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The Burning Room

Book Notes Written with a loving hand by kitt some time around 09:16 on 2 July 2015

Harry Bosch, Book 19

As far as Bosch books go, it isn't clear that this is the *last* one, but it is currently the last one published. In it, Harry has about a year to go before he's completely dropped from the police force. You would think that at SOME POINT in his career, he would be able to figure out how to be political. You would think at some point he would have learned how to be just enough manipulative to get his own way. But, no. He hasn't (er... hasn't been written that way), and so, goes out on a stupid thing like, "getting a report for the amazing TWENTY YEAR OLD CASE I JUST SOLVED." Come on. You reward shit like that, you don't fire someone 6 months from retirement.

Okay, so, Harry is an old fart now. It happens. He's, what, 64 at this point? Yeah, old.

And yet... someone dies, a bad cop did it, tunnels. Still.

19 books worth of that plot.

And I read them all! Take that reading list goal! CRUSHED YOU!

Anyway, if you like the first few books, enjoy 19 books of essentially the same plot, with a few clever twists. I've enjoyed them enough that, SHOULD ANOTHER BOSCH BOOK COME OUT, I will read it.

Yeah, I kinda miss the guy already.

The Black Box

Book Notes Posted by kitt at 08:12 on 1 July 2015

Harry Bosch, Book 18

Okay, come on, how much coincidence can one stand? I mean, yeah, an author is going to write a nailbiter, create some suspense, but coincidence after coincidence after coincidence allows this seemingly random 20 year old case to be solved. Classic Bosch, too! Someone dies, the bad cop did it, tunnels. In this particular case, it's not a tunnel, per se, but it totally the darkness of the tunnels, so let's say metaphorical tunnel.

This is the second to last Bosch book currently published. There was enough eye rolling with all the dead cops but the case is still solved after twenty years that, well, I have to admit this counts as the first of two bad books that might make me stop reading the series (two books in a series in a row bad, and I now stop). Bosch's girlfriend is clearly completely annoying, and clearly there only for filler. She doesn't add much to the plot, yet is insecure enough to be awkward. The real Bosch would have dumped her already, as he tried to do at the beginning of their relationship in the previous book.

Nearly done with the series, which is good, because I've been tearing through these, and, well, with the end so close, I'll be somewhat relieved to finish the series. Even in his old age, Bosch is still a lone wolf, a keep-the-cards-tight-to-the-chest, if-I-die-the-case-goes-with-me sort of player. You'd think he would have mellowed out.

I don't recommend this book unless you've already been reading the series and want to finish it. Then it's classic Bosch, read it.

The Drop

Book Notes Instead of being asleep at 01:48 on 29 June 2015, kitt created this:

Harry Bosch, Book 17

Okay, I have to say, Bosch has this most annoying habit of keeping all of his theories and suspicious to himself until he can play them out and confirm every little detail with them. I would f---ing hate working with him because of this trait. I want my coworkers to be working WITH me to an end goal, not hoarding knowledge and ideas that could help the rest of us achieve the goal we have set out for ourselves to accomplish.

This particular habit has become tiresome in this detective.

That all said, this was one of the better Bosch books. Oh, we had someone die. We might have even had a bad cop do it. And we most definitely had tunnels, though perhaps not in the most literal of ways.

There are two cases being solved in this book, the second was a bit too clean and, oh, look, one, two, three, follow the trail to the cold case perp. How convenient. Perhaps the whole idea of hiding in plain sight isn't so far fetched, though, really, this is fiction and all.

Yeah, so, it's a Bosch book. Bosch is getting old and I'm nearing the end of the series. Two more books and I'm done, even if there is another Bosch book after 19. After 19 books, ugh, this series is longer than the Dresden series, and THAT is a series I'll actually actively recommend.

The usual, if you're reading Bosch, clearly there's a reason why, so keep reading recommendation.

The Reversal

Book Notes kitt decided around 22:02 on 26 June 2015 to publish this:

Harry Bosch, Book 16

This book was a Harry Bosch / Micky Haller combination book. Contrasting how the last Micky Haller book claimed to be a Bosch book wasn't really a Bosch book, this one is half of a Bosch book.

