Rating: 
Summary: LA X-Ray
Review: "City of Bones" was a happy reunion for me. I met again the Michael Connelly to whom I was introduced in "Black Echo" and "Concrete Blonde" and "Black Ice" that electrified me with his broody LA, sharp characterizations and twisting suspense. No one in "City of Bones" is 100 percent nice or straight arrow, though all are very recognizable. I had my usual problems with Harry, always wanting to tell him to lighten up a bit. By this time, I should be resigned. Harry Bosch is to gloom like Goldie Hawn is to giggles.Harry walks into a cold case when a dog digs up an old bone in Laurel Canyon that turns out to be human. Harry's superiors are unenthusiastic because the chances of closing a 20-year old case are slim to none. Harry is grimly determined because when more of skeleton is found, it is ascertained the victim was an abused child. Harry first runs afoul of a former girl friend Medical Examiner (suspiciously close to Cornwell's Kay Scapetta) who has risen so far in the world; she cares more about photo ops than the integrity of the case. Along with hard working cops, there are plethoras of politician/cops who are willing to set up and convict the first likely guy that comes up on the radar. As if Harry doesn't have enough troubles, an ill-fated romance with a police rookie streaks across his horizon. He antagonizes his own partner with his lone wolf tactics, and seemingly neglects an obvious suspect for far too long. The denouement has twist after twist, surprise after surprise leaving us breathless and far behind Harry all the way. Then Harry gets another idea, leaving us hollering, "wait a minute!" but Harry just keeps walking right off the last page.
Rating: 
Summary: Well Done
Review: Michael Connelly's City of Bones is my first, but not my last, Harry Bosch novel. It makes for excellent crime fiction reading--an excellent, tight, well-paced plot, with a twists and turns along the way. The dialogue is stellar, and the novel makes for fast reading. The novel is smartly written and does not disappoint. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: A Long-Buried Wonderland Murder
Review: Micheal Connelly is the best crime fiction writer now working. In his new Harry Bosch novel, a long buried body is discovered off Wonderland Drive in Los Angeles. Connelly uses this Wonderland murder as a launching pad to explore modern Los Angeles. City of Bones is one of, if not, Connelly's best. He continues his noir attitude and makes astute observations about contemporary society. It is a must read. So read it!
Rating:
Summary: Atmospheric
Review: ~~~Author Connnelly does create the best atmospheric police thriller available anywhere today, and his City of Bones is
up to his always high standard.
No character better personifies the complexity of a rare type
of cop, the cop who does not become too hardened to feel emotionally for the victims, than Harry Bosch. When some old
bones turn out to be those of a murdered child, Bosch knows
he will have to find the killer, regardless of the toll on his
own emotions, and in spite of the~~~~ bureaucratic limitations of
a big-city police department, with their budget constraints
and their ego-driven bosses.
Bosch, as usual, becomes consumed by his search, but he still
finds time to become romantically involved with a rookie cop,
with her unusual attractions, over the objections of his superiors and contrary to department regs.
As usual, in both his personal as well as his professional life,
Bosch plunges ahead to satifify his goals and disregards the
conventional wisdom of~~~~ the department and his bosses.
We have to admire detective Bosch for his willingness to pursue
his goals, no matter the costs, but we are also aware of the real costs of such relentless pursuits. As Harry both plods and
races, at turns, toward the climax, we know the conclusion will
be bittersweet.
The dedicated crime reader will almost sweat with Harry as we
read his frustrations and remember the limits imposed on him
by his department. We will be thinking of the calender just as
~~Harry does as he reaches dead ends or inconclusive facts; we
can cuss under our breath as Harry does as witnesses fail to
substantiate our theories.
Nobody tries harder to solve a mystery than Harry Bosch, and we
are right there with him in Connelly's stories. One of the best.~~~
Rating:
Summary: The author of Unusual Destiny says "The Best Bosch Yet!"
Review: Detective Harry Bosch's New Year starts off with a whisper from the past when a hapless dog uncovers the long-buried skeletal remains of an abused young boy. Harry's tortured childhood memories compel him to use all his skills to find the child's killer, but he can only do so by following a trail as cold as this murderer's heart. Amid a myriad of distractions including Harry's steamy romance with a rookie cop, a dangerously nosy press and the ever-problematic internal politics of the LAPD, the veteran detective plugs holes, probes, pushes and postulates his way toward the truth -- a truth that proves no less shocking than the crime itself. Michael Connelly dishes up this complex tale in his usual expert fashion, this time treating his readers to super-sized, gut-wrenching helpings of heart. The question remains, can Harry keep up this pace? One whiz bang of a mystery.
Rating:
Summary: Another good solid book from Michael Connelly
Review: Michael Connelly always keeps my attention with a good story and his mainstay, Detective McCaleb.
Rating:
Summary: Connelly Scores Big Again!
