A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW BEST CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEARA CrimeReads Best Crime Novel Notable selection Harry Bosch and LAPD Detective Renée Ballard come together again on the murder case that obsessed Bosch’s mentor, the man who trained him—new from #1 New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly Back when Harry Bosch was just a rookie homicide detective, he had an inspiring mentor who … Michael Connelly
Back when Harry Bosch was just a rookie homicide detective, he had an inspiring mentor who taught him to take the work personally and light the fire of relentlessness for every case. Now that mentor, John Jack Thompson, is dead, and his widow gives Bosch a murder book, one that Thompson took with him when he left the LAPD twenty years before — the unsolved killing of a troubled young man.
Bosch takes the murder book to Detective Renée Ballard and asks her to help him discover what about this crime lit Thompson’s fire all those years ago. As she begins her inqueries — while still working her own cases on the midnight shift — Ballad finds aspects of the initial investigation that just don’t add up.
The bond between Bosch and Ballard tightens as they become a formidable investigation team. And they soon arrive at a disturbing question: Did Thompson steal the murder book to work the case in retirement, or to make sure it never got solved?
Written with the intense pacing and masterful suspense that have made Michael Connelly “the hard-boiled fiction master of our time” (NPR), The Night Fire continues the unofficial partnership of two fierce detectives determined not to let the fire with burn out.
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MC writes superior police procedurals. Great escape reading.
Have read numerous books by this author. He does not disappoint
Excellent!
Excellent! Fast paced!
Great offshoot of a great series
Have read every book in the Bosch series and have to say that the addition of Renee to the series definitely has added another dimension to the series. This was one of the best books yet.
Another great Harry Bosch mystery. A 40-year old cold case and a late night arson death are tied together by the finest of threads. Leave it to Ballard and Bosch to connect the dots and figure it out.
Connley is a good writer. But I think it’s hard to maintain his excellence. It was well told, but it was not a page turner..
I generally like the Boshe/Ballard books but this one just felt … long. Instead of taking one mystery, solving a cold case left by one of Boshe’s mentors, the novel diverges in many places and I found myself not really caring that much about the outcome. While there were some interesting aspects to the book, the characters just seemed lackluster and the plot thin. I hope this is not a glimpse into Connelly’s future novels. Tighten things up and make the story more enticing so that we care who and why.
I was intrigued by the cases that Renee and Harry Bosch are working in this book. Renee is called to the scene of a fire that resulted in the death of a homeless man while working the Late Show. Harry’s mentor has passed away and the man’s wife finds a murder book in his office which she gives to Harry to return to the police. He and Renee decide to try to work on the cold case, he wants to do it as a tribute to his mentor. Then there is also the trial in the murder of a judge. So there are a lot of things going on in this book that kept me interested and wanting to know what would happen next. I like the pairing of Renee and Harry and think that they work well together. He has many years of experience and Renee is tenacious when she gets her “teeth” into a case. I hope that there will be many more books in this series.
Bosch and Ballard team up to solve a twenty-year-old murder. They also tackle the murder of a judge after Mickey Haller, Bosch’s half-brother, gets the accused killer off the hook, much to the irritation of the police who had a slam-dunk DNA match. A homeless man is also found burned to death in tent. Oh, and a young girl hangs herself. Have I missed anything?
Similar to many of Connelly’s latest outings, The Night Fire covers multiple cases. That might be an accurate portrayal of detective work, but it can make for tedious reading. No fear, for it all wraps up quickly and neatly in the end. There’s a subtle difference between getting off the page and taking a shortcut to conclude a plot. Or plots. This one straddles that line.
Connelly writes page-turning police procedure novels. He includes just enough of Bosch’s daughter, Maddie—although she doesn’t make an appearance until late in the novel, almost as if Connelly had forgotten about her—and his beloved jazz music to add texture. Those are lifesavers, because “police procedure” is not high literature. It would be nice to dial up the characterization and tone down the dead-end details. But that does not stop The Night Fire from being another must-read for Connelly fans.
A note: Mickey Haller is the most interesting and witted character in the series. Let’s see more of the Lincoln Lawyer. His scenes in The Night Fire are the highlight of the book. Connelly writes more creatively when Haller is on the page—the dialogue is snappy, the scenes drip with conflict. Renee Ballard is a mirror image of Bosch, so little is gained—other than prolonging the series ($$)—by pairing them. Mickey Haller brings out the best of Michael Connelly. Let him loose.
Love Bosch with Renee Ballard. Happy to find her in another Connelly book. This is a great suspense read.
Typically speaking a great Michael Connelly book!! A great Harry Borch book! But this has a new character Renee Ballard a awesome addition!! Can’t wait to read more with her!
Every book he writes is a must-read
With this month’s release of The Night Fire, Michael Connelly continues to prove he sits among the greatest crime novelists of our time.
“When he first became a homicide detective, Harry Bosch had an inspiring mentor who just passed away. He taught Harry to take the work personally and light a relentless fire in the pursuit of justice for murder victims. After the funeral services, his widow gives Bosch a thirty-year-old murder book, an unsolved and forgotten killing of a troubled young man murdered in a drug alley. Bosch shows the murder book to Renée Ballard, who agrees to help. Neither of them understand what they’re in for.
As the bond between Bosch and Ballard tightens and the danger around them escalates, they soon face a troubling question: Did Harry’s beloved mentor steal the murder book to keep working the case in retirement, or to guarantee it stayed cold and unsolved?”
I have to start this review with some context. Cops are overwhelmingly Type-A personalities. If you ask ten how to accomplish a task, you’ll get at least twelve answers, each completely self-assured theirs is the best of all possible options. We retired cops tend to throw around even stronger opinions. Having that understanding of the way I look at the police, both real and fictional, now hear this: Michael Connelly so accurately and succinctly portrays his characters that I have trouble believing he never worked on the job. The actions, thought patterns, and motives of his cops and criminals reek with authenticity. My heart leapt with their victories, my pulse quickened when danger lurked around them, and I could smell the suspects’ fear when consequence finally came calling.
Despite my advocacy for authenticity in crime writing, Connelly never let the story drag with procedural details. The life of big city detectives is bared here for all to see, especially the tough, seemingly impossible and juxtaposed choices they sometimes face to simultaneously uphold the law, leave their oath to protect and serve the public untarnished, and stay within departmental policy and procedure just enough to keep their shields. The realities of work as a detective are never as simple as idealistic patrol rookies and most of the public believe; despite what we have to swear in court, we rarely, if ever, get a chance to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
Cops share a few universal fears, and this story opens with one of the worst: misreading a crime scene as an accident. Connelly steps on the gas from there, and expertly weaves a series of crimes that only investigators with the tenacity and unrelenting moral code of Harry Bosch and Reneé Ballard could uncover. Motivated by an unhealthy (and authentic) practice of making every case personal, The Night Fire title describes at least five key aspects of this tale.
This is Connelly’s thirty-third novel, and, if my count is right, the twenty-second featuring Harry Bosch. Despite that, this reads perfectly well as a standalone. The reader gets more than enough intel on both detectives to enjoy this story. If you’re new to Connelly and his characters, there’s no time like the present to join the party. Like a perfect potato chip, the first one will only make you want more.
I’m a Michael Connelly fan and I enjoyed the crossover of some favorite characters.
I love Harry Bosch.
Enjoyed the build up, and the characters.
A great book. I enjoyed it and listened to it on audio rather than reading it.