The Waiting by Michael Connelly offers readers multiple bangs for their buck. Or rather, several mysteries in one book. Renee Ballard and her open-unsolved crimes team are pursuing several old crimes and in the present Renee is hand-delivered an unwanted case of her own when her gun and badge are stolen. We’re also offered two Bosches for the price of one as Harry’s daughter Maddie – a cop herself – brings an old unsolved crime to Renee’s team.
Resurrection Walk by Michael Connelly sees the return of the Lincoln Lawyer, Mickey Haller and retired cop* Harry Bosch. We also briefly catch up with Renee Ballard (who’s possibly my new fave of Connelly’s cast), but this is all about Mickey’s prowess in court and Bosch’s nose for shoddy or dodgy police work and commitment to justice. I loved this book and it astounds me that Connelly keeps raising the bar. (And I don’t mean the lawyerly one!)
I’ve enjoyed Michael Connelly’s pairing of stalwart Harry Bosch with Renee Ballard who we first met in The Late Show, a reference to the fact that Ballard worked nights. When this opens Bosch and Ballard haven’t spoken for some time and their relationship’s tense. I was worried I’d missed something and thought their previous outing (The Dark Hours) had ended amicably.
We pick up here a year later however, and quickly learn that plans for the pair to go into business together did not come to fruition and Ballard (instead) returned to the LAPD… leaving Bosch hanging.
I love Michael Connelly’s Detective Renee Ballard series, even more so in the recent novels in which he’s paired her with his stalwart Harry Bosch.
Ballard’s a bit of a lone wolf in LAPD and normally works alone, so – despite Bosch’s murky reputation with his former colleagues – I like the collaborative ‘smarts’ and insight we see when the pair join forces… not to mention the mutual respect and camaraderie.
I’m a fan of Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch novels, though I was a latecomer to the series. And I absolutely adore Detective Renee Ballard. I also gave a rare 4.5 stars to the third in the (journalist) Jack McEvoy series earlier this year.
I just commented in another review that I like the way Connelly crosses characters over and has them appear, a little or lot, in other series.
The Law of Innocence is a Mickey Haller (aka Lincoln Lawyer) novel. And it wasn’t until I read this I realised I’ve only read one other in this series. Haller’s featured in other books I’ve read—briefly—but it occurred to me when reading this… I don’t actually like him all that much. And I wonder if Connelly intends for us to find him a tad disagreeable and socially-challenged, or if I’m alone in my antipathy. Or perhaps, because Haller’s own freedom is on the line here, he’s more self-absorbed and indignant than usual?
We first met journalist Jack McEvoy in The Poet (published in 1996), one of the first books I read by Michael Connelly. Jack reappeared in The Scarecrow (2009) but he’s been kinda quiet ever since. (Though I know there was a crossover or two with Harry Bosch.)
I’ve actually got very vivid memories of reading The Poet (which is rare given I read a lot of books that are quite similar, AND it was a long time ago) so was keen to be reintroduced to Jack (all of these years later) in Connelly’s new release, Fair Warning.
I was very excited when Michael Connelly started pairing long-time fan favourite Harry Bosch with newcomer Renee Ballard. It is interesting though as I think Ballard’s character is sufficiently strong and charismatic enough to carry a series on her own. Having said that the pair are perfect foils for each other. Partners but not partners. Officially, anyway. And I like there’s a recognition of what it is the other does well (or not) and a mutual respect continuing to grow between the pair.
Harry Bosch is back. He’s still persona-non-grata with the LAPD but still working as a volunteer on cold cases with San Fernando PD.
This latest outing from Michael Connelly started a little slowly for me as I struggled to get ‘into’ the two cases on offer, particularly one which centred around Bosch’s character and behaviour being besmirched. Yes, again!
But thankfully it wasn’t long before I was hooked and I raced through most of the book.
I was a bit of a latecomer to Michael Connelly and his long-running Harry Bosch series (but have been watching the TV show for good measure), so it was great to see that he’s got a new protagonist in LAPD Detective Renee Ballard, who – despite 14yrs on the job – has been shunted to the midnight shift (The Late Show) because she dared accuse a senior officer of harassment.
Hi, I’m Deborah… a 50-something seachanger living on Australia’s Fraser Coast, in Queensland. I write about books and life in general. Read more…
