims it, turns it arid, leaves it barren. Human tumbleweeds drift across its streets, predators hide in the rocks.” (Location 1712)
Harry finds himself at the intersection of two separate F.B.I. Investigations, one being conducted privately by Roy Lindell, a character we have previously encountered in TRUNK MUSIC, and one being conducted by a Homeland Security unit whose self-righteous activities are shrouded in secrecy and unimpeded by legal restraints.
At one point, Harry remarks that his investigation is like a homecoming reunion of old friends. It's an ironic statement that might have been voiced by Connelly's authorial personal. The gathering in this book includes Keisha Russell, a reporter for the L.A. Times; and Eleanor, Harry's ex-wife and a former F.B.I. Agent.
As in his other books, Connelly makes the details of police procedures fascinating. He guides the reader through the clues that lead Harry's team to conclude Benton's body was found at a staged scene, designed to lead the police to believe she was the random victim of a psychotic predator. He shows how an unsolved case quickly becomes a bureaucratic chore. Every few months, a detective notes in the file that no new details have been added. It's called due diligence. He shows how abundant forensic evidence is useless until the detectives can find a specific suspect.
This was an interesting book. It tracks a new phase in Harry Bosch's career and presents a truly tangled mystery with unexpected connections and a surprising conclusion.
Harry was on the set of one of Taylor's productions following up on the Benton murder the day $2 million in hundred dollar bills was stolen by four armed gunmen. His team explored whether there might have been a connection between the heist and the murder but came up empty.
As always, the city of Los Angeles sets much of the mood of the story. Taylor's films aren't works of art. “But in Hollywood they were far more important than art. They were profitable. And that was the bottom line of all bottom lines.”(Location 45) The impersonal face of the city is reflected in Harry's tenuous relationships. Harry has been retired for only a short time, but already he is out of the loop. Kiz, whom he had mentored, is still angry at his abrupt departure from the force. She left Robbery-Homicide where the real action is, and holds an administrative job with headquarters, a step up the career ladder. She delivers a message to Harry from the top brass. Back off of the case. He's no longer on the force. Who exactly is this message from? Kiz won't say anymore; She's part of management now. Later, Harry muses: “Hollywood....It was a place of takers and users, of broken sidewalks and dreams. You build a city in the desert, water it with false hopes an false idols, and eventually this is what happens. The desert reclaims it, turns it arid, leaves it barren. Human tumbleweeds drift across its streets, predators hide in the rocks.” (Location 1712)
Harry finds himself at the intersection of two separate F.B.I. Investigations, one being conducted privately by Roy Lindell, a character we have previously encountered in TRUNK MUSIC, and one being conducted by a Homeland Security unit whose self-righteous activities are shrouded in secrecy and unimpeded by legal restraints.
At one point, Harry remarks that his investigation is like a homecoming reunion of old friends. It's an ironic statement that might have been voiced by Connelly's authorial personal. The gathering in this book includes Keisha Russell, a reporter for the L.A. Times; and Eleanor, Harry's ex-wife and a former F.B.I. Agent.
As in his other books, Connelly makes the details of police procedures fascinating. He guides the reader through the clues that lead Harry's team to conclude Benton's body was found at a staged scene, designed to lead the police to believe she was the random victim of a psychotic predator. He shows how an unsolved case quickly becomes a bureaucratic chore. Every few months, a detective notes in the file that no new details have been added. It's called due diligence. He shows how abundant forensic evidence is useless until the detectives can find a specific suspect.
This was an interesting book. It tracks a new phase in Harry Bosch's career and presents a truly tangled mystery with unexpected connections and a surprising conclusion.
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