New Harry Bosch cold case is a hot read
In Michael Connelly's 19th Harry Bosch mystery, the only fresh evidence in the LAPD's warmest cold case is a mushroomed bullet removed during an autopsy from a mariachi band guitarist's spine. Ten years earlier, he had been the accidental victim of a suspected gang-related drive-by shooting in Los Angeles' Mariachi Plaza.
The case was never closed and the victim has just died of complications from the wound a decade later. So the LAPD Open-Unsolved Unit has assigned hardboiled veteran homicide detective Harry Bosch and his new rookie partner to untangle the perplexing crime.
As usual, Connelly stirs the plot early on. Bosch is paired with inexperienced 28-year-old Lucy Soto, a Hispanic uniform cop promoted, perhaps prematurely, after her heroic standoff during a gang shootout. Higher-ups at LAPD are overanxious to strut the case publicly. Political implications underlie every step. A sleazy former mayor with greedy aspirations gets involved. The investigation runs into unexpected twists and detours.
In other words, this is nothing Harry Bosch hasn't seen before. See, Bosch is the quintessential old-school detective who believes that shoe-leather investigations solve crimes. He knows that the answers to most cases are hidden in the details. He knows police parlance in his sleep. He knows how to shake down suspects while tight-roping legalities. He knows how to charm info from sources at The Los Angeles Times and the FBI's L.A. bureau. He knows his way around a Glock. And, he knows where to get the best chopped-brisket sandwich or bacon donut in L.A.
Though he's initially skeptical of his young partner, the match sparks a compelling dynamic that highlights the fact that Bosch, in his final year on the LAPD, is one hell of a detective.
Of course, fans of the series know that already. But, often, Connelly loads his Bosch tales with other intriguing elements that make this iconic cop a complex and memorable personality beyond his badge. In this mystery, Bosch's rebellious instinct, his hair-trigger outrage over corruption, his simmering cynicism, his personal demons, his broken marriage and gone-bad romances, his single parenthood, all of that takes a backseat to his investigative prowess.
An Edgar Award winner, Connelly has written 26 previous novels, including the best sellers The Gods of Guilt and The Black Box. Amazon Studios is currently producing a new crime series, Bosch, based on his novels. Connelly has invented one of the genre's greatest contemporary detectives. The author writes smart procedurals for breakfast. He writes astute plot in which the tension and suspense increase right up to the end that you don't see coming.
If you're a Harry Bosch fan, The Burning Room will feel like you're slipping on a pair of old, comfortable shoes…literally. You know Harry already. You know what to expect from the storyteller Michael Connelly. Both of them deliver superbly.
And when Harry Bosch does eventually retire, and it could be any novel now, it'll be a sad day for procedural mystery readers. Harry just knows so darn much….
The Burning Room
By Michael Connelly
Little, Brown, 400 pp.
3.5 start out of 4