Rating: 
Summary: Stairway to Heaven ?
Review: "Angels Flight" is Michael Connelly's eighth book, his sixth to feature Harry Bosch and was first published in 1999. Much of Bosch's background has been covered in the earlier instalments. Orphaned at twelve, he later served in Viet-Nam before returning to Los Angeles and joining the police force. He currently works the Hollywood Division's homicide table, though he was once a member of the LAPD's elite Robbery-Homicide Division (RHD). He's seen by some as a maverick, though he's not quite the 'loner' he once was. Following a Vegas wedding he's been married to Eleanor Wish for about two years, while he's settled into his role as Squad One's Team Leader and works well with his partners. In fact, he seems determined to become a new Harry Bosch : he's even trying to quit smoking.
The book opens with Bosch and his team being summoned by Deputy Chief Irving to investigate a double homicide Angel's Flight. Bosch is confused, as the crime scene is beyond Hollywood Division's boundaries, and inside Central Division's. Irving, however, has his reasons - firstly, Central Division's homicide detectives are all on training. Secondly, the case itself is somewhat sensitive. Although two people have been murdered - Catalina Perez and Howard Elias - the department is specifically worried about the implications of Elias' murder. Elias was a lawyer who specialized in police and civil-rights cases, and his murder has come two days before what might have been his biggest case against the LAPD. Michael Harris, his client, is suing fifteen RHD detectives for ten million dollars. Questioned regarding the kidnapping of a twelve-year old girl, he claimed the detectives had tortured him over a three day period. The girl, a member of a well-known and rich family, was later found dead near his apartment, while his fingerprints were found on a book in her bedroom. Nevertheless, he was found no guilty in the criminal trial.
By rights, RHD should've been investigating Elias' murder - but given Elias was planning to sue RHD, their involvement would've been viewed as a possible conflict of interest. Irving has therefore selected Bosch's team to deal with the investigation. The case itself also worries Harry : he knows that, given the nature of Elias' cases, many of the most obvious suspects will be cops. These may include his former colleagues at RHD - including his former partner, Frankie Sheehan.
Part of the help Irving has assigned to Bosch's team is a group of IAD detectives - a group that includes John 'Sustain' Chastain, IAD (Internal Affairs) is the section that investigates other police officers - that department, and all its employees, are detested by every other cop in the city. Harry, himself, has been investigated by IAD a number of times - twice by Chastain, who seems determined to drive Harry out of the force. Harry suspects that the IAD grouping has been assigned to hinder, rather than help, the investigation. However, this isn't Harry's only problem. Given the high-profile victim, the newly-appointed Inspector-General, Carla Entrenkin, has been notified of the murder. This position allows her to oversee any investigation she chooses - and Harry suspects she has a 'personal' interest in this case. Furthermore, Harry believes that Elias had a source feeding him information from the Parker Center.
As with Connelly's previous books, I found this to be an excellent novel. It's a difficult case for Harry, though - despite some 'political' interfering from Irving - he's determined to solve it to the very best of his abilities. Those who have read the previous instalments will know Harry's past, and several old favorites return. Although having read the previous book in the series ("Trunk Music") may be helpful, the 'newcomer' won't feel left out. "Angel's Flight" covers enough of Bosch's past to tell the story without any gaps. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Police detectives age, too
Review: And so do authors. It's nice that authors can write about aging protagonists as they themselves pass through the decades. Apparently, movie actors and other entertainers have a harder time with this transition, because so much depends upon their appearance. We see authors only on the book jackets, usually, but some writers, like Janet Evanovich, decide to leave their protagonists at one age only. I think it's more realistic the way Connolly is doing it with Harry Bosch. Harry's a lot mellower now that he's retired, but he's still a bulldog about his mission in life, which has something to do with sticking up for the under "bull" dog. You'll like this book, if you have these same preferences. Living in Los Angeles helps to make everything near and dear also. Diximus.
