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The Black Echo (Harry Bosch #1)

by Michael Connelly (Goodreads Author)

4.02 of 5 stars 4.02 · rating details · 39,387 ratings · 1,258 reviews

For maverick Lapd homicide detective Harry Bosch, the body in the drainpipe at Mulholland Dam is more than another anonymous statistic. This one is personal...because the murdered man was a fellow Vietnam "tunnel rat" who had fought side by side with him in a hellish underground war. Now Bosch is about to relive the horror of Nam. From a dangerous maze of blind alleys to a...more

Paperback, 482 pages

Published December 1st 2002 by Grand Central Publishing (first published 1992)

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Sep 02, 2011 Eric rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Crime/police/detective/mystery fiction fans

Recommended to Eric by: 99c download on Amazon.com

Shelves: detective-mystery, michael-connelly

I came at Michael Connelly backwards, reading the entire Mickey Haller series before any of his Harry Bosch books. And after encountering Bosch in The Reversal, I wasn't that compelled to read more about him. But then I found the Kindle version of this on sale for 99c, so I couldn't really say no at that point.

I was not disappointed, but blown away instead. This is a perfect detective mystery tale. Connelly's storytelling gifts are many and varied. He is a master of pacing, has a knack for creat...more

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Apr 06, 2012 Kemper rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, 5-0, crime-mystery, thieves, thriller

I’ve designed a gadget that will notify me when I run across clichés in crime thrillers with a *BEEP*. Let’s give it a test run on this Michael Connelly novel, shall we?

So this is the first book in the series featuring a LAPD detective named Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch *BEEP*. .. Shit, why is it going off already? Oh, right. Quirky name for a main character. It seems to be calibrated correctly. Let’s proceed.

In this novel published in 1992, Harry is a Vietnam veteran *BEEP* traumatized by his war e...more I’ve designed a gadget that will notify me when I run across clichés in crime thrillers with a *BEEP*. Let’s give it a test run on this Michael Connelly novel, shall we?

So this is the first book in the series featuring a LAPD detective named Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch *BEEP*. .. Shit, why is it going off already? Oh, right. Quirky name for a main character. It seems to be calibrated correctly. Let’s proceed.

In this novel published in 1992, Harry is a Vietnam veteran *BEEP* traumatized by his war experiences *BEEP* as a so-called tunnel rat who fought the VC in their network of underground passages. Harry is a driven detective whose inability to compromise often puts him at odds with his fellow cops *BEEP*. He has no family or life outside of his work *BEEP*, and he’s a borderline burn-out who lives on a diet of coffee, cigarettes and beer. *BEEP*

Harry gets called to check out a dead body in a drainage pipe that everyone on the scene instantly assumes is a junkie who overdosed, but he has a hunch that it was actually a murder. *BEEP* Part of the reason Harry is convinced it was homicide is that he recognizes the victim as one of his fellow Vietnam tunnel rats. *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* Damn, the old war buddy schtick really swung the needle into the red on this thing.

Harry quickly finds evidence that the victim was involved in a high profile bank robbery that had involved tunneling into a vault and emptying the safe deposit boxes. When Harry tries to get the FBI’s attention, he meets a beautiful female agent *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* named Eleanor Wish, but he also lands in hot water with his lieutenant who gets angry and yells at him a lot even though he hasn’t done anything wrong . *BEEP*. He also becomes the target of overzealous Internal Affairs cops *BEEP* that hound him even as he works with the FBI to try and solve the case. This quickly leads to a romance with Agent Wish *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*..and *BEEP*….Uh oh.. I think it’s overloading…*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* Is that smoke?? *BEEP* *BEEP* BEEP* Where’s the off switch? *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP**BEEEEEeeeeeeepppppp…pp..pp*

Crap. I think Connelly broke it.

Anyhow, the odd thing about his book is that even though it’s got just about every cop thriller cliché you’ve ever heard of, it still works pretty well. It’s entertaining in a straight forward kind of way, and Harry’s gruff and grouchy persona is kind of refreshing since most cop/detectives are portrayed as unrelenting smart asses these days.