In particular, the narrator's perspective oscillated between third-person Bosch-is-doing-stuff to first-person here-is-Haller's-viewpoint. While initially jarring, the changing perspective worked for this book. I suspect that Connelly writes all of the Haller books in the first-person, the previous one was, so this is likely keeping in line with that style.

We see more of the dynamic between Haller and Bosch, and Haller and his ex-wife. There were a lot of mis-directions in the book, which, honestly, were a nice contrast to the normal Bosch style of he gets everything right. You know, part of the Bosch formula.

Speaking of that formula: someone dies, tunnels. The bad cop might not have done it. You'll have to read the book to be sure. I enjoyed the book enough to say it's not the first of two books in a row needed for me to stop reading a series, so I'll keep going. Bosch has to slow down at some point, right?

Nine Dragons

Book Notes Yeah, kitt finished writing this at 21:50 on 24 June 2015

Harry Bosch, Book 15

With the speed that I have been reading these Bosch books, you'd think that I really enjoy them. You'd be somewhat right, I do enjoy them, but not necessarily really enjoy them. They are entertaining, to be sure.

So, in this book, as in thirteen of the last fourteen books, someone dies and there are tunnels. I know, I know, you're expecting me to say, "AND A BAD COP DID IT." Well, sorta. Read the book to understand what I mean. The series definitely took a right turn in the middle of it to a point of complete "Wait, WTF. Did that just happen?" The emotional stuntness (is that a word? it's a word now) of Bosch (okay, of Connelly's portrayal of Bosch) is stunning. The man cannot describe emotions to save his life. There is a dark abyss of raw pain that people descend into at certain points of their lives. That Connelly was unable to describe it well leads me to believe that Bosch's "mission" is a cover for his sociopathy. Here, let's look at Wikipedia's definition:

Psychopathy (/saɪˈkɒpəθi/), also known as—though sometimes distinguished from—sociopathy (/ˈsoʊsiəˌpæθi/), is traditionally defined as a personality disorder characterized by enduring antisocial behavior, diminished empathy and remorse, and disinhibited or bold behavior.

Antisocial? Check!
Diminished remorse? In this book, check!
Bold behavior? Check!

I understand the plot minimized the time available for any kind of mourning in the book, but come on, Bosch does not do emotions (or Connelly can't write them, I don't know which, as I don't know if being emotionally stunted is a deliberate creative choice).

Look at me, finally analyzing the characters!

Brass Verdict

Book Notes Instead of being asleep at 17:23 on 20 June 2015, kitt created this:

Harry Bosch, Book 14

Okay, this wasn't REALLY a Harry Bosch book. It was a Mickey Haller book, I think book three of that particular series, maybe book two. I don't know. While the book itself was entertaining, and there's enough background to understand some of the Mickey Haller series, I was reading this book because it was a Bosch book. It wasn't really a Bosch book. Bosch is a secondary character to Haller, only part of the plot.

For the book itself, even though it wasn't what I was expecting, it was entertaining enough. There were a number of plot twists and quite a few, "And I figured it out for myself" Haller moments to get the gist of the Haller character. The book is written in the first person, which was great for explaining the actions and interpretations of Haller, as the main character. First person books done right are great reads. This was a fun read about how a courtroom might actually work. Having not been in a courtroom for anything more than a parking ticket, I can't say that it is or isn't an accurate portrayal of reality.

There's one big twist at the end of the book that I didn't see coming. I liked it.

I'll read the next Bosch book, even knowing that Haller comes back in two books, and that I probably should just stop reading this series. Still trying to get to book 19.

While this wasn't a Bosch book, per-se, it's on the Bosch list, and listed as book 14. There was only one mention of a tunnel, and hey, maybe a bad cop didn't do it, so maybe, just maybe, this isn't a Bosch book for-realz.

If you're reading the series, keep going. If you're not, start with books 1-3 to see if you like them enough to keep going. They're all pretty much the same book.

The Overlook

Book Notes kitt decided around 18:38 on 18 June 2015 to publish this:

Harry Bosch, Book 13

Lots of references to Echo Park and the screw up that it was, in this book. I didn't recall that in the last book, but, hey, let's go with it.

This is a short book. I read it in two evenings, with a monster headache happening during both evenings. It was classic Bosch: someone dies, he follows a trail, OH LOOK IT MIGHT BE ANOTHER BAD COP (you weren't going to read this far into the series, were you? Okay, maybe you are, but I can't possibly be spoiling the plot or the outcome because THAT'S HOW EVER SINGLE BOSCH BOOK ENDS: the bad cop did it). There was only a passing reference to a tunnel.

