The Burning Room (Harry Bosch) Paperback – March 17, 2015

.. or am I being too protective of the founding history of the U.S.A. against the Iconoclasts? (Probably.)I’ve been a fan since 2011 after I watched The Lincoln Lawyer starring Matthew McConaughey, with Marisa Tomei playing the role of Maggie McPherson. I really enjoyed the movie, and as a consumer of a lot of non-fiction economic, philosophic treatise-type books, etc., I always need to sprinkle into my repertoire some Fictional Fun, so I decided to read his other books.When I decide to begin reading books from an author that is new to me, I always start with their first book. This is what I did with Connelly. I’m sure that most of the avid readers in the universe do the same, and it is an investment that we choose to make in our favorite writers.I love the character Hieronymus Bosch. Actually, I like all of Connelly’s characters because I like the man. No, I’ve never even met him. But you can learn a lot about an author’s personal philosophic outlook on life, their view of the world, etc., because that is necessarily projected through the stories they tell, and the characters they create within those stories. And that is why I was stunned that, as FBI Agent Rachel Walling was describing one of the main antagonists, she threw in what is undeniably an Icon of our 18th century American Revolution. One that to this day remains the state flag of one of our 13 original colonies. Walling implies that there is a direct affiliation between that historical icon, and the ideal it represents, and every rouge and racist in today’s America.Rodney Burrows is a repulsive, racist character created perfectly, of course, by Mr. Connelly, save for one major aspect of our first, real deep-dive into the life of this suspect. As Rachel Walling gives her assessment of this man to Bosch, I couldn’t believe that this state flag was thrown into the same trash pile that is White Supremacy, etc. The flag has the War Cry that was and remains to this day an enduring ideal of Liberty and Freedom against Tyranny. It was a summation of the essence upon which our Revolutionary War was fought. And where the opponents of slavery fought for abolition before the founding, yet were ultimately unable to have that inhuman institution banned before the signing of America’s founding documents, the ones that compromised and ultimately did sign knew that by creating this Union, with those documents, they had just set the stage for its eventual abolition… Walling tells Bosch that – among other things – he’s one of those ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ types: “You know, militia sympathizers, Posse Comitatus, Christian Identity – all those ‘Don’t Tread on Me’ anti-government hate groups.”It wasn’t necessary to throw that in. I have no idea why he would’ve done that. He didn’t need to do it. It only served to force me to reconsider the character that is Rachel Walling… and therefore Michael Connelly. If we read that line without the ‘Don’t Tread on Me,’ the point is still perfectly made. We know exactly who this character is and what he represents within the context of the story…Having read every book since his first – 1992’s Black Echo – up to this one, I’m not going to stop reading his books… Unless this becomes a recurring theme. I’m probably being over-sensitive here, but I have good reason to be: I don’t doubt that there have been too many times in all of our lives when we have become a fan of an artist, invested our time and money with them, only then to find that after a few years of success, and the acquisition of wealth that comes with it, the artist then decides that it’s now safe for them to begin to alter the themes and variations that are the basis’s upon which they were able to build that fan-base. They’ve earned enough money that they are now set-for-life, so they take liberties with the fan-base, liberties in which they never would have indulged when they were that starving artist trying to get that first big break. It’s a sad commentary on the deterioration of civil discourse in general, and the respect that we show each other as citizens of differing points of view, that inevitably leads to the end of Discourse and the rise of Ignorance and Hate. That's Irony.I hope I didn’t offend, but I’m a big fan who isn’t a fan of many artists these days. So, with fingers-crossed, I’m off to read “The Crossing.”