A couple of things drag it down a bit. First, this is the third Connelly novel I’ve read set in the ‘90s and like the other two, there’s something about his stuff that seems more dated than a Perry Como album. I think it’s because he obviously liked describing the cutting edge tech of the day like police computer databases that are practically antiques now, and the way he dwells on them makes you feel like you’re watching a T. Rex walk the earth.

The second one involves Harry doing something very stupid and later you realize that Connelly only had him do it for the sake of setting up a climatic scene near the end. (view spoiler)

Still, I did like a lot about this one and will probably try another in the series at some point. Hopefully, my cliché meter will be repaired and up to the task by then. (less)

92 likes · like · see review

Mar 17, 2013 David Green - Proud member of Team Perry! rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: mystery, 2013-reads

One mystery I was unable to solve...exactly why is The Black Echo so darn popular?!?

The Vietnam War never really ended, not for Harry Bosch. A former "tunnel rat" who fought most of the war underground, Harry now finds himself unable to sleep and unable to go into underground areas without suffering panic attacks. But now that he's a detective for the Los Angeles Police Department, Harry's about to learn that sometimes what's on the surface is even dirtier than what's underground. When a former...more One mystery I was unable to solve...exactly why is The Black Echo so darn popular?!?

The Vietnam War never really ended, not for Harry Bosch. A former "tunnel rat" who fought most of the war underground, Harry now finds himself unable to sleep and unable to go into underground areas without suffering panic attacks. But now that he's a detective for the Los Angeles Police Department, Harry's about to learn that sometimes what's on the surface is even dirtier than what's underground. When a former squadmate of Harry's is found dead, his investigation into the murder soon finds him flanked by enemies from all sides, even within his own department. Has Harry survived one war only to be consumed by another one?

Reviews are, of course, always subjective. Even when I don't particularly enjoy a book, I know there's still a good chance someone else might. Such is the case with "The Black Echo". While I was disappointed with this book, I can see why some people enjoy Michael Connelly, as I recognized that he is a talented writer. For one thing, he is an absolute master at setting the mood...
edwood

I was truly impressed with Connelly's abilities to describe the settings. All throughout the book, he maintains a dark and dreary atmosphere, and his usage of metaphors are almost poetic (like in one sequence, when he writes how the rumble of traffic above makes a tunnel sound like it's almost breathing). Also, it is admirable how much research he apparently did in order to write this book. His detail in describing every step of police procedures is impressive (although sometimes a bit too plodding), especially when you consider that this book came out before the internet had become ubiquitous, meaning it took a lot more work to do research back then. And finally, the climax is quite thrilling. Unfortunately, when a book is under 500 pages long, and it doesn't really get moving until after page 400, that can come as too little, too late, which brings me to where it all went wrong for me...
notright

Overall, I just found this book to be much too dull. The actual mystery simply doesn't have enough twists and turns to warrant a book of this length. Unfortunately, instead of choosing to write a shorter but tighter caper, Connelly proceeds to fill the book with obscene amounts of padding instead! Harry Bosch has a frustrating habit of narrating entire paragraphs of thoughts, and then later repeating the same information verbatim when talking to someone else. If it only happened once or twice, I could have overlooked it, but this repetition occurs a ridiculous amount of times. And then there were the two bumbling Internal Affairs agents who are trying to bring Bosch down. I suspect they were supposed to be the comic relief, but I'm not really sure, since they never do anything even remotely funny. Their names are Lewis and Clarke, and Bosch announces that they're going on a "Lewis and Clarke expedition" (and since it's Bosch, he says it at least three times). If Bosch's quip didn't leave you laughing uproariously, then I have some bad news for you...that's about the wittiest thing that's ever said in this book! Lewis and Clarke are far too incompetent to add any sense of danger for Bosch, and they aren't nearly amusing enough to work on any comedic level, so their sequences just feel like a complete waste of time. If Connelly had cut out all the needless repetition and the Lewis and Clarke moments, this book could have easily been less than half its length, and much more satisfying to read!

