The Book
Bosch is recently, forcibly retired after nearly 30 years of service in the LAPD. He is asked by his half brother Mickey Haller to be his investigator in his latest murder case. Despite the fact that Haller doesn't do murder cases, anymore. But Haller has been the attorney of record for the defendant for over 20 years. This is one of his few clients who seemed to have turned it around. And with Haller's regular investigator, Cisco, recovering from a motorcycle accident, Haller needs help to defend a client he believes in. Bosch is reluctant to cross the aisle and help the defense. He agrees to read the murder book, or what of the murder book the defense got in discovery and give them his honest opinion. And despite his discomfort he's drawn into the case. Because the number one thing both Bosch and a jury will want to know is where did victim Lexi Parks and the defendant cross paths.
My Thoughts
This is an interesting look at the Bosch-Haller relationship from entirely Bosch's close 3rd person POV. Bosch is irritated with Haller and irritated at the initial investigators of Lexi's murder. They have not followed up in places where he would have, and they have not adequately explained the evidence. But despite the investigative errors, Bosch isn't sure the defendant is innocent, causing a lot of internal conflict. Maddie doesn't really understand, Haller's rules are new to Bosch. Cisco, in the very few places where he appears, is jealous and Bosch's girlfriend breaks up with him. Bosch is a man who no longer knows exactly where his place in the world is.
It seems Michael Connelly tried first person POV when he had Bosch retire the first time and didn't like the feel of first person. Which is awesome, because I really hate reading first person. Especially when it's done poorly. Don't get me wrong, there are definitely places and stories where first person is better. Where we need the intimacy of being inside a character's head. But Bosch, as a character, I felt like he disappeared in Lost Light and The Narrows, books I read earlier this past year, but didn't review. And to give Connelly credit, he gave it two books to see if it would work and then he went back to the tried and true method of things.
I think Mickey Haller comes across as a bit more unlikable from Bosch's POV. Here is a character that just shines in first person. And Connelly does it well. I might circle back now, well after I read The Wrong Side of Goodbye, since I've already checked that one out of the library, and read the three Mickey Haller's I've never read yet The Lincoln Lawyer, The Fifth Witness, and The Gods of Guilt. Well, that last one was released farther into the future than where I'm at. And either I pick up Mickey Haller's world, or I read the one and only Renee Ballard stand alone novel. Bosch is now alternating between Ballard and Haller as the other half of the book, so choices, choices.
How Much My Library Card Saved Me
This book is a first edition and entered my library on Nov 03, 2015. Making this one of the first edition copies of this book. We have several authors who are so well read that we do buy their first editions and have them marked as such in the computer when I reserve them. The last few of these, I didn't pay attention when I reserved them, but this time I did.
All in all this book is in pretty good condition, minus one small problem. A previous reader dropped what I am going to say was a glob of peanut butter and jelly sandwich, I didn't investigate it, on page 26-27. The pages are stuck together, so I just read past them. Since the book was not marked as damaged when I received it, I will pay for the damages to this book. I've seen the library excise damaged pages and put in "new" pages before. I don't know if they will be able to that for this book, but I am going to ask when I turn this in to the circulation desk. Either way, I will keep you posted. The cost of the book was $28.00.
This Book $28.00
This Summer $405.99
UPDATE
Since I turned in the book at the library, it has since been removed from circulation. They agreed that is was gross, and it is extremely likely the book will be discarded properly.
Comments