"Black is black, I want my baby back." Song lyrics

Henry Bosch is working out of the unsolved crime unit with the approach of the 20th anniversary of the Los Angeles riots.

He picks a cold case involving the murder of Anneke Jespersen who was murdered during the riots. Bosch was only able to spend a short time with the case when he was first summoned about the body being found.

As he looks into the gang warfare that predominated the area in which Anneke's body was found, he comes against a major impediment. His supervisor is a controlling officer who demands on knowing what is going on with each step of the investigation.

There is some excellent plot twists and the investigation moves to a national guard unit that was stationed in the area  during the riots.

The suspense of the story mounts as Harry gets close to the answers in spite of his busy body lieutenant who wants him on other cases.

The story is realistically told with Harry being a tough investigator who feels that the victim deserves his best. There is also nice character development as we see the kind of music Harry enjoys.

Connelly is known for his excellent conclusions and I felt that in this story, the conclusion fell a bit below the author's past masterpieces.

Overall recommended.

Please check my amazon review. I'm happy to see any comments.

http://www.amazon.com/review/R2UTNCYWDN0LSJ/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm

Good times never were so good

The late Robert Parker has given the reader two Texas lawmen reminiscent of Woodrow Call and Gus McCrae of  "Lonesome Dove."

Virgil Cole and Everett Hatch search for a young woman who has captured Virgil's heart. They are searching in the towns along the Rio Grande. When they find the girl, she has sunk to being a whore in a run down bar.

The men rescue the girl and travel to Brimstone, Texas. This is a town that is growing due to the railroad and the cattle business.

 Based on their reputation as lawmen in other towns, the sheriff gives them a job as deputies.

They encounter a former bandit who has opened a high scale bar and a preacher who preaches militant Christianity.

I enjoyed the story and observing the ongoing clash between the bar owner and preacher.

Parker does a good job in describing his characters and the Texas setting.

http://www.amazon.com/review/R3R4EY2SAHXDCE/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B004NSVG7Q&linkCode=&nodeID=&tag=

I was dreaming along, on Lighthouse Bay

In "Lighthouse Bay," we have the story of three women, two of whom are in different time periods and all have something in common.

In 1901, Isabella Winterbourne was on a cargo ship that sank. There was a valuable  item, covered with jewels that was meant as a gift from Isabella's husband to the Australian Parliament.

Isabella is the sole survivor and landed with the bejeweled item. The value of the jewels would be enough to free Isabella from the disdain and poor treatment by the Winterbourne family.

In the modern day, Libby Slater has just been to the funeral of a man who was her lover for twelve years.

She decides to return to Lighthouse Bay, her original home. Her lover had bought her a home by the water. It also included a room where Libby could spend time with painting, a lifetime goal.

Libby's sister, Juliet has been living on land she inherited from her father. She runs a B&B and hasn't spoken to Libby for twenty years.

The story is entertaining and the setting is picturesque. It is interesting to see these three brave woman trying to achieve their dreams and overcoming obstacles.

Scheduled for release Apr 9th.

A story with a message

In "Betrayal of Trust," the author has written a compelling story with important messages about bullying and parental relationships with their children.

Investigators J. P. Beaumont and his partner, Mel, are summoned to the Washington State governor's residence. Upon arriving, the governor shows them her step-son's I-phone where someone has sent him a snuff film.

As the investigators try to find the identify of the person who was killed in the film, they speak to the step-son who shows his defensiveness  Later, they learn that he has also been subject to extensive internet bullying.

Politics, and over protective parents are witnessed as is the cruelty that some teenagers show towards each other.

The investigators overcome some heavy odds in dealing with the sensitive issues in the case. However, the story is well told and leaves the reader with something important to think about.

Please check out my  Amazon review with the below link.

http://www.amazon.com/review/R26O1XGTIDKHH4/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B00A1ADPMY&linkCode=&nodeID=&tag=

"Dark moon, way up high." Song lyrics

A police officer is murdered at a police convalescent center. Detective Inspector Alan Banks is instructed to handle the case with added scrutiny since it involves a member of the police department.

Set in the English countryside, we see Banks examine possible suspects. Then another murder is discovered and the search becomes more urgent.

Since there is the possibility of the murdered police officer being corrupt, Banks is forced to work with an officer from Professional Standards.  Banks shows his resentment at this since he prefers to work alone and doesn't want someone looking over his shoulder.

The plot takes a turn as we learn of a connection between the murdered police officer and the second victim. The connection involves a missing twenty-year-old woman who went missing in Estonia.

The characters are particularly well drawn and it is interesting to see the respect Banks forms for the officer from Professional Standards.

Peter Robinson is a first class writer who demonstrates his talent for plotting, characterization and his ability to maintain the reader's attention throughout the story.

Recommended

Please check out my Amazon review.

.http://www.amazon.com/review/R12NFXA6T6B3O8/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm

Please, save the last dance for me.

With "The Last Man," we are given an inside look at the covert operations of the CIA.

Someone has kidnapped the agency's top agent in covert ops in Afghanistan. He has the names of the agency's top spies throughout the area. If he's made to talk, it would be an intelligence disaster.

Mitch Rapp, the agency's top covert operative, investigates. In addition, there is an attempt on Mitch's life and someone is promoting a smear campaign against the money handling of Mitch and the missing agent.

The action thriller demonstrates the author's story telling ability, his excellent character development and shows the heroism of many operatives in the field.

The plot is original and the suspense is nicely maintained throughout.

You reap what you sew

In "The Reapers," John Connolly has given his readers some background on two of Charlie Parker's humorous, homosexual sidekicks.

Someone is after Louis because of something he did as a teenager.

We learn of Louis' childhood and misfortunes that his family went through. Racial hatred was the reason that someone acted in such a manner that changed Louis from a shy teenager into a cold blooded murderer.

In a departure that demonstrates John Connolly's versatility  it isn't Charlie Parker who is the protagonist but his friend, Louis. In fact, Parker only makes a tangential appearance in this story.

There is good character development in the story and I particularly enjoyed the character of Willie Brew.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and feel that it would appeal to action thriller fans.