The Narrows

Rating:
Summary: Boring and unimaginative
Review: I like Connelly, and read The Poet.
The biggets problem is that "The Poet" was a thriller, while this book is more of a hybrid mystery-thriller. But the pace is way too slow for a thriller.
The Jane character was weird and left completly unresolved.
The characters seemed to be stereotypes and shallow. Rachel was made even more shallow than in "The Poet".
I kept hoping it would pick up, or something would surprise me and it didnt happen.
The ending was unbeleivable.
Without giving anything away.
Why wouldnt "The Poet" have just killed the guy, instead of telegraphing everything?
Why would he wait 8 years?
It seems like this was a book his publisher wanted, so he gave it to them.



Rating:
Summary: Been there, done that!
Review: THE NARROWS is pretty much a stock-in-trade serial killer mystery. The antagonist is super smart and leads the private eye and female FBI agent around by the nose until almost the last minute. We can also predict that the private eye and the FBI agent will eventually fall into the sack together. And, of course, the FBI agent, Rachel Walling in this case, is persona non grata with the SAC in charge of the investigation. The SAC is a conceited jerk, as is a former student of Rachel's who makes it clear that she, not Rachel, is in charge of the case.

The Poet has returned and Harry Bosch, in response to a call from a former colleague's wife, sets out to investigate what looks like a heart attack. The colleague was involved in the original Poet investigation and Bosch finds evidence pointing to the Poet as the perpetrator. His quest intersects with Rachel Walling's (The FBI agent) when she is called to Nevada to act as a liaison when the poet "sends for her" via some evidence he's left at the scene of a grisly burial scene.

In addition to the above, Connelly has some idiosyncratic writing quirks. He likes to separate his character gestures from the same character's dialogue. He also gives Harry a first person point of view, while Rachel's scenes are written in third. He also loses track of one of his plot threads. While tracking down a clue, Bosch stays in a seedy hotel in Las Vegas where he meets a character named Jane. He's interested enough in her to try to search her apartment, but that's the last we see of her. A well-know author once said that if you show a rifle above the mantel, you darn well better do something with it later in the story. Jane is Connelly's rifle above the mantel.

The story picks up at the climax, but there's an artificial twist in the resolution that seems to imply that even Connelly knew this wasn't his best effort.

Rating:
Summary: The Poet is Back, Harry Bosch is too
Review: I should say right off the bat, if you haven't read Michael Connelly's "The Poet" yet, you should stop reading this review right now and get that book, it will make your enjoyment of "The Narrows" oh so much better.

This story finds Harry Bosch still a private eye and the widow of a former colleague asks him to check into the death of her husband. On the surface it appears to be of natural causes, but she suspects otherwise.

Meanwhile FBI agent Rachel Walling, who we first met in "The Poet" learns to her surprise that perhaps the Poet (a real nasty serial killer) may still be alive. What's more he's apparently resurfaced and is back at work. And his work, which is of course a wave of killings, seems to be designed to set up the ultimate confrontation between the two.

And where does Harry Bosch fit into all of this? Well you are just going to have to read this better than excellent story to find out. But rest assured, your time will not have been waisted as Michael Connelly is just about the best guy out there when it comes to thrilling crime fiction. Five stars from me, would that I could give more.

Rating:
Summary: When you Think It Can Not Be Better Here Comes Connelly
Review: In my last review of HOurs Game I said that it was as good a serial killer story as one can write. I spent the second part of my vacation reading The Narrows and I must admit I was wrong. The Narrows is better on all accounts.
Harry Bosch continues to be a compelling hero. He unwinds the mystery but a brillant intuitive mind matched with hard work. Connelly is comfortable bringing in past history, even the movie version of his past book. Giving the characters life, especially Terry McCabe adds reality, which makes the book even more chilling. The characters are terrific, there is not a missed beat. Harry is human. I felt for his love for his daughter and his indecision about returning to the force. This was all in retrospect As I was reading all I could do is turn the pages as the book was so exciting.

Michael is the best there is. We can only celebrate that Harry is going back to the police force and we will see more of him.