Upcoming: THE HOLLOW by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown/ Orion)

It’s almost that time of year again: new Michael Connelly! I recognize that I have become something of a broken record here on CR, when it comes to Connelly’s novels. He is quite probably my favourite author. Despite being a relative late-comer to his Bosch-verse, I have actually now read all of his books (including short stories and non-fiction). He is one of the rare authors who manages to publish multiple books a year with no drop-off in quality. I can’t recommend his work highly enough.

Which brings me to The Hollow, Connelly’s next novel: the latest novel in his Harry Bosch series, also featuring his half-brother, Mickey Haller (the Lincoln Lawyer). It’s due to be published in October (North America) and November (UK), and here’s the synopsis:

Retired LAPD detective Harry Bosch delves into the darkest chapter of his past…

When Harry Bosch was eleven years old, his mother was murdered and he became a ward of the state, housed in MacLaren Children’s Center, a notorious facility where abuse was rampant. Decades after its closure, a massive class action lawsuit has resulted in a multibillion-dollar settlement for former residents. But when Bosch’s half-brother, defense attorney Mickey Haller, brings him word that Harry is entitled to $400,000, Bosch says he doesn’t want the money. He wants justice.

News of the settlement awakens his memories of a place he had hoped never to revisit, and a boy named Chops, a fellow inmate who wound up dead. Chops’s body was found in a hidden space under a staircase that the staff used to discipline their charges. The kids knew it only as “the hollow.” But Chops’s death was covered up and never solved. Now Bosch knows he must reopen the investigation and learn the truth, even if the killer is long dead.

As Bosch digs into the files, he picks up the trail of a predator who not only survived, but went on to a life of vicious crime. Forced to face a history that both scarred him and launched him on his mission as a cop, Bosch must bring down a sadistic criminal and finally put to rest the demons of his past.

Michael Connelly’s The Hollow is due to be published by Little, Brown in North America (October 27th) and Orion Books in the UK (November).

Also on CR: Reviews of The Black Echo, The Black Ice, The Concrete Blonde, The Last Coyote, The Overlook, The Wrong Side of Goodbye, Two Kinds of Truth, Blood Work, A Darkness More than Night, The Narrows, The Late Show, Dark Sacred Night, Fair Warning, and The Law of Innocence

Follow the Author: Website, Goodreads, Instagram, BlueSky

New Books (October-November)

Featuring: Cali Adeline, Jennifer Keishin Armstrong, Michael Connelly, John French, John Grisham, Matthew Kessel, David McCloskey, Caroline Palmer, Suzanne Palmer, Sam Smith & Phil Jackson, Sophie Wan

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New Books (October-November)

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Another interesting and varied selection of new books (review copies and purchases). And a few more that I hadn’t been aware of prior to availability, too — it’s not often that happens, these days. Any catch your attention, or already on your anticipated lists?

Featuring: Jon Robin Baitz, Heather Chavez, Michael Connelly, Keiran Goddard, Tessa Hadley, Katy Hays, Joe Ide, Peter Kirsanow, Ivy Pochoda, John Sandford, Michelle Min Sterling, John Wray

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New Books (October-November)

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Featuring: Tom Beckerlegge, William Brewer, Michael Connelly, Katie Cotugno, Eli Cranor, Scott Drakeford, Ren Hutchings, James Kestrel, Andrew Lipstein, Ellery Lloyd, H. M. Long, Cassidy Lucas, William Martin, T. R. Napper, Dan Ozzi, K. J. Parker, Kal Penn, Andrew Rice, Will Smith, Richard Swan, Gav Thorpe, Vanessa Veselka, Donald E. Westlake

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Very Quick Review: THE LAW OF INNOCENCE by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown/Orion)

ConnellyM-MH7-LawOfInnocenceUSMickey Haller, murderer?

On the night he celebrates a big win, defense attorney Mickey Haller is pulled over by police, who find the body of a former client in the trunk of his Lincoln. Haller is immediately charged with murder but can’t post the exorbitant $5 million bail slapped on him by a vindictive judge.

Mickey elects to represent himself and is forced to mount his defense from his jail cell in the Twin Towers Correctional Center in downtown Los Angeles. All the while he needs to look over his shoulder — as an officer of the court he is an instant target, and he makes few friends when he reveals a corruption plot within the jail.

But the bigger plot is the one against him. Haller knows he’s been framed, whether by a new enemy or an old one. As his trusted team, including his half-brother, Harry Bosch, investigates, Haller must use all his skills in the courtroom to counter the damning evidence against him.

Even if he can obtain a not-guilty verdict, Mickey understands that it won’t be enough. In order to be truly exonerated, he must find out who really committed the murder and why. That is the law of innocence.

Just wanted to post a very quick review of Michael Connelly’s latest thriller. I read it in two late-night sittings, on tenterhooks: I just had to know how Mickey Haller was going to get himself out of his latest predicament. If you’re a fan of Connelly’s novels, then you’ll no doubt have already picked up/read this one. If you still haven’t given Connelly’s thrillers a try, then I can’t recommend them highly enough. Gripping, well-paced, and another excellent read, The Law of Innocence did not disappoint. Continue reading

New Books (November)

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Featuring: Robert Bickers, C. L. Clark, P. Djèlí Clark, Michael Connelly, Ben Counter, Aliette de Bodard, Sebastian Fitzek, Harald Gilbers, David Guymer, Guy Haley, Michael Holley, Joe Ide, Femi Kayode, Gary Kloster, Robert Littell, Arkady Martine, Barack Obama, Aimee Ogden, A. E. Osworth, K. J. Parker, Keith Rosson, Andrew Kelly Stewart, Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Danie Ware

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Quick Review: FAIR WARNING by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown/Orion)

ConnellyM-JM3-FairWarningUSThe hero of The Poet and The Scarecrow is back…

Jack McEvoy, the journalist who never backs down, tracks a serial killer who has been operating completely under the radar — until now.

Veteran reporter Jack McEvoy has taken down killers before, but when a woman he had a one-night stand with is murdered in a particularly brutal way, McEvoy realizes he might be facing a criminal mind unlike any he’s ever encountered.

Jack investigates — against the warnings of the police and his own editor — and makes a shocking discovery that connects the crime to other mysterious deaths across the country. Undetected by law enforcement, a vicious killer has been hunting women, using genetic data to select and stalk his targets.

Uncovering the murkiest corners of the dark web, Jack races to find and protect the last source who can lead him to his quarry. But the killer has already chosen his next target, and he’s ready to strike.

Jack McEvoy returns! He’s at a new online publication, with new colleagues, but has the same determined drive to uncover the truth. He also retains his slightly flexible approach to the rules and ethics of journalism. Fair Warning is another excellent novel from the master of the craft. I thoroughly enjoyed this. Continue reading

New Books (May-June)

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Featuring: Lauren Beukes, M.R. Carey, Michael Connelly, Lee Goldberg, Rachel Howzell Hall, Amanda Harlowe, Jennifer Hofmann, Claire Holroyde, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Melissa Korn, Joe R. Lansdale, Owen Laukkanen, Michael Laurence, Jennifer Levitz, Cassidy Lucas, Chuck Palahniuk, Daniel Polansky, Natasha Pulley, Elizabeth Shackelford, Curtis Sittenfeld, Lavie Tidhar, Robert Webb, Django Wexler

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