Another Connelly book written to justify a publishers advance (my guess). It fares better than A Darkness More Than Light and The Overlook both of which are extremely weak.

But not much better. I figured out the killer right after Bosch interviews the dead boys father and he says he did it.

Bosch resigns at the end of the book and it is totally unconvincing.

Nothing spectacular here. It's readable, sometimes predictable, but also forgettable.

And, my pet peeve about Connelly's writing is back in full swing. His use of the word "nodded". I counted it six times in two pages at one point. His editor really needs to get with it.

CITY OF BONES by Michael Connelly is one in a series of books about LAPD detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch. I'm new to the series, so I can't compare it to previous works, but this is an exceptional introduction. The protagonist is named after a Dutch painter from the 15th century who created landscapes of Hell, which is a metaphor for the cases that Harry investigates. In this case, he is investigating the death of a young boy in Laurel Canyon during the early '80s off the infamous Wonderland Avenue. The bones were found by a golden labrador running through the forest.

I liked the analogy to the 9,000 year old bones of a woman that bubbled to the surface of the La Brea tar pits in 1914. With the cracked skull that was found, she is said to be the first murder victim in the area, and the young boy is a continuation of the City of Bones rising to the surface.

Connelly is adept at keeping the story moving, and throws in several twists to make it interesting. One gets a feel for the difficulty of resolving homicides, particulary when many years have passed to confuse the clues. It also touches upon the hellish secrets that are hidden just below the surface, just waiting to be dug up.

Another novel that I enjoyed by this author is The Lincoln Lawyer : A Novel, about a lawyer who works out of the back of his Lincoln town car.


Charlie Maze
August 18, 2008

CITY OF BONES by Michael Connelly is one in a series of books about LAPD detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch. I'm new to the series, so I can't compare it to previous works, but this is an exceptional introduction. The protagonist is named after a Dutch painter from the 15th century who created landscapes of Hell, which is a metaphor for the cases that Harry investigates. In this case, he is investigating the death of a young boy in Laurel Canyon during the early '80s off the infamous Wonderland Avenue. The bones were found by a golden labrador running through the forest.

I liked the analogy to the 9,000 year old bones of a woman that bubbled to the surface of the La Brea tar pits in 1914. With the cracked skull that was found, she is said to be the first murder victim in the area, and the young boy is a continuation of the City of Bones rising to the surface.

Connelly is adept at keeping the story moving, and throws in several twists to make it interesting. One gets a feel for the difficulty of resolving homicides, particulary when many years have passed to confuse the clues. It also touches upon the hellish secrets that are hidden just below the surface, just waiting to be dug up.

Another novel that I enjoyed by this author is The Lincoln Lawyer : A Novel, about a lawyer who works out of the back of his Lincoln town car.


Charlie Maze
August 18, 2008

CITY OF BONES by Michael Connelly is one in a series of books about LAPD detective Hieronymus (Harry) Bosch. I'm new to the series, so I can't compare it to previous works, but this is an exceptional introduction. It's my understanding that the character is named after a painter from the 15th century who created landscapes of Hell, which is a metaphor for the cases that Harry investigates. In this case, he is investigating the death of a young boy in Laurel Canyon during the early '80s off the infamous Wonderland Avenue. The bones were found by a golden labrador running through the forest.

I liked the analogy to the 9,000 year old bones of a woman that bubbled to the surface of the Labrea tarpits in 1914. With the cracked skull that was found, she is said to be the first murder victim in the area, and the young boy is a continuation of the City of Bones rising to the surface.

Connelly is adept at keeping the story moving, and throws in several twists to make it interesting. One gets a feel for the difficulty of resolving homicides, particulary when many years have passed to confuse the clues. It also touches upon the hellish secrets that are hidden just below the surface, just waiting to be dug up.

Another novel that I enjoyed by this author is The Lincoln Lawyer : A Novel, about a lawyer who works out of the back of his Lincoln town car.


Charlie Maze
August 18, 2008

This reflects the highest rating for Connelly's brilliant plotting, deft characterizations, and fine writing, and unfortunately, the lowest rating for the reader, Len Cariou. I have read and listened to many Connelly books featuring Harry Bosch. Up til now, I have heard Dick Hill as the narrator, and he is matchless in his interpretation of Harry Bosch and all other characters on Connelly's books. I'm sure Cariou is a fine actor, but with the voice of Harry Bosch so firmly entrenched with Dick Hill, I was distracted while listening to this audio. Cariou doesn't even seem to realize that both of Harry's partners (Kiz and Edgar) are African American and instead made Edgar sound like a nasal voiced whiner. I see that most of the rest of the series (I'm following them in order) feature Cariou's voice - so I will have to think hard about continuing to listen. Very, very disappointing!