Michael Connelly made the decision some time back to allow LAPD Homicide Detective Harry Bosch to age along with the rest of us. Unlike other series detectives he is not immune to the travails of time, and we are often reminded of that in "The Burning Room," his nineteenth book. Now and then Harry thinks of his own diminishing future with the LAPD, or mentions to other characters that he has only a year remaining in his DROP (Deferred Retirement Option Plan) contract with Los Angeles' police department, after which he will have to leave for good. His daughter, whom we first met years ago as a child drawing crayon pictures of the absent father who "fought monsters" for a living, is now in her late teens, involved in the Police Explorer Program and thinking of a career in law enforcement herself. Also, Harry has now been teamed with a young girl less than half his age, who was fast-tracked into the detective program because of her race and the outcome of a courageous standoff against a group of armed robbers; because of her inexperience and age, Harry is motivated to look back over his long career with the Department and the often dire circumstances that overtook his many past partners.Harry is still working in the Open/Unsolved Section, trying to solve old homicides cases. In a peculiar twist of fate a victim dies and he is given the case...even though the man just died, it stemmed from a shooting ten years earlier, so even though it is a recent death it is also a case that has long been cold. Connelly does a very good job here in showing how advances in technology can be used to look at old crimes with new eyes, and it is this new analysis that allows Harry and his young partner to begin making headway on a case other gave up on long ago. It's not all just forensics, techo-babble and desk-jockeying, however, as Harry applies some old school murder investigation techniques and lots of footwork to rout out old secrets and uncover hidden sins.Running parallel to the new case is an even older case, a twenty-year-old fire set at an apartment house which resulted in the deaths of nine people, most of them children. Harry's new partner was one of the few children who survived the fire. That fire and her survival not only made her the person she is, but also consumed her thoughts, so that when she was first assigned to Open/Unsolved (at her request) after being made a detective she began a covert investigation on her own. Though she tries to keep Harry out of her private case, his old-fashioned ideas of loyalty bring him into her secret quest for justice, redemption, and the expiation of guilt.Running two very different investigations concurrently does tend to stretch the narrative a little thin in places, relegating much of Harry's personal life and concerns to the distant background. Connelly does a great job maintaining a balance between the two cases. He is also successful in setting a good pace, not letting either investigation lag or rush to a hurried conclusion. Fans of the character and the series will certainly enjoy the book. At the same time, readers encountering Harry Bosch for the first time will find Harry's often reflective nature a motivation to go back and start at the beginning. Both new and veteran readers will find the book a satisfying read, a story that succeeds because of Harry Bosch, one of the great detective characters of the modern age.

In the last few Bosch novels the endings are abrupt and curt, like a conversation that ends with someone dropping the phone or slamming the door. Throughout these novels the action and suspense are consistent until the end. Then, the door slams and it’s done.

If you have never read a Harry Bosch story before, should you start with this one? For me the answer is 'yes and no'. 'Yes', because Michael Connelly has written another fascinating multi-dimensional police procedural novel and 'no' because to really appreciate the many nuances in this story, it helps to have read the earlier books in the series. However, having said this, it is still totally possible to enjoy this novel as a stand-alone story.Harry Bosch is in his final year as a detective in the Los Angeles Police before facing mandatory retirement. He is still working in the Open-Unsolved (i.e. cold case) unit. However, he has been given a new partner, a young rookie detective, Lucia Soto. The way these two characters get to know each other as they start working together is one aspect of the story that I feel Connelly has captured really well. You have the street wise, experienced 'old hand' (Bosch) and the enthusiastic, smart, hard-working, eager to the point of driven, rookie, Soto. Not unexpectedly, things do not go well at first between them but Bosch warms to the task once he notices the different skills and insights that Soto brings to the cases they are working on.At first the story appears to be a traditional police procedural novel; Bosch and Soto get involved in two intriguing cold cases. The first involves a Latino street musician who was a survivor in a drive-by shooting 10 years earlier for whom no-one was apprehended. He has now died from the gunshot wound of that drive-by shooting and the issue for Bosch and Soto is how to solve a case 10 years after the initial incident that ultimately contributed to the death of the musician? The second case relates to the death of nine children in a fire that occurred 20 years ago - a case in which Soto has a personal interest. Bosch and Soto are however facing more than just difficulties arising from a paucity of evidence for these crimes, they also face political interference from the powers that be who seem intent on making it almost impossible for these cases to be solved.As with all of Connelly's Bosch stories, the writing is crisp and easy to follow and the tension builds as the plots develop. But besides the brilliant characterisation of Bosch and Soto, and the insightful observations of their lives from the perspectives of one approaching retirement while the other is setting off with hope and optimism for a bright and successful career, what really caught me totally off-guard was the ending ... I just did not see it coming.So, if you enjoy intelligent, police procedural stories based on great characters and a clever plot then I expect you will enjoy this story, even if you have not read any of the Harry Bosch stories to date. However, if you, like me, have been following Bosch's career from the start of the first novel (The Black Echo), through to this one, then you will find this story reveals yet another dimension of Bosch's character and, like an old friend, you will no doubt empathise with the situations he faces throughout the course of this fantastic novel. In short, a brilliant 'who dunnit' to settle down with and enjoy.

