City of Bones" turns its focus on Harry and features a great play on the origin of Harry's name (a famous painter) that figures in the solution of the mystery as well. Connelly's writing continues to impress me with his direct style and excellent flow. As the book opens, Bosch is assisting the prosecution in a high-profile Hollywood murder trial. A movie director is charged with murdering a young actress and then attempting to make the killing look like an accidental death. Bosch was the lead detective on the case and made the arrest.

Connelly is on sure footing in A Darkness More Than Night, much more so than he was in his last novel, the stand-alone Void Moon . His stance is surer, perhaps because his storyline follows the classic conventions and because he observes the rituals with greater diligence. As the story unfolds the reader will find a connection between the murder of Edward Gunn and the David Storey trial. What is the connection? Bosch and McCaleb may be the good guys but they deal with monsters. They are human and they have flaws. How does working with the worst humanity has to offer affect them? As it happens Hieronymus Bosch happens to be Harry's given name, and Terry puts two and two together to make five. He tells Deputy Winston he thinks Bosch killed the trussed up victim. Oh no.....say it ain't so!! 😕 Two stories are being told interspersed. Gunn was found murdered in his home in an elaborate method patterned after a scene from a painting. Detective Jaye Winston is in charge of the investigation which has stalled. She asks retired FBI profiler McCaleb to help her. stars. I had a few complaints, but the series is so good that I’m glad I read it, and I’m on to the next.

Harry Bosch is a detective in the Los Angeles Police Department who almost always closes his cases, but is usually on the wrong side of his superiors. Profiling is hard. I say this as an expert. WRITING a compelling story about profiling is probably just as hard, because not only do you have to get into the killer's head and understand motivations that may be incomprehensible (not that this was, at ALL. Sheesh, so transparent.), but then you have to weave that into a compelling and suspenseful narrative with believable characters and plot and pacing and dialogue and everything. Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information. A richly plotted and complex novel ... The resolution is brilliantly worked out ... and, as is usual with this author, there is a coda that brings more surprises. A rich and satisfying read, this, and one that throws light on the dark underbelly of human behaviour ( IRISH TIMES) Significant Name: Hieronymus Bosch was a Dutch painter who specialized in nightmarish hellscapes. The rather dark nature of the original Bosch's work, as well as elements of several Bosch paintings occurring in Gunn's murder scene, leads McCaleb to take even more interest in Detective Harry Bosch as a murder suspect.

Beginning with the last 90's novel ( Angels Flight) in which we are introduced to Bosch's latest romantic interest, Eleanor Wish, with whom Bosch is to have a daughter this mellowing process takes root. Connelly is absolutely right to introduce this notable character shift in Bosch from this book forward because as I can attest to in my own personal life: when you see your child born, a fundamental shift takes place in a man. For me, I was reborn from a devilish bachelor into a man who now bore the responsibility of an innocent life. It completely turned around my life for the better. And so it is with Harry Bosch. It is the presence of his daughter that transforms him from Heironymous to Harry. The conclusion is that they make the best, most committed detectives leaving no stone unturned and overcoming obstacles along the way, as they seek to discover the perpetrators of the cruelest crimes. They walk a tightrope over the dark abyss. 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) .The murder trial story was mostly being done through trial testimony. This resulted in a “telling” feel rather than “showing.” So it wasn’t the best way to hear a story, but it was ok. I viewed this as a supporting story to the McCabe investigation. Winston's case involves a scumbag named Edward Gunn who was once arrested by Harry Bosch for the murder of a prostitute. Gunn managed to beat the charge and has now been found murdered in a ritualistic fashion. Winston's case is going nowhere and she fears that this may be a serial killer who will be targeting victims after Gunn. She appeals to McCaleb who had worked with her previously, to look at the evidence and offer an opinion.