This is another excellent Michael Connelly/Harry Bosch detective tale. Having been intrigued by the title for some time, I finally picked it up last Friday. I finished it on Saturday.

Starting with a report of a dog finding a human bone on New Year's Day, the story covers a period of about two weeks as it tries to solve a twenty year old crime. It has most of the elements that make Connelly a great writer and Bosch a great character--fast paced and well written action, multiple plot twists, appearances of old characters and former love interests, a new love interest and several viable perpetrators who come into and out of focus. It also revisits some of Harry's personal demons while probably creating a couple of more.

I have now read five Connelly books, and I have enjoyed all of them. "Lincoln Lawyer" remains my favorite, but this one just moved into a close second place. Highly recommended.

The Harry Bosch series has a dual purpose: entertain us with crime and detection stories while portraying the depravity of our culture. In City of Bones, Michael Connelly expresses the kind of world-weary despair that causes many to lose faith in God . . . and humanity.

As the story opens, it's the end of the year . . . a sad time for depressed people and two taxpayers take the quick way out. A call to Laurel Canyon reveals a bone that proves to be human, which also leads to a horrifying case of abuse. In searching for the rest of the skeleton, Harry is repulsed by the coroner's fixation on fame and glitter. He is refreshed to meet a mid-thirties rookie cop, Julia Brasher, who likes his style.

The investigation is quickly compromised by someone wanting to curry favor with a television journalist, with dreadful consequences. Harry is, as usual, annoying the downtown people who care more about their image than justice. More mistakes occur, and more harm is done. Clearly, the lesson is that it's dangerous to turn the police loose on crime.

If I could re-title the book, I would call it "People are never what they seem." You'll get more than your share of surprises in the book which is best appreciated as a deep character study.

For those who like action, linear progress, and a taut plot, City of Bones will be frustrating: This book is more like the sort of "why do I bother?" soliloquy that most of us conduct in our heads from time to time.

The investigating mistakes that Harry makes can be seen clearly if you read carefully: He's clearly not in a lucid state of mind. Exploring the sources and consequences of that displaced perception is the core of this novel.

The noir parts of the story are well wrought. I especially liked the theme of peoples' bones being picked clean by the denizens of Hollywood. The reference to piranhas was quite effective.

Michael Connelly writes what's been called "new school hard boiled crime fiction." In City of Bones, LA homicide detective Harry Bosch is consumed with identifying a child's skeleton buried in a shallow grave for 20 years, as the bones tell a story of a child who suffered horrific physical abuse during his short life. Bosch is determined to bring the killer to justice as he sees this type of child abuse as the consumate evil. With the Chief of Police already not his biggest fan, Harry gets into a relationship with a rookie female cop, knowing this is very much against regulations. Of course the romance turns out to be disasterous and tragic. As the search for the killer drags on, Harry's hearing complaints about man hours and he's increasingly disturbed as less and less people in the department seem to care if the killer is found. But Harry cares.

Well written police procedurals are fascinating. Those dealing with cold cases require an approach different from those involving currently active criminals, and perhaps that's one reason why some readers feel that City of Bones is off the mark. Michael Connelly is an accomplished writer who invents compelling characters. Harry Bosch is an accomplished detective who finds meaning in his life only through his work. He can relate to victims whether they died this year or 20 years past. His new love interest and concept that resonates with Harry. City of Bones is full of carefully timed surprises, but they emanate from its various subplots rather than the central mystery. The pace of the book seems weighed down by the heaviness of Bosch's depression, which in him appears low grade and chronic. Grief is not something he can express. He's so tightly wound that when his feelings do get loose there's a pretty sizable explosion. Like the one in the final chapter. All or nothing at all. That's our Harry.

Well written police procedurals are fascinating. Those dealing with cold cases require an approach different from those involving currently active criminals, and perhaps that's one reason why some readers feel that City of Bones is off the mark. Michael Connelly is an accomplished writer who invents compelling characters. Harry Bosch is an accomplished detective who finds meaning in his life only through his work. He can relate to victims whether they died this year or 20 years past. His new love interest and concept that resonates with Harry. City of Bones is full of carefully timed surprises, but they emanate from its various subplots rather than the central mystery. The pace of the book seems weighed down by the heaviness of Bosch's depression, which in him appears low grade and chronic. Grief is not something he can express. He's so tightly wound that when his feelings do get loose there's a pretty sizable explosion. Like the one in the final chapter. All or nothing at all. That's our Harry.