Rating:
Summary: Police detectives age, too
Review: And so do authors. It's nice that authors can write about aging protagonists as they themselves pass through the decades. Apparently, movie actors and other entertainers have a harder time with this transition, because so much depends upon their appearance. We see authors only on the book jackets, usually, but some writers, like Janet Evanovich, decide to leave their protagonists at one age only. I think it's more realistic the way Connolly is doing it with Harry Bosch. Harry's a lot mellower now that he's retired, but he's still a bulldog about his mission in life, which has something to do with sticking up for the under "bull" dog. You'll like this book, if you have these same preferences. Living in Los Angeles helps to make everything near and dear also. Diximus.
Rating:
Summary: Connelly Comes Through Again
Review: ANGEL'S FLIGHT is the sixth book in Connelly's ongoing Harry Bosch series. It's also the sixth one I've read and I have yet to be disappointed. Not only does Connelly give the reader an engaging plot with plenty of surprises, but the development of Harry Bosch throughout the series makes each installment something like meeting up with an old friend. In ANGEL'S FLIGHT, Harry is put in charge of the investigation into the murder of a prominent black lawyer involved in a suit against the LAPD. Set against the backdrop of a riot-torn city, the situation is both complex and very tense. At the same time, Harry is forced to deal with domestic troubles of his own.
Connelly is an acknowledged master of the hard-boiled police procedural and, while this isn't my favorite genre, he's never let me down. If you're new to Harry Bosch, however, don't start here. Start with THE BLACK ECHO and take them in order. They can all stand on their own, but Harry's life is a work in progress and is never far from the surface. I highly recommend Connelly's work, in general. ANGEL'S FLIGHT is certainly no exception.
Rating:
Summary: The best of the Harry Bosch series.
Review: Angels Flight is the pinnacle of Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series. A brooding, somber look at race relations and politics in the world of Police Investigation, and a captivation read from start to finish. Harry Bosch is a true hard jaw hero, caught in a web of lies, politics, and a city ready to explode from racial tension. Bosch may be unorthodox in his methods but we root for him all the way because despite his short comings and inner demons, he is the perfect reflection of us, and how we do what ever we can to see justice served. To the cold start to the shocking final chapter, Angels Flight ranks right next to The Poet as one of Michael Connelly best work to date, and in my opinion, this is the best of the Harry Bosch novels, and it's a great staring point to anyone who has not have the privilege to read this fine series.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best in the Bosch series
Review: Angels Flight was one of the best in Connely's Harry Bosch series. You can't put this book down! While the whole series up to this point has been excellent, I think this book is going to stand out for me, even after I read the last three, as one of the best (out of 9). This book just had the right combination of everything- suspense, murder, drama, intrigue, mystery, excitement and twists and turns. In this book Bosch seems to come up against everything possible: fellow officers & law officials, his wife and close friend, a city on the edge of rioting, more than one murder to solve and one of the most powerful families in LA. Anyone who knows Harry knows he's capable of fighting anything though and winning. And any fan of Connely's knows his writing is far above the rest.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Plot Twists
Review: As in the previous books in the Harry Bosch series, Connelly works in plot twists galore. This is very satisfying; especially when combined with the "poetic justice" ending. I don't really like the way he portrays the upper brass as being perfectly willing to sacrifice an old cop to an animalistic mob. Although the way he portrays journalists as immoral and unethical as long as they get good copy seems very realistic which is eerie when you remember Connelly started out as a journalist. And portraying Bosch as understanding and even having sympathy with the riot mentality is rather unbelievable. As a cop, he would understand that society cannot allow and condone groups or sub-groups to go on savage, blood-thirsty rampages because they are angry. This is a city in a civlized country, not a jungle.
But, overall, an excellent read.
Rating: 
Summary: Slow Start, Good Finish
Review: FROM THE BACK/CASE: "An activist attorney is killed in a cute little L.A. Trolley called Angels Flight, far from Harry Bosch's Hollywood turf. But the case is so explosive - and the dead man's enemies inside the L.A.P.D. are so numerous - that it all falls to Harry to solve it. Now the streets are superheating. Harry's year-old Vegas marriage is unraveling. And the hunt for a killer is leading Harry to another high-profile L.A. murder case, one where every cop had a motive. The question is, did any have the guts?"
