I noticed there was a discussion about Michael Connelly when
I was gone. I managed to read The Concrete Blonde. Of the
first three I think it is the best. Even though Bosch is a
defendant because he shot an unarmed man in a trial he
manages to work on a related case when he doesn't have to be
in court. I think his character is more developed than in the
first two books though it doesn't have the drive of Black
Echo. He is a more mellow character who is no longer haunted
by his Viet Nam experience or feeling he is being persecuted
by internal affairs. I think the working out of the mystery
is well done. Although I haven't yet read The Last Coyote, I
know this book prepares for it.
The other book I finished on my trip was Thomas Perry's Death
Benefits. I think it is his worst book except for Island. It
introduces two characters that are potentially very
interesting plus a workable protagonist, but they are wasted.
One, an ex-cop who runs a security company, supposedly is
very sharp and often has hunches that work, but any idiot
such as myself can work out what the situation is well over a
hundred pages from the climax, while he and the other two
protagonists can't.I'd spoil the book for someone who hasn't
read it by writing more. Mark
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