Another problem for me was that I wasn't invested in any of the characters. Harry Bosch is a rogue cop who plays by his own rules, and he does things his way whether his superiors like it or not...if I missed any 80s-movies cliches in there, I can assure you Connelly didn't! Bosch has almost no charisma, and since he comes off as something Connelly came up with after watching a Sylvester Stallone marathon, there's just nothing about him original enough or interesting enough to make the reader care about him. The other players in this drama fare even worse. I found all the other characters to be either too bland or too cartoonish (like the aforementioned Lewis and Clarke) to take seriously. Add to that a mystery that is not nearly as hard to solve as it should be, and you have all the ingredients that make for one tepid story!

I didn't really enjoy "The Black Echo"...wait, I already said that. didn't I?!? Great, now Bosch has ME doing it! Still, I can see people who are hardcore fans of hard-boiled detective novels getting some satisfaction from this one. If you're looking for a book with a lot of atmosphere and even more grit, then this one may have something to offer you. It wasn't my cup of tea, but it may still please someone looking for...
noir

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Aug 19, 2007 Alexa Apallas rated it 5 of 5 stars

I read an article in the L.A. Times about Michael Connelly, and his background as a crime reporter intrigued me, so I decided to read his books. I started with The Black Echo, the first book in the Hieronymous Bosch series, and I am very glad that I read these books in order. Connelly is a masterful writer in that he is constantly referencing past cases and old details in his Bosch series. Some of the characters from his other novels also tend to make guest appearances.

This book sucked me in to...more

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Jan 22, 2013 Kelly rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-to-read-in-2013

This is my 3rd book in this series that I have read. I enjoy the Harry Bosch stories but haven't been reading them in order. This was a great read with lots of typical twists and turns of Bosch books you are used too. I had read "Nine Dragons" before this book (#14 in the series I think) and in Black Echo I got find out the back story of Bosch and Elanor Wish and their daughter, who plays a big role in Nine Dragons. This book was exciting and fast paced, with a couple good laughs along the way a...more

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Sep 01, 2012 Jonetta rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Hollywood, California Detective Harry Bosch is called to the scene of a dead body and discovers he knows the identity of the victim and pursues the case further. Bosch finds himself joined with an FBI agent, Eleanor Wish, and pitted against enemies in his own department as he tries to solve the case. Bosch is the classic competent detective bucking the political system within the Beverly Hills police department. He's trying to solve a crime and the department is more interested in the optics of...more

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Jun 13, 2013 D.R. rated it 5 of 5 stars

Black Echo was Michael Connelly’s first Harry Bosch novel in a series of nineteen, and it’s the fourth Connelly novel that I’ve read this year. The style and quality of Connelly’s writing is consistent across all four works I’ve read, spanning nearly a 20-year period. He clearly has a gift for creating detailed, suspenseful detective novels.

In Black Echo, Harry Bosch is a homicide detective assigned to what appears on the surface to be a simple drug overdose by a wayward junkie. It might have en...more

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Oct 23, 2012 Dlora rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: adventure-action, murder-mystery

This is the first in the Harry Bosch detective stories. I have read some others and liked them, so I decided I should start with number one and read in order so that I could get the character development. Oddly enough, this novel didn't read like a first. There were references to things in Bosch's past that seemed like they had been fleshed out in an earlier novel. It was an interesting exercise to compare Harry Bosch and Jack Reacher, both smart tough homicide detectives and both loners but whe...more

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Mar 02, 2010 LJ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: california, contemporary_post_1945, male_author, mystery, police_procedural, so_cal_la

First Sentence: The boy couldn’t see in the dark, but he didn’t need to.

LAPD detective Hieronymous (aka Harry) Bosch is a loner and a nighthawk. Called out on a routine drug overdose case, Bosch soon realizes that the victim found lying in the Mullholland Dam drainpipe is no accident case. Billy Meadows was a fellow 'tunnel rat' in Vietnam and Harry swears to bring the killer to justice.

Written and set in 1992, it is interesting to see how times have changed in these 18 years. There were no cell...more First Sentence: The boy couldn’t see in the dark, but he didn’t need to.

LAPD detective Hieronymous (aka Harry) Bosch is a loner and a nighthawk. Called out on a routine drug overdose case, Bosch soon realizes that the victim found lying in the Mullholland Dam drainpipe is no accident case. Billy Meadows was a fellow 'tunnel rat' in Vietnam and Harry swears to bring the killer to justice.