Surprisingly little jazz in this book.

And no woman / sex line. More than a little refreshing. Oh, and a new partner! Who doesn't go along with Bosch! Win!

My conversation about the book at work went something like:

luke
> Not recommended if you haven't read the previous 12 books in the series and liked them
I feel like this is the reading equivalent of "It gets good about 40 hours in"

kitt
Nope. Never really gets good. I just like the cranky main character.
Here's the plot of every book in the series: someone dies. a bad cop did it. tunnels.

luke
tunnels?!

kitt
tunnels.

Yeah, so, if you're reading the series, clearly you like them enough to keep going, so yes, read this one, too. If you haven't read any Bosch, read books 1-3 first and see if you can stand this many in this series. I'm going to 19, or two bad ones in a row, which ever comes first!

Dust

Book Notes kitt decided around 14:46 on 13 June 2015 to publish this:

The dust jacket blurb is awful:

Wool introduced the silo and its inhabitants. Shift told the story of their making. Dust will chronicle their undoing. Welcome to the underground.

The book, however, is great. There were a number of parts in the book where I just hated to keep reading. All of them were parts of people being assholes to other people. There's looking out for your own needs, and then there's just plain greed. The former I understand, the latter I do not. The deliberate claiming of another person as property I also cannot stand.

Upside to this book, it has as close to a happy ending as you can get in a book with the previous two books Wool and Shift prior in the series. The plot in this world doesn't jump between centuries, making it easier to read. It wraps the saga up nicely, lots of small mysteries solved, which was nice.

I recommend reading this book (after the previous two, of course, it'll make no sense without those two first).

Shift

Book Notes Posted by kitt at 21:29 on 10 June 2015

Okay, here's the blurb on the back of the book:

In 2007, the Center for Automation in Nanobiotech (CAN) outlined the hardware and software platform that would one day allow robots smaller than human cells to make medical diagnoses, conduct repairs, and even self-propagate. In the same year, the CBS network re-aired a program about the effects of propranolol on sufferers of extreme trauma. A simple pill, it had been discovered, could wipe out the memory of any traumatic event. At almost the same moment in humanity's broad history, mankind had discovered the means for bringing about its utter downfall. And the ability to forget it ever happened.

Doesn't really do the book justice. It's a background and continuation of Wool. I struggled to start with this book. Wool was great, and while I was interested in more of the Silo world Howey had created, I wanted the story to sit. It felt complete. This one starts out with how the Silo world was created. Given it starts out with politics and manipulation, I can't say I was overly enthusiastic about it. Okay, I wasn't. It took me a long time to get into this book.

I really like Howey's writing style, however, so I kept going. After I decided a couple days ago that I was going to finish a book, dammit, this is the one I chose, and I'm glad I did. I finished it, and finished it fast. It's good.

Yay, the book-finishing-drought is finally over! This is a great one to do it with, if you've read Wool. If you haven't read Wool, read it first, then read thing one. Next up, Dust.

Deadline (Virgil Flowers)

Book Notes Written with a loving hand by kitt some time around 14:20 on 24 May 2015

Virgil Flowers, Book 8

Okay, finally, I have finished the publish Virgil Flowers series. All eight books. I can finally go back to reading the the "boring" technical books I have started. About time.

This book was fun. As typical, Flowers ("that f'ing Flowers") has multiple crimes going on, and he is investigating them all at the same time. We learn more about Johnson Johnson in this book, which is great. No fishing, but lots of bad guys. There's a murder (or a few) and one point where we find out, though only briefly, that Flowers is human.

The odd thing about this book is that Flowers pretty much had everything figured out by 43% of the way into the book. Yet, the rest of the ride, the remaining 57% was still engaging.

I laughed out loud many times, with the dialog in the book, reading some of it to the people around me because it was so amusing. Mom commented to me that she had laughed out loud with this book, and it was her favorite Virgil Flowers book, so, yeah, it's recommended. The plot is shallow but engaging. The dialog is amusing, quick-witted, and entertaining. Having read the previous 7 books helps with some of the references in this book, but isn't required.

Besides, this book had beagles in it. What's not to love?

Recommended.

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