Hieronymus Bosch in L.A.

Book review, Title The Harry Bosch Series, Author Michael Connelly, Rating 3.5,

The Harry Bosch Series Michael Connelly Book review

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As a relatively new Angeleno, I thought it would be fun to read a detective novel that took place in Los Angeles. The Harry Bosch novels by Michael Connelly more than fit the bill. Hieronymus Bosch, is a Los Angeles police detective, and his stories take place mostly in Central, West Los Angeles and the San Fernando valley, the three areas of Los Angeles I am most familiar with.

Harry Bosch is hard-shaped by his background. He was born in 1950 in Los Angeles to Marjorie Phillips Lowe, who named him Hieronymus Bosch after the 15th century Dutch artist. He became an orphan at 11 when his mother, a prostitute, was murdered. He grew up living in a youth hall and foster homes, and joined the army, where he did two tours in Vietnam as a ‘tunnel rat’. Harry returned to Los Angeles and joined the LAPD in 1972, becoming a detective after five years in patrol. He is driven by his mother’s death to find killers and bring them to justice.

The author writes very detailed police procedurals; he is clearly well-versed in the ins and outs of law and order Los Angeles style. The stories include sharp descriptions of neighborhoods and buildings on now familiar streets. The detective stories are well-paced, with plenty of mostly plausible twists and turns, and the characters are noirish yet entertainingly human. The locales are the most fun.

Connelly is a prolific writer, who not only has written many novels featuring Harry Bosch, but other law and order novels situated in L.A. featuring two other lead characters:  Jack McEvoy, an investigator, and Mickey Haller, a defense attorney.   All three characters can show up in Connelly’s novels, but each novel is focused on just one of the three.

Recommended by my brother-in-law, Greg, who lived in West L.A. for many years.

See more details on Michael Connelly’s website.