Written and set in 1992, it is interesting to see how times have changed in these 18 years. There were no cell phones, the police used radios, pagers, call boxes, and pay phones; there were no PCs, only a few computer terminals within each police station; no digital cameras, Polaroid cameras were used at crime scenes; and will getting better, there was still sexism and prejudice against gays. That said, the fundamental elements of a police procedural and a cracking good story demonstrate why Connelly and the Harry Bosch series, are one of the best.

Our introduction to Harry not only sets the scene but tells us quite a bit about his life. Harry is 40 years’ old in this first book, grew up in institutions after his mother was murdered, also providing an explanation as to why Harry dislike rock music, and was a tunnel rat in Vietnam before joining the police force, where he tends to be an outsider. It is this level of detail in our introduction to Harry, although better editing might have the redundancies of that detail,that sets the scene for this book.

Connelly’s attention to detail is also exemplified in his sense of place. We can not only see where Bosch is going, but almost hear and smell it as well. You don’t have to have visited Los Angeles to know Bosch’s Los Angeles.

And lastly, the plot: the story was meticulously plotted with some of the best twists I’ve read. There’s even a twist upon a twists. It takes real skill to pull that off.

I first read this book in November 1996 but hadn’t kept any notes. When my mystery group selected it for this month, I decided to re-read it, not only for the group but to see whether it had held up and was as good as I remembered. I originally rated it “Ex,” and have downgraded it to “VG+” only because of the redundancy, but the overall quality of the writing is there and has remained true in this book and in every subsequent book Connelly has written.

THE BLACK ECHO (Pol Proc-Harry Bosch-Los Angeles, CA-Cont) – VG+
Connelly, Michael - 1st in series
Little Brown and Company, 1992, US Hardcover – ISBN: 0316153613
(less)

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Jan 14, 2011 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of Police Procedurals

Recommended to Lisa (Harmonybites) by: The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Ultimate Reading List

Shelves: contemporary, mystery, ultimate-reading-list, crime, fiction, novels, popular-fiction

I liked this one. It flowed well, sucking me in from the beginning and never letting me go, and I got more intrigued--and interested in the protagonist detective, Harry Bosch, more and more as we went along. This is a first novel, but it lays enough backstory that it feels like there were prior books. Bosch had a case in the past so famous he got paid to be a consultant and have his name used in a television series, and he owns a home overlooking Los Angeles as a result. And another case got him...more

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May 31, 2013 Nolan rated it 4 of 5 stars

I'm a bit confused by this book. One site I visited said it is the first in
the Harry Bosch detective series, yet so much reference was made to previous
cases that I'm quite sure I misinterpreted the reference site I looked at.
I thought those of you who follow series books with an almost want to cheer
for me because I actually started with the first book in a series rather
than barge in at the middle somewhere. So whether this is the first book or
not, it is an excellent mystery. It's well written, a...more

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Apr 20, 2010 Joyce Lagow rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery

First in the Harry Bosch series.[return][return]On call on a Sunday morning, Harry Bosch, LAPD homicide detective, catches the call for a dead body in a pipe on Mulholland Drive. He recognizes the corpse as Meadows, a Vietnam vet with whom he served as a "tunnel rat"--those trained to go into the labyrinthine underground tunnels constructed by the Viet Cong to flush out the enemy. It looks as if Meadows has ODed on heroin, not surprising given his record as a drug user. But there are details tha...more

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Jan 04, 2009 Tim Niland rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009-reads

Somehow in all of my mystery and crime fiction reading, I had never read anything by Michael Connelly. His books had always been on my reading list, but for some reason or another he was always bumped in favor for something else. Since it looks like Ian Rankin's great detective John Rebus might well have retired, it seemed like a good time to make the acquaintance of his American counterpart, Harry Bosch. Starting at the beginning of the series, we find detective Bosch assigned to the Hollowood,...more

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Apr 29, 2013 Eden rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I "discovered" Harry Bosch when I read a book from the Mickey Haller series by the same author. I was intrigued enough by him to start accumulating the Bosch books and, having now read the first one, I have to give kudos to Connelly for having created two such diverse characters in the same general genre.