Review: City Of Bones represents another riveting, hard-edged, unforgettable thriller in the continuing series featuring Harry Bosch. In typical Connelly fashion, he's created an intelligent, attention-grabbing plot -- this one involving the finding of evidence of a murder committed over twenty years earlier. Also, as fans of Connelly have come to expect, City Of Bones is filled with well-developed characters, "real world" dialogue, and lots of surprises. While it can be argued if this is the best in the series or not, it is unquestionably well-worth reading and very enjoyable. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series to see what the future holds for Harry Bosch. Get a copy of City Of Bones and prepare yourself for a highly entertaining mystery.
Rating: 
Summary: The last of Bosch as we have known him
Review: This is about a 20+ yr. old killing of a much abused twelve yr. old boy. Dog digs up arm bone and returns it to his MD master, Dr. Guyot, who identifies it and calls LAPD. Bosch tracks down family/friend etc.. Many stupid mistakes are made that cost three (3!) people their lives. I was very disappointed in the excessive touchy feely nonsense. I mean here we got a forensic anthropologist on retainer from
UCLA to the LAPD crying, "I was looking at these bones and taking notes and I looked down and my notebook was smeared, I
was crying, man, I was crying and didn't even know it at first." Sheeeez, how embarrassing. And old Bosch (25+ yr. veteran LA homicide detective), his partner (no newbie) and his new girlfriend (a lawyer turn cop, yeah right!) are all sloshing over with mushy emotions and righteous indignation that screams false. Ruined the book.
Bosch quitting like he did also rang false. And what a boring case to end Bosch's career, eh?. Of course I'm sure he'll be back in the private sector. Hopefully after he's gone thru his mid-life crisis.
Rating: 
Summary: The Ending was A let-down......
Review: The blurb on the jacket was what caused me to purchase this book. I was ready for a gritty and dark ride into the case of a murdered young boy from over 20 years ago, his bones found on a deserted hillside by a neighbor's dog. 'City of Bones' is Los Angeles. Nicknamed 'Bones' due to the tarpits that regularly churn up bones from thousands years past. This time though, the bones they find are merely 20 years past and found on a lonely hillside. Detective Bosch has been in the force for over 25 years and this is a first.
Who is the boy in the old grave? His bones indicate massive trauma and old wounds healed. But who were they looking for? A serial killer that's still prowling the streets after all this time? Or something much more dark and sinister... What Bosch and his partner Edgar find brings them on a wild ride into the depths of human suffering and shame. Who would kill the ten year old? And why? Why does his bones speak a very terrible and dark past that both Bosch and Edgar feel ill just thinking about? The more they find the more they dread the final leg of the gruesome journey. We follow the main detective Bosch throughout the book and watch as he struggles with his personal feelings in this painful case and how he develops a relationship with a rookie patrol cop named Julia Brasher half his age.
The writing is very good and Bosch's personal life will distract you enough to forget facts so you will be surprised when things pop up throughout the book, but the ending was a big disappointment for me.
The tension builds and builds effectively and then I felt let-down at the end. I was left asking out loud, "So...why did he pick this as the climax?" I guess I was expecting something more spectacular and frightening to make me widen my eyes and say, "Whoa!", but alas, I simply frowned and said, "Why did he do that?"
If you're looking for something realistic with a real-life ending to a murder, look no farther, but if you're like me and when you open a book you want to be swept away and brought on a rollarcoaster ride and to have the murderer or murderers be something really frightening and 'out there', then skip this one. It's probably something you'd see on the 11 o'clock news.... Tracy Talley~@
Rating:
Summary: From MyShelf.com
Review: Detective Hieronymous "Harry" Bosch and his partner, Jerry Edgar, are given the almost impossible task of solving the murder of a young boy who suffered horrendous abuse before his death. The problem? The boy has been dead for twenty years. When a man out walking his dog comes across bones that look human, the police are called, and Harry is thrown into a strange and emotionally wrenching case that brings back his own troubled childhood. When the identity of the boy is discovered, the trail leads back to a suspect who subsequently kills himself. But was this really the murderer? Harry isn't so sure. Harry's relationship with an attractive rookie cop, Julia Brasher, adds conflict to his already troubled psyche. However, when the love affair turns disastrous, and the reasons for the an unexpected tragedy become clear, Harry Bosch finds the line between good and evil irreparably broken. His reaction will leave readers wondering about the future of the Harry Bosch series. Michael Connelly presents CITY OF BONES with simplicity - and unforgettable emotional power. In this eighth book in the series, the reader will identify with Harry - even if this is the first time you've met this agonized detective. Connelly is a masterful storyteller - throwing us headlong into his disturbing story and characters without making us feel manipulated in any way. It is a detective story with a heart - one that may have finally been broken. I highly recommend CITY OF BONES.
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