Product Description

When the bones of a twelve-year-old boy are found scattered in the Hollywood Hills, Harry Bosch is drawn into a case that brings up the darkest memories from his own haunted past. The bones have been buried for years, but the cold case doesn't deter Bosch. Unearthing hidden stories, he finds the child's identity and reconstructs his fractured life, determined that he won't be forgotten. At the same time, a new love affair with a female cop begins to blossom for Bosch - until a stunningly blown mission leaves him in more trouble than ever before in his turbulent career. The investigation races to a shocking conclusion and leaves Bosch on the brink of an unimaginable decision...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #36737 in Books
• Published on: 2002-11-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Michael Connelly's world-weary cop Harry Bosch gets another outing in City of Bones, torn apart by having to investigate the long-ago killing of a much abused boy and by his doomed affair with a much younger woman cop. This is not the best or the most ingenious, but is the gloomiest and perhaps most thoughful, of Connelly's thrillers about Bosch, thrillers which take the assumptions of the police procedural and makes them part of the creation of a mood in which to investigate is to struggle with the tragic forces in life. Connelly is especially good on the more positive aspects of canteen culture, that real desire to protect the innocent and serve society that Bosch calls "the blue religion"; when, as here, a paedophile witness is outed to the press or a suspect shot in dubious circumstances, it is not just good standards of policework, but something more important that is being betrayed. If City of Bonesturns out to be the last of Connelly's books about Bosch, or the last in which he is controlled and constrained in his mission of justice by his role as a police officer, it will not be a dying fall to one of the more impressive thriller series of our time. --Roz Kaveney

Review
Michael Connolly admirers are fiercely loyal, and there will be much rejoicing at the return of detective Harry Bosch in this outstanding thriller. City of Bones rings some striking changes on previous Bosch outings, and demonstrates a welcome reluctance to repeat a successful formula. Harry opens up a 20-year-old murder case, with devastating consequences (not least for himself). A gruesome discovery is made in Los Angeles: the bones of a 12-year-old boy are discovered scattered in the Hollywood Hills. The case conjures for Harry dark memories from his own past. Seeking to unearth hidden mysteries, he is able to find out who the child was and reconstruct his sad, abused life. Harry determines that the boy will not be forgotten, but a burgeoning affair with a policewoman distracts him. And (as so often in crime novels) murders in the distant past have an ineluctable way of bursting to light in the present. Connolly's background as a police reporter gives his books the powerful verisimilitude that few in the field possess. Harry and his new love are characterized as sharply as ever, and the balance between such detail and the demands of machine-tooled plotting are adroitly choreographed. When so many crime writers are all too happy to repeat themselves, it's refreshing that Connelly clearly rejects such easy options - let's hope that this continues to be his philosophy. (Kirkus UK)

Connelly takes his customary edge off Harry Bosch's latest case: the murder of a 12-year-old runaway that had never even been suspected until a playful dog turned up his bones in a shallow grave. Most of the people who lived in Laurel Canyon around 1980-the approximate date the forensics indicate the sorely beaten boy's life was abruptly ended with a final blow to the head-have long since moved on. So one of Harry's first jobs is figuring out who was even in the neighborhood when the boy was buried. Even after a distinctive skateboard allows Harry to identify the victim as Arthur Delacroix, lots of problems remain for Harry and Julia Brasher, the LAPD rookie who's soon sharing his confidences and his bed. A conversation with a known pedophile who lived a few doors away from Arthur's grave plunges Harry into official hot water. Arthur's abusive father is suspiciously eager to confess to the murder. And a routine chat with Johnny Stokes, a childhood friend of Arthur's who's grown up to be the complete loser, explodes in violence. Connelly handles all these episodes with his accustomed skill, but he can't hide the fact that they're episodes designed to make a 20-year-old homicide seem more urgent and dangerous to the present-day cast than it actually is. Harry still shines as a detective, and the sorry souls the evidence flushes out into the open go far to explain his conviction that "in every murder is the tale of a city." But the case itself is marked by coincidences and shifting suspicions that suggest untidiness rather than virtuosity, and there's precious little of the unremitting tension that's won Connelly such a following over the past ten years. A bone to throw to loyalists while they wait for another case to rival A Darkness More Than Night (2001). (Kirkus Reviews)

Synopsis
When the bones of a twelve-year-old boy are found scattered in the Hollywood Hills, Harry Bosch is drawn into a case that brings up the darkest memories from his own haunted past. The bones have been buried for years, but the cold case doesn't deter Bosch. Unearthing hidden stories, he finds the child's identity and reconstructs his fractured life, determined that he won't be forgotten. At the same time, a new love affair with a female cop begins to blossom for Bosch - until a stunningly blown mission leaves him in more trouble than ever before in his turbulent career. The investigation races to a shocking conclusion and leaves Bosch on the brink of an unimaginable decision...

Customer Reviews

My First Connelly!!
The book was driven by great characterisation and an underlying theme which gives you the value of two stories in one. This underlying theme eventually merges with the main story leading to a great showdown and ending. Everything ties in effectively making it an easy and enjoyable read.

City of Bones is the first of Connelly's books that I have read and as it is so well written, you would never know that it has a whole series behind it

A gripping, thought provoking, character driven thriller! Above all a great read
I can't quite understand why this book is being critisised by many because it's just a fantastic book overall. Detective Harry Bosch gets another outing in city of bones and fans of all Michael Conelly's other novels will not be dissapointed. This is a solid murder mystery and differs in style from his previous books. It is explained in more detail how a murder is solved and this is the real strength of the book, as it is what draws you in and makes the book intriging, along with the realistic and beleivable characters. Indeed you shall find yourself lost in the dark and gritty world of Harry Bosch. There is also a love interest which adds more depth and some nice references to Harry's past and it gives you a better understanding of his character and his journey and his mission in life. The story is dark and disturbing, but it can also be light an funny in places so its not too depressing. In fact there is a perfect balance between the two and this makes it a compelling and page turning read. There are also plenty of twists along the way and i also like how Connelly is straight to the point and doesn't waste anytime with pointless discription. I just love his overall writing style and this is probably one of the quickest books i have ever read. The ending is drawn out a little and there's no real action or fast paced conclusion, but it is still satisfying enough. I highly recommned this book and although it may not be the best of the bunch it is still a fine example of crime writing and a brilliant read to anyone who enjoys fast paced, murder mystery thrillers.

Excellent character-driven murder mystery
This is the eleventh Connelly novel and the seventh full-on Bosch episode, on this occasion a relatively simple story that is completely driven by the examinations into the mind and soul of the lead character. LAPD Detective Harry Bosch and his partner Detective Jerry Edgar find themselves involved in a search for whoever was responsible for the murder of a 12-year-old boy some twenty years earlier, after a single bone is found by a dog. The synopsis therefore is straightforward: identify the victim, track down family and anyone else who knew him, come up with a suspect and close the case. But within and throughout this investigation it is the state of mind of Harry Bosch that is so wonderful to read; his frowned-upon love-affair with a rookie cop, and for the reader a study of his mission in life and what makes him tick. With every Bosch story we get to see inside his mind that little bit more each time and I for one never tire of it. I could read these books permanently and find no need for any other source of written material. No, it may not be the best in the series but then the standard is very high across the portfolio.