Echo Park (Harry Bosch)
by Michael Connelly
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Book Summary Information
Author: Michael ConnellyEdition: Mass Market Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-07-01
ISBN: 044661646X
Number of pages: 464
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780446616461
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Echo Park (Harry Bosch)
Book Review: An Average Entry in the Bosch Series
Summary: 3 Stars
At this point I've probably read about 3/4 of the Harry Bosch books, albeit completely out of order. The series has always been somewhat borderline for me -- I really love the level of detail and authenticity Connelly brings from his years as a crime reporter for the LA Times. However, the storylines tend to be a little too over the top, and Harry Bosch has never been that interesting a protagonist to me. This twelfth entry in the series is a great example of these strengths and weaknesses.
At this point in his career, Bosch is working the Open/Unsolved Unit with his partner Kiz Ryder. One thing likes to do as part of his open-ended duties is revisit past failures, reviewing all the evidence, keeping tabs of key players, and looking for new leads (something he also did during his brief retirement). One of these cases is the 13-year-old disappearance and presumed murder of Marie Gesto (whose apartment is in the distinctive building seen in the Robert Altman film The Long Goodbye). The book rewinds in time so that we get to see Bosch and his then partner Jerry investigate her disappearance and get nowhere. Over the years, Bosch's infamous instinct has led him to suspect the son of a local oil tycoon as the killer. However, with no evidence, he has never come close to being able to make a case.
Returning to the present, a lucky traffic stop results in the capture of a serial killer who admits to killing a number of women, including Marie Gesto. The hitch is that he will only confirm this by revealing the locations of his victims' corpses if the city's prosecutor agrees to drop the death penalty. The prosecutor and an LAPD detective are soon in touch with Bosch, seeking his case notes and cooperation in trying to determine if the serial killer really knows where the bodies are. Thus Bosch gets entangled in this case, which has various political ramifications since the prosecutor is running for DA. The serial killer angle also causes Bosch to reconnect with his onetime flame, an FBI profiler who has appeared in previous books. References to previous cases and characters from the series also pop in and out, which may make readers new to Bosch feel somewhat adrift at times.
In any event, when the serial killer is introduced the book goes rather downhill for me. I'm not a fan of the serial killer subgenre, and watching Bosch and the killer play various head games with each other is boring -- we've seen/read it all before. It doesn't help that Connelly completely telegraphs a major incident in the book by suddenly shifting to an narrative mode in which every single step is detailed, tipping the reader off that Something Big Will Happen Any Minute. Fortunately, this is redeemed by the ensuing manhunt, which does a good job of showing how pursuing a paper trail can lead to a killer's lair. Unfortunately, Connelly then invokes the lame "we don't have time to call for backup" card, and allows Bosch to make a totally elementary (and implausible for him) mistake -- one most reader will spot coming.
As with most crime fiction, and the Bosch series in particular, the story is dominated by themes of moral corruption. At this point in the series, it's a well-trodden path, and it's somewhat tiresome to once again see all Bosch's instincts borne out, and arrive at the end to learn that those in high places are entirely disreputable. Once again, a decent ride-along with Bosch, but with enough flaws and thematic repetition to leave me feeling rather unenthusiastic about it.
Summary of Echo Park (Harry Bosch)
In 1993 Marie Gesto disappeared after walking out of a supermarket. Harry Bosch worked the case but couldn't crack it, and the twenty-two-year-old was never found. Now, more than a decade later, with the Gesto file still on his desk, Bosch gets a call from the District Attorney.A man accused of two heinous murders is willing to come clean about several others, including the killing of Marie Gesto. Taking the confession of the man he has sought-and hated-for thirteen years is bad enough. Discovering that he missed a clue back in 1993 that could have stopped nine other murders may just be the straw that breaks Harry Bosch.Literature & Fiction Books
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