I found this book to have a much darker tone than the Haller books and I believe that stems from the man himself, a tortured soul if ever there was one. Harry is definitely his own worst enemy a...more

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Apr 14, 2013 Anirban rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: american-mystery, award-winners, police-procedural

“You are a cliché cop”
This line from the book, sums up the overall feeling and experience I had while reading BLACK ECHO by Michael Connelly, featuring LAPD detective Harry Bosch. The book was full of clichés, scattered everywhere, like dead bodies in a war field!!!
So, first things first. Lets check the points, I mean the clichéd ones, in relation to a police procedural, which must have been present,
1. Bitter Detective who has been demoted – Present.
2. Hero having problems adhering to department...more “You are a cliché cop”
This line from the book, sums up the overall feeling and experience I had while reading BLACK ECHO by Michael Connelly, featuring LAPD detective Harry Bosch. The book was full of clichés, scattered everywhere, like dead bodies in a war field!!!
So, first things first. Lets check the points, I mean the clichéd ones, in relation to a police procedural, which must have been present,
1. Bitter Detective who has been demoted – Present.
2. Hero having problems adhering to department guidelines – Present.
3. A war-scarred Vietnam veteran – Present.
4. Hero falling in love only to receive broken heart – Present.
5. Hero is a loner – Present.
6. Hero loves music – Present.

So, almost everything I expected to find in a typical American police procedural was present in this book. So, it was not a wonder, that sometimes while reading it, I found myself wondering whether Bosch is a long lost cousin of John Rebus. The similarities were so uncanny, as if it was almost a family trait. The only major difference being in the choice of music. Rebus like classic rock, while Bosch found solace in Jazz.
“....the only things he spent money on was on food, booze and jazz”
Having a feeling of déjà vu, had heard same sort of character description about a police officer from Edinburgh.

Every character starting from Bosch’s boss to the culprits were true to stereotype. The dialogues were true to form, loud mouthed, bland and clichéd. They failed to invoke any sensation whatsoever.

Now the plot. Somehow it felt, unreal. The crime and the modus operandi was ingenious. But the motive for the crime seemed somewhat farfetched to me. The pace of the book was slow too. For the first 250 odd pages the plot went nowhere. There were very few clues for the reader, and no solid suspects were introduced. I, personally, had a tough time going through those first 250 pages.

So, summing up, all I can say is that it wasn’t a pleasant read. And, it was also nothing out of the ordinary. If given a choice I would choose Morse with Oxford, over Bosch with Hollywood.

My last point is a sort of wondering aloud. I have always wondered why most American detectives have to be such lonely and broken characters. Why cant they be family men, with a normal life?? I am still waiting for the book, where I will be treated to a protagonist who leads a normal life, with a family, and for whom solving a crime is not any sort of crusade, but its just a part of his job. Someone like Inspector Wexford from the other side of the Atlantic.
P.S.
1.Though the book disappointed me, but I am certainly not giving up on Michael Connelly. I had liked his standalone novel,, VOID MOON, and I definitely believe that I am going to like the other two books I have with me in my shelf.
2. The description of the tunnels and the tunnel rats from the Vietnam war was what prompted me to give this book a 2.5 stars instead of a 2.(less)

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Apr 11, 2013 Mark Chisnell rated it 4 of 5 stars

I picked this one up because it was a group read on Goodreads, and I’m very glad I did. The Harry Bosch books have been a huge hit and it’s easy to see why from this opening tale - Connelly nails his central character from the very beginning.

Harry Bosch is a Vietnam vet, a tunnel fighter, one of the handful of Americans that struggled to battle the North Vietnamese in the dimension that they totally dominated – underground. Harry’s also a nascent media star for breaking a couple of big cases an...more

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Dec 01, 2012 Harry rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: detective-mystery, favorites

Time saver tip: if you've read my review of any Harry Bosch book, you've read 'em all. Since I don't reveal plots and reserve my comments to the overall book/author, characterization, style, etc...I just don't feel the need to repeat myself as in most cases series books if any good at all do remain consistent. The star ratings might change, but not my opinion of the series as a whole.