It's post Rodney King and every thing that the L.A.P.D. does is constantly being scrutinized. Now, a Civil Rights attorney who is preparing to sue the L.A.P.D. and several of its officers is murdered. This leads to Detective Harry Bosch and his team being called out in the middle of the night. It doesn't take them long after they arrive on the scene to determine that they are being put in charge of a political keg of TNT that could blow up right in their faces if they aren't careful. During the investigation Harry discovers that the attorney had enough evidence to win the case. Did a cop kill the attorney? Did a civilian commit the murder? These are the questions that Harry, his team and you need to find.
Mr. Connelly wrote this in such a manner that picking the killer early was easy; however, he left enough doubt to keep you guessing. With the plot twists, he does a great job at making you wonder if your choice is correct.
This is the first book my Michael Connelly that I have had the pleasure to experience. Being one who commutes in a high traffic area and gets very tired of morning DJ's, I chose the abridged audio version of this book. This version was narrated by Burt Reynolds who did a good job with most of the male characters. Unfortunately, when he would do the voices of the female characters I would get this vision of him in drag which distracted some from the book but not enough to make you lose interest. Another thing I didn't like is the back of the case stated that Harry's Vegas marriage is unraveling but his wife is never mentioned in the book nor is she ever at home regardless of the time of day or night. I understand that this is just one of the Harry Bosch novels, but if this isn't part of this particular story line, it shouldn't have been included in the description of the book.
One of the things I liked about this novel is the way that Mr. Connelly painted the character of Harry and Mr. Reynolds brought him to life. He was painted as a hard core detective who really detested the L.A.P.D. bureaucratic stuff (if you know what I mean).
When I was determining if I wanted to give this book a try, I noticed that it has been listed as everything from mystery to suspense to thriller. Personally if you are a fan of the hard core detective genre, then you're going to like Angels Flight.
Published in 1999 this book has never been nominated for any awards. Though I liked this book and rated it four stars, I agree that it isn't award nomination material.
Though Angels Flight has never been nominated for an award, I am including a list of some of Mr. Connelly's accomplishments for your information.
AWARDS:
NOMINATED:
(3) Anthony Award 1993, 1994, 1996
(2) Edgar Allan Poe Award 1999, 2003
WON:
(3) Anthony Award 1997, 1999, 2003
(1) Edgar Allan Poe Award 1993
Angels Flight is an above average novel that takes place in L.A. with everything the cops do being scrutinized. This leads to some very delicate situations when Harry is assigned to investigate the death of a black Civil Rights attorney. Like I stated earlier, if you like Mystery/Suspense or Hard Core Detective novels, then read or listen to Angels Flight. It is a smooth flowing novel with some twists and turns to keep you guessing if your assumptions are right.
Being the first novel by Michael Connelly that I have experienced I can't recommend any specific titles that I have read. I can recommend his award winning titles which include, The Black Echo, Bloodwork, City of Bones and The Poet.
If you enjoy the works of authors such as James Lee Burke and Lawrence Block, then you will enjoy the works of Michael Connelly, or at least, Angels Flight.
Rating:
Summary: Connelly is a master at his work
Review: I am never disappointed when I read a Bosch book by Connelly. This was another I couldn't put down. This isn't just a story of a cop in LA. This is a story of his life. How he handles his job and his personal life. Usually one of them is falling apart. I have come to really like Bosch. I admire Connelly for his ability to pull in characters from the past and play them out. This book starts off with the murder of a high profile lawyer who was representing a man suing the police department for abuse. It takes off from there. Twists and turns you don't expect. I highly recommend this series. They are hard to put down.
Rating:
Summary: Connelly is a master at his work
Review: I am never disappointed when I read a Bosch book by Connelly. This was another I couldn't put down. This isn't just a story of a cop in LA. This is a story of his life. How he handles his job and his personal life. Usually one of them is falling apart. I have come to really like Bosch. I admire Connelly for his ability to pull in characters from the past and play them out. This book starts off with the murder of a high profile lawyer who was representing a man suing the police department for abuse. It takes off from there. Twists and turns you don't expect. I highly recommend this series. They are hard to put down.
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