The New York Times - Janet Maslin
Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series has its highs and lows, but the latest installment is perched on a hilltop. The Burning Room is the best Bosch book in years, not only because of its sharp dialogue and fast-paced detective wizardry, but also because it neither dawdles nor lets Harry get moody…The Burning Room finds Harry in his highest gear, making every minute of police work count. And it gives him just the kind of crazily convoluted case that fans of detective fiction love.
Publishers Weekly - Audio
02/23/2015
In this latest entry in Connelly’s long-running Harry Bosch series, the driven detective, with only a year left before retirement, is assigned a new partner—a rookie named Lucia Soto—whose dedication to the job convinces Harry to become her mentor. Together they take on the cold case of a man who died of a lodged bullet from a gunshot 10 years earlier. But over the course of the investigation Harry discovers a hidden agenda of Lucia’s. Reader Welliver, who stars as Harry in the upcoming TV series, presents the third-person narration in a strong, no-nonsense manner, while catching every obsessive, blunt, impatient, hard-charging, department politics-hating, justice-demanding aspect of Harry’s dialogue and attitude. He distinguishes among side characters through their moods rather than creating unique voices or accents for each. There are disgruntled beat cops, angry captains, aggressive criminals—a cool female coroner here, a sly politician there. For the novel’s other main character, Lucia Soto, Welliver lightens his tone only slightly, adding an affected eagerness that, on occasion, can harden into an iron determination to get the job done. Just the type of partner Bosch can appreciate. A Little, Brown hardcover. (Nov.)
Publishers Weekly
★ 09/08/2014
An autopsy opens Edgar-winner Connelly’s superb 19th Harry Bosch mystery (after 2012’s The Black Box). Orlando Merced, a mariachi musician, was transformed into a symbol for urban violence by an opportunistic mayoral candidate when he was wounded a decade earlier, a random victim of a drive-by shooting. Merced’s death prompts a reexamination of the case, and Bosch and his young new partner, Lucia Soto, get to work. With his usual deftness, Connelly links the Merced shooting to an act of arson—an apartment fire that killed nine on the same day—and returns to his perennial themes: local politics, the media, the LAPD’s internecine warfare, and, of course, Los Angeles itself, from the wealthy enclaves of Mulholland Drive to the barrios of East L.A. Bosch is very much of the old school in this high-tech world, but his hands-on tenacity serves him and the case well—just as Connelly serves his readers well with his encyclopedic knowledge and gifts as a storyteller. Agent: Philip Spitzer, Philip G. Spitzer Literary. (Nov.)
From the Publisher
"This is the finest crime series written by an American....There are few fictional characters we know so well; Harry is an old friend now."—Patrick Anderson, Washington Post
"Bosch has become one of the most popular and enduring figures in American crime fiction."—Kevin Nance, Chicago Tribune
"The Black Echo introduced Connelly as the heir apparent to Raymond Chandler and also helped usher in a new approach to the police procedural. Now, twenty years later, Connelly is still writing about Harry Bosch, continuing to discover new layers to this now iconic character with increasingly complex and believable plots....Connelly makes him a fresh and original character each outing."—Oline H. Cogdill, Miami Herald
"Bosch has become Mr. Connelly's most durable, well-entrenched creation."—Janet Maslin, New York Times
"Connelly proves again that neither he nor Bosch has lost his touch."—Christian DuChateau, CNN
"Harry Bosch is as formidable as he ever was."—Sherryl Connelly, New York Daily News
"Connelly's writing is like the best flavor of ice cream: reliably delicious every time."—Jeff Ayers, Associated Press
AudioFile
Titus Welliver brings some formidable skills to the narration. His deep, resonant voice fits the atmosphere and the vocalization of Bosch, and his pacing makes the story accessible even for new listeners. A slightly raised pitch makes the female voices pleasant and believable, as do the subtle Mexican accents he gives several characters…This police procedural, as delivered by Welliver, will pull listeners deeply into the two cases.”
New York Times Janet Maslin
Bosch has become Mr. Connelly's most durable, well-entrenched creation.
Associated Press Jeff Ayers
Connelly's writing is like the best flavor of ice cream: reliably delicious every time.
praise for the series Chicago Tribune
Bosch has become one of the most popular and enduring figures in American crime fiction.”
Chicago Tribune Kevin Nance
Bosch has become one of the most popular and enduring figures in American crime fiction.
praise for the series Washington Post
This is the finest crime series written by an American…There are few fictional characters we know so well; Harry is an old friend now.”
Miami Herald Oline H. Cogdill
The Black Echo introduced Connelly as the heir apparent to Raymond Chandler and also helped usher in a new approach to the police procedural. Now, twenty years later, Connelly is still writing about Harry Bosch, continuing to discover new layers to this now iconic character with increasingly complex and believable plots....Connelly makes him a fresh and original character each outing.
CNN Christian DuChateau
Connelly proves again that neither he nor Bosch has lost his touch.
RT Reviews (4 stars)
Harry Bosch tackles corrupt politicians, violent gangs, and a new partner in Connelly’s latest crime novel. The detectives run into roadblocks, both within the department and against outside forces. Bosch’s relationship with his daughter, Maddie, is ongoing while his retirement looms large. This excellent portrayal of police work at all levels is insightful and thorough.”
Washington Post Patrick Anderson
This is the finest crime series written by an American....There are few fictional characters we know so well; Harry is an old friend now.
New York Daily News Sherryl Connelly
Harry Bosch is as formidable as he ever was.
SEPTEMBER 2014 - AudioFile
As the new voice of Harry Bosch in this nineteenth volume of the series, Titus Welliver brings some formidable skills to the narration. His deep, resonant voice fits the atmosphere and the vocalization of Bosch, and his pacing makes the story accessible even for new listeners. A slightly raised pitch makes the female voices pleasant and believable, as do the subtle Mexican accents he gives several characters. Bosch and rookie detective Lucia Soto, who work in the Open Unsolved Unit, investigate what was believed to be a random shooting 10 years earlier while also taking on a case from Soto’s childhood. This police procedural, as delivered by Welliver, will pull listeners deeply into the two cases. M.L.R. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2014-10-05
The latest and most intricate of Harry Bosch's cold cases (The Black Box, 2012, etc.) begins with a victim who's still cooling off in the morgue.Orlando Merced was shot 10 years ago by a sniper who fired into his band, Los Reyes Jalisco, as it played on Mariachi Plaza. He's just now died of blood poisoning, but the coroner's office is calling it murder, since the cause was the bullet that's been lodged in his body all these years. Ex-Los Angeles mayor Armando Zeyas, who can't resist grandstanding on behalf of the dead man who played at his wedding, offers a $50,000 reward guaranteed to bring the crazies out of the woodwork, and one of the callers tells Bosch's very junior new partner, Detective Lucia Soto, that the shooting is linked to a 1993 fire at the Bonnie Brae apartments that killed nine victims, most of them children. Since Soto survived that fire as a child and had friends who didn't, she comes to full alert when the anonymous tipster claims Merced was killed because he knew who set the fire. The two crimes are both linked, it turns out, to another crime, the violent robbery of an EZBank the same day as the Bonnie Brae arson. Though the felonies may be ancient, Connelly (The Gods of Guilt, 2013, etc.) maintains a rapid pace, steadily increasing the tension even after the solution becomes obvious. Following Bosch's trail is like watching Lew Archer in the glory days of Ross Macdonald, except Connelly's focus is social, political and ultimately professional rather than psychological. Expect Bosch to uncover a nest of vipers as powerful as they are untouchable, but don't expect him to emerge from his Herculean labors a happy man.