Michael Connelly is a well know and very popular author in the mystery/detective and police procedural genres. E...more

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Oct 04, 2012 David S. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, suspense

I ended up reading the first Harry Bosch novel, after I had read a bunch of novels that featured Bosch in them. Also, I read this book twenty years since it was written. These are the reasons that make me give this book 4-1/2 stars instead of the 5 it does deserve. And, as I was reading it, it felt like I was on a bicycle coming to one huge hill....picking up speed...exhilerating...almost to outright terror....and then....I coasted at the bottom. Which was great. But, after experiencing a fantas...more

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Apr 16, 2012 Tyler rated it 4 of 5 stars

Michael Connelly is one of the best bestseller writers I have read. Great plot. The narrator's descriptions do not point out every detail but do keep you informed. I think I like Connelly so much because nothing too absurd happens. I couldn't figure out what was going to happen(which I don't try to anyway) and when it ended, it seemed plausible. I loved the background of the tunnel rats and want to find more books about that subject, must have been freakish. I can understand how his co-tunneler...more

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Apr 23, 2012 Danette Cole rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have only read two other Connelly books, Lincoln Lawyer...which I loved, and Blood Work which was also good. However, this was the first Harry Bosch novel and I really enjoyed reading it. Something about his writing style just keeps me interested and I will definitely read more of his books.

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Feb 19, 2012 Chazzbot rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I picked up a copy of this book years ago at a used bookshop, now long since out of business, and let it sit for quite a while on a shelf. Finally, I read an article on Connelly in which he revealed that James Ellroy (one of my favorite authors) was the model for this book's detective hero, Hieronymous ("rhymes with anonymous") Bosch, and I found myself digging through my collection of paperbacks, freshly inspired to read it. And now I realize how much of a fracking idiot I was for not reading i...more

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Feb 09, 2012 Emily rated it 4 of 5 stars

Harry Bosch is a law enforcement officer who is "not part of the family," which means he likes to do things his own way, isn't overly concerned about protecting the department from scandal, is more likely to investigate something that others would slag off, and absolutely gets results. This is a bad thing for the criminals and slag-offs he seems to be surrounded by. Harry's first case begins with the murder of a person Harry served in Vietnam with. It looks like a routine heroin overdose, but Ha...more

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Dec 10, 2011 Cathie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Michael Connelly is one of those authors whose name keeps creeping up on me. He’s a prolific writer and has published more than two-dozen novels in the last twenty years. Until last week, I’d never read anything by Connelly, mostly because he came highly recommended by the two men in my life whose reading preferences couldn’t be more different than my own. But, after more than a little prodding, I gave in and decided to give Connelly a try. After all, what could it really hurt? If I didn’t like...more Michael Connelly is one of those authors whose name keeps creeping up on me. He’s a prolific writer and has published more than two-dozen novels in the last twenty years. Until last week, I’d never read anything by Connelly, mostly because he came highly recommended by the two men in my life whose reading preferences couldn’t be more different than my own. But, after more than a little prodding, I gave in and decided to give Connelly a try. After all, what could it really hurt? If I didn’t like him, then I could simply quit reading and move onto something else. If, however, I found something compelling in his writing, then maybe I’d have a new favorite author. What could it hurt?

Black Echo is the first in the Harry Bosch series of novels based upon a homicide detected who has been demoted to the most undesirable homicide beat in his department because he’s not part of the “family” and doesn’t play by the rules. He’s narrowly escaped one Internal Affairs investigation, and that department is still chomping at the bit to find anything at all that will allow them to bring him down, and they are relentless in their harassment and pursuit.

The premise of this book surrounds the suspicious drug overdose death of a Vietnam Veteran and the seemingly (at first) unrelated bank vault robbery a year prior. Harry Bosch is teamed up with FBI agent Eleanor Wish as the two work together to solve both crimes while attempting to understand how they were related.

This book has more twists and turns than the average mystery/action/suspense/thriller novel and I found myself not only holding my breath while turning the pages, but repeatedly thinking what an excellent movie this book would make. Just when I thought I had everything figured out, I was thrown yet another curve ball and then another that left me with my jaw dropping and shaking my head at myself for never suspecting the final outcome.

