Criminal Paradise, Michael Connelly, Justified
I stand by my assessment of Criminal Paradise, but want to note I wrote it before I finished the book -- before the author throws his careful build-up out the window, and resolves things in pedestrian ‘80s -action-movie fashion. (One late chapter even ends with someone racking a shotgun and saying, “It’s showtime.”)
I read a second Harry Bosch novel, Trunk Music, directly after finishing Angels Flight. (Reverse chronological order. Unintentional, but I do have a problem with series.) It was also fantastic. Then I decided to try a non-series book by Connelly. Chose Void Moon. A thriller, a cat-and-mouse story, well-drawn Vegas setting, interesting villain. Also, unfortunately, “surprising” twists created by withholding information from the reader for an unconscionable amount of time. I think I’ll stick to the Bosch novels.
The drop-off in quality between the pilot of Justified and the first episode was stunning. Did the producers throw some work to hard-up friends they met back on “Jake and the Fatman”? Raylan Givens deserves better.
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2 comments:
Echo Park (the only Bosch novel I've read) also has a puzzling ending, which flies in the face of the moral rectitude that defines Bosch throughout the rest of the story. Another thought: Is this a new crime novel genre, the soft-boiled detective story? Bosch seems downright squishy at times.
I just finished Echo Park, and you're right. That ending was cheap. Angels Flight and Trunk Music felt written for the ages, Echo Park and Void Moon for the marketplace.
I don't think it's a new crime novel genre: The soft-boiled detective has been around since at least the mid-'70s (Robert B. Parker's Spenser is Exhibit A.)
Rocky, you might enjoy George Pelecanos -- 3 of his books (beginning w/ King Suckerman) feature a record-store owner as semi-hard-boiled detective.
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