The title CITY OF BONES comes from an archaeological discovery of the bones of a person apparently murdered perhaps a thousand years ago in the area around Hollywood. This, of course, is a metaphor for the recently discovered bones of a child murdered ten years ago that sets detective Bosch on another case. I find this to be a rather tepid Bosch novel. The case itself was not particularly interesting nor where there any significant villians to the piece. It was kind of a "ho hum" and routine case to Bosch and the book seemed ho hum and undistinguished to me. Still a Connelly fan, I will approach the next Bosch book with hope for a better read as I like the tough-minded, independent spirit of the character Bosch. But it takes more than character to sustain the reader through 393 (hardback) pages.

This was a solid police/mystery novel. The death of the "main" female was depressing but a good twist nonetheless. This book made me want to rush out and buy more of his work.

City of Bones delivers a streamlined mystery that follows one trail after another until finally turning the corner that leads to the answer. The story is interesting and entertaining, providing several emotional twists. The climax is somewhat weak and not as satisfying as others from Connelly. Connelly's other books have set his readers' expectations high---at the 5 star level. This one isn't quite there but still will entertain readers with its more than adequate writing.

Mr. Connelly's Harry Bosch continues to be one of the most intriguing characters in crime fiction. This story revolves around a set of newly discovered bones on a hill side in Laurel Canyon. The bones are 20 years old and Harry sets about unravelling the mystery. What sets Bosch apart is his depth and flaws. Mr. Connelly's scores big in several ways. First, is the depth he adds for all his characters. Secondly, his crisp writing moves the plot along at a good pace. Lastly, the touches of the police procedural are like no other writer that I have encountered in crime fiction. His writing is addictively good. This ranks with "The Poet" as my 2 favorites - so far.

Mr. Connelly's Harry Bosch continues to be one of the most intriguing characters in crime fiction. This story revolves around a set of newly discovered bones on a hill side in Laurel Canyon. The bones are 20 years old and Harry sets about unravelling the mystery. What sets Bosch apart is his depth and flaws. Mr. Connelly's scores big in several ways. First, is the depth he adds for all his characters. Secondly, his crisp writing moves the plot along at a good pace. Lastly, the touches of the police procedural are like no other writer that I have encountered in crime fiction. His writing is addictively good. This ranks with "The Poet" as my 2 favorites - so far.

I am a fan of Michael Connelly's mysteries and think his books are among the smartest popular fiction mysteries being written today, but I found "City Of Bones" to be one his slighter, more pro forma efforts. At its best, Connelly's prose can rise to the Chandleresque. His descriptions of post-modern Los Angeles are dead-on and can be tinged with a poetic melancholy. In "City of Bones" Connelly's writing is, as always, effortless and highly readable, but more servicable than literary.

Unlike some other Bosch mysteries this story lacks any personal high stakes and there was no sense of surprise in the ultimate reveal. Bosch seems oddly unmoved by the death of a character with whom he was close. And there were other rarities for a Connelly mystery novel -- such questionable procedural details. The skeletal bones central to the story are identified without the use -- or even mention -- of DNA testing. And the exact cause and motivation of a central character's death remains surprisingly muddled and unresolved, a loose end I expected to be central to the stories conclusion.

For those who enjoy Connelly's mysteries, there's no reason to skip this readable effort. For those seeking an introduction to this excellent mystery writer, I recommend one of Connelly's earlier books.

Like much of what Connelly writes, this novel is a realistic look at how detective work actually takes place. The plot is almost too authentic in that pointless tragedies occur, and the whole storyline is very downbeat and depressing--just like real police work. In Connolly's LAPD there are departmental politics, professional rivalries, and infighting--just like any real city police force. This is not an uplifting novel or story. Quite the contrary. The ending is realistic and plausible--not the clever "tie all the pieces together" ending that many detective stories culminate with. In this one, there are loose ends and dead ends. The ending is less than satisfying albeit believable.

The strengths of this novel are its realism and, of course, Connelly's writing, which is always pretty good.

I have read nearly all of Michael Connelly's Bosch novels, and I would say that CITY OF BONES is one of the better ones in the series. I don't think this novel rivals the best Bosch books like THE CONCRETE BLONDE and THE LAST COYOTE. But this novel is better than novels like ANGEL FLIGHT and the subpar DARKNESS MORE THAN NIGHT.

This novel is essentially a "cold case" mystery involving the recently discovered bones of a young child who was murdered over twenty years ago. Bosch tries to get to the bottom of the child's murder, and uncovers a lot of family secrets along the way. I found the plot realistic and highly interesting and I thought Connelly did a good job with the story. This is a real page-turner.

The most annoying aspect of this book is the romantic subplot, which seems forced and underdeveloped. I also find it unconvincing that Bosch, a man in his fifties, would have a beautiful woman in her mid-thirties throwing herself at him. I was also highly disappointed with how this relationship was resolved. In my opinion, Connelly has never done a convincing job of creating a believable romantic relationship for Bosch.

Overall, though, CITY OF BONES is a great read and much better than other crime novels out there. Highly recommended.