The verdict, then? I loved it and wish I hadn’t been so hard-headed and resistant to giving Michael Connelly a try. I will definitely read more in this series to see where this character goes, and it might even make my Christmas Gift List for those few hard-to-please readers on my list.(less)

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Oct 07, 2011 Vicki rated it 5 of 5 stars

Michael Connelly sets the standard for gritty crime novels from the perspective of a jaded but insightful Los Angeles detective. This is the first of several novels featuring Detective Harry Bosch, a loner who is at odds with Internal Affairs and his own supervisor, and is constantly threatened with demotion and/or reassignment for following his own path rather than departmental guidelines.

Harry gets the call on this particular case, which appears to be an overdose death in an above ground open...more Michael Connelly sets the standard for gritty crime novels from the perspective of a jaded but insightful Los Angeles detective. This is the first of several novels featuring Detective Harry Bosch, a loner who is at odds with Internal Affairs and his own supervisor, and is constantly threatened with demotion and/or reassignment for following his own path rather than departmental guidelines.

Harry gets the call on this particular case, which appears to be an overdose death in an above ground open sewer pipe at a Los Angeles area reservoir. Harry immediately sees some details which others have overlooked, details which make him question the initial assumption that this is an accidental overdose by a hardened drug user. It doesn't take Harry long to realize he actually knows the victim, and in fact was in Viet Nam assigned to the same outfit around 15 years prior. They had both been assigned the frightening duty of "tunnel rats," which involved going down into dark and ominous tunnels looking for Viet Cong. Those tunnels could run for miles under jungles and from village to village. The blackness and dank fetid air in those tunnels earned those tunnels the nickname, the Black Echo.

Harry still suffers from insomnia and nightmares as a result of his time in Viet Nam. He recalls that the victim found in the pipe at the reservoir had indeed developed a drug habit while in the service, but had actually called Harry in recent years asking for help getting into treatment in an attempt to get clean and avoid more prison time. He also recalled that the victim had seemed to relish the thrill and excitement of the unknown that went with the tunnel assignments.

As details of the case begin to unfold, Harry is surprised to find out that the FBI also has an interest in the murder investigation. Over the objections of his supervisor, Harry begins to work with the FBI investigators and they share information which may lead to solving the murder case. But as Connelly's tales usually have, there is an additional case, an unsolved bank robbery which the murder case appears to be part of. There are players involved whose appearances complicate the case, and surprisingly keep leading Harry's thinking back to the fall of Saigon. Harry's power of analysis and his dogged linking of far flung, seemingly unrelated clues help him to build a case, leading slowly toward the murderer and inevitably the resolution of a myriad of additional crimes.

This is a tale of outstanding detective work up against sordid crime and master criminals, police corruption and bureaucratic obstacles described in the vividly detailed setting of urban Los Angeles. Harry Bosch is a detective whose various cases you will want to experience as he reappears as protagonist in several Connelly novels, all gripping mysteries involving near perfect crimes. Harry Bosch smokes too much, drinks too much, doesn't do personal relationships very well, but goodness, can he pick up a thread of clues and follow them through to the end!

So if you see the name Michael Connelly on the book cover, grab it and you'll enjoy every minute of it. Boy can he plot a great mystery! (less)

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Aug 08, 2011 Arthur rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The first Harry Boach mystery set in 1990 and published in 1992, currently on the NYT best seller list. Harry catches the case of a fellow Vietnam era tunnel rat who is found murdered in LA. He works the case with a female FBI agent who is working on a bank robbery involving a tunnel.

The usual page-turning, detail oriented, driving (literally and figuratively) narrative, with a twist at the end. I didn't want to read an older book, but the narrative kept pulling me back in.

What's totally surpri...more

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Aug 07, 2011 Jane Stewart rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: crime-mystery

Barely ok. It kept my interest but I wasn’t emotionally engaged. Too many unpleasant people.

REVIEWER’S OPINION:
I enjoyed other Connelly books so I thought I’d try the Harry Bosch series. This is the first one in that series. It was not nearly as good. My problems follow.

1. This read too much like a police procedural. One guy raising questions, investigating, and uncovering clues and leads.

