One of my favourite crime thriller authors (Michael Connelly in general)

Member Name: pmcds

Product:	Michael Connelly in general
Date:	21/09/09 (18 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great crime thriller writing and characterisation

Disadvantages: At times, a lack of variation between books

4 or 5 years ago, I stumbled across a big book that contained the first three of Michael Connelly's books: The Black Echo, The Black Ice, & The Concrete Blonde. I gave them a go, and it was almost immediately after that I sought out his other books, so enthralled was I by his writing style and his characterisation.

The main character in his books is Detective Hieronymus Bosch, or Harry for short (and yes, he's named after the famous painter). He is a LAPD detective, and much in the same vein as Rankin's Rebus in that he is a bit of a rebel. A maturing detective who used to be a tunnel rat in the Vietnam conflict, Bosch doesn't suffer fools, and constantly questions his superiors.

While most of Connelly's books feature Bosch, he occasionally breaks off, as do most serial authors, and explores a different character or two. These include reporter Jack McEvoy in what I consider Connelly's best book, The Poet; former FBI agent Terry McCaleb, and lawyer Mickey Haller.

What Connelly does cleverly is interweave his crime thrillers, mixing and making the characters meet, as his writing progresses. To date, he has written just over 20 books, and each is as enthralling as the next. If I were to have a criticism, it is that there are a great deal of similarities between the books, particularly those featuring Bosch, and at times it seems as if Connelly is repeating himself in format, as if he is running short of ideas for Bosch.

However, he always ends up pulling it out of the bag by the end of the books, and I rate every one highly. There are 15 in the Bosch series, and I eagerly anticipate the next. His writing style is not overly descriptive, and the tales are kept to a reasonable length. Presumably, his past as a crime reporter in LA helped him when it came to all the nitty gritty detail, although he always acknowledges his sources in the books.

Connelly's books are readily available in most bookshops. I have bought a few of mine from Waterstone's, and others I have found in charity shops and the like. I own all of the books he has written, and they currently retail for either £6.99 or £7.99. There seems to be a bit of a crossover period at the moment with the prices of books, with that extra pound coming in to the pricing structure as it has a tendency to do every 3 or 4 years or so.

I recommend giving these books a go. Connelly's Bosch books are best read in order, although this is not essential to understand them. His stand alone books can be read in any order, but it is important to note that he does cross the characters over many times, and so it would be better to read all of the books in the order in which they were published. If you are a crime thriller fan and haven't yet tried Connelly's books, I urge you to do so. They are right up there with the best of them.

Summary: Former LA crime reporter now crime thriller author, Michael Connelly