Harry and his partner have two cases to solve. One involves the local major, and the other is a 21 year old case involving a fire that killed some people.There is nothing but problems with the fire case due to lack of evidence. The other case gets made public and asks the public to call a telephone line with information leading to an arrest.The same person keeps telephoning the hotline, so they realise she is the major/governors maid, Harry thinks it the major's wife who telephoned the holiness then when he speaks to the wife he quickly realises that it is the maid and he has accidentally put her in danger.Great book and an interesting end to both cases, but their is a twist that is bad news for Harry.

I have read all the Harry Bosch books in the series and enjoyed everyone immensely. Sometimes it seems that the book is slow in starting, or a story subject of little interest, don't give up you will not be disappointed. Michael's knowledge of the Law and procedures in applying it is second to none.For me I find it sad that his use of the English Language is Americanised but I guess many of his readers are American. One of the worst for me is the word 'Gotten', there is of course no such word in correct English. The storyline more than makes up for this. I recommend reading the books in the correct order, although they are predominately stand alone books, there is a degree of follow on.

Not likely to be on my list of favourite Harry Bosch books, decent in some parts but on the whole it was quite easy to tell where the story was going to end up, in terms of the victim and Harry (he makes an usually big slip up part way through which you know is gonna be his downfall).Harry and his partner Lucia 'Lucky' Soto are assigned a cold case that is still rather warm compared to most, the victim has only just died, ten years after a stray bullet hit him in an apparent drive by shooting. After pressure from the brass to make this a priority due to impending political elections, Harry and Lucia start digging into the history of the case (treading on toes as expected) to find how a lowly Mariachi band member ending up catching possibly a not so random bullet. While working this not so new cold case Harry also helps his partner solve a cold case that set her on the path to becoming a detective herself. What follows is the usual kind of conspiracy tale, with a few twists, that we have comes to know from a Bosch novel.

Wow, Harry Bosch is getting old. The Burning Room looks like it will mark the end of his LAPD career, and although it is - as ever - a perfectly competent police procedural novel, it is not a gripping thriller. Part of the problem has been around for a while, by placing Harry within the Open-Unsolved unit of the LAPD, Michael Connelly strips some of the urgency out of the cases being investigated as they are years or decades old. The premise of The Burning Room, with a victim who has only recently died of a gunshot wound from ten years ago, plus the rapidly developing political angle, is a good set-up. Added to this is the very personal case of Harry's new partner, Lucy Soto, meaning that by the half way point of the book there is a good amount of story to get into.But the book then stutters a little and whilst the path to the end of the novel is fine, it isn't terribly gripping, it's predictable and eventually all fizzles out. Plus there is a hugely signposted moment which you just know is going to cause Harry a problem further down the line, and sure enough, it does. It's old ground about Harry's maverick ways coming back to haunt him which is getting tired now. Plus Connelly doesn't seem to know what to do with Harry's personal life, although his teenage daughter Maddy is often featured in The Burning Room, it just highlights the fact she is virtually bringing herself up on her own and seems remarkably well balanced for somebody who has had to live her life the way she has, particularly when losing her mother the way she did years ago.The best we get is that Harry feels guilty about the lack of time he spends with his daughter, but soon gets over it and cracks on with the case. It isn't satisfying for his dedicated fans.The one big positive though, is Lucy Soto. After going through a good number of partners in recent years, I hope Connelly has some plans for Soto, as the interplay between her and Harry is a real highlight. She gets a tight backstory and has plenty of motivation to carry on Bosch's "mission", so it would be good to see her take over where Harry leaves off when he inevitably retires.Compared to the earlier Harry Bosch novels, where Connelly is absolutely at the top of his game, recent efforts have been more variable. The Burning Room is well worth a read and there are some great elements, but overall it isn't the best Bosch story you'll ever read.