2. Too many unpleasant and unlikeable characters: Harry’s bosses, other cops, internal affairs, FBI guys, th...more

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Jun 17, 2011 Jeff rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have failed. I have read the Harry Bosch novels out of sequence. I blame myself. That disclaimer aside I was lucky enough to happen upon the first novel in the series the other day, and read it with great plum and vigor (ok now I'm just teasing). Such an awesome story, and in my subconsiously guilty way I think knowing the characters after this novel helped me appreciate them as they first started. A true endorsement of Connelly's writing style, as he has committed to these characters and thei...more

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Mar 19, 2011 Mike rated it 4 of 5 stars

The range of characters in this intriguing story include corrupt Vietnamese police officials, former tunnel rats and MPs, agents of the FBI, newspaper reporters, a trio of teenage hustlers, a mother who does phone sex, Department of Youth Services, and the bureaucratic hierarchy of the LAPD. All the foregoing are connected via a complex and engrossing story which takes place in pre-cellphone Los Angeles and where all the threads logically connect in the end. The story starts with LAPD Homicide D...more

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Mar 03, 2011 Sidna Bookout rated it 5 of 5 stars

WOW! I love this author and this character! This book was written in 1992 and introduced Connelly's character, Police Detective Harry Bosch. As the book opens we are dropped into the middle of Harry's life. The series does not begin with Harry's first day on the job as a detective. He has had an interesting police career before we meet him. We learn details about his past as the story progresses, without all the annoying foreshadowing that is so overused today. It is like meeting a new friend an...more

3 likes · like · see review

Feb 03, 2011 Book Concierge rated it 3 of 5 stars

Harry Bosch is a recently discredited Los Angeles police homicide detective, now working the Hollywood beat. When he’s called out to investigate a dead body in a drainage pipe it seems routine – a homeless man who crawled into the pipe for temporary shelter and OD’d there. But there’s something not quite right about the scene, and Harry realizes he recognizes the victim – from his service in Vietnam.

Harry has to battle internal affairs, the FBI, and his own past demons to arrive at the truth. H...more

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About Michael Connelly

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teache...more Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teachers was novelist Harry Crews.
After graduating in 1980, Connelly worked at newspapers in Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, primarily specializing in the crime beat. In Fort Lauderdale he wrote about police and crime during the height of the murder and violence wave that rolled over South Florida during the so-called cocaine wars. In 1986, he and two other reporters spent several months interviewing survivors of a major airline crash. They wrote a magazine story on the crash and the survivors which was later short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. The magazine story also moved Connelly into the upper levels of journalism, landing him a job as a crime reporter for the Los Angeles Times, one of the largest papers in the country, and bringing him to the city of which his literary hero, Chandler, had written.
After three years on the crime beat in L.A., Connelly began writing his first novel to feature LAPD Detective Hieronymus Bosch. The novel, The Black Echo, based in part on a true crime that had occurred in Los Angeles, was published in 1992 and won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel by the Mystery Writers of America. Connelly has followed that up with 18 more novels.
Connelly's books have been translated in 35 languages and have won the Edgar Award, Anthony Award, Macavity Award, Los Angeles Times Best Mystery/Thriller Award, Shamus Award, Dilys Award, Nero Award, Barry Award, Audie Award, Ridley Award, Maltese Falcon Award (Japan), .38 Caliber Award (France), Grand Prix Award (France), and Premio Bancarella Award (Italy).
Michael was the President of the Mystery Writers of America organization in 2003 and 2004. In addition to his literary work, Michael was one of the creators, writers, and consulting producers of Level 9, a TV show about a task force fighting cyber crime, that ran on UPN in the Fall of 2000.
Michael lives with his family in Florida.

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The Brass Verdict (Harry Bosch, #14; Mickey Haller, #2)

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Quotes from The Black Echo

“You can't patch a wounded soul with a Band-Aid.” — 18 people liked it

“The setting sun burned the sky pink and orange in the same bright hues as surfers' bathing suits. It was beautiful deception, Bosch thought, as he drove north on the Hollywood Freeway to home. Sunsets did that here. Made you forget it was the smog that made their colors so brilliant, that behind every pretty picture there could be an ugly story.” — 7 people liked it

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The Black Echo (Harry Bosch #1)

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