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Void Moon

(Harry Bosch Universe #12)

Michael Connelly (Goodreads Author)

3.98 · Rating details · 23,613 ratings · 1,035 reviews

New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly writes novels of brilliantly original suspense. In this electrifying tour de force, he takes us into a world of extremes: too much criminality, too much money, and too many ways to die.
In L.A. Cassie Black is another beautiful woman in a Porsche: except Cassie just did six years in prison and still has "outlaw juice" flow ...more

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Paperback, 416 pages

Published May 1st 2004 by Grand Central Publishing (first published December 7th 1999)

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· 23,613 ratings · 1,035 reviews

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Start your review of Void Moon (Cassie Black, #1; Harry Bosch Universe, #12)

Mar 23, 2010 James Thane rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime-fiction, michael-connelly

Void Moon, which was published in 2000, is another standalone from Michael Connelly, the creator of Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller. The protagonist is Cassie Black, a beautiful young woman who was once a very skilled burglar who specialized in ripping off big marks in Vegas. But then a job went catastrophically wrong; Cassie's partner and lover was killed, and Cassie was arrested and sent to the pen for six years. Now free, she's living in L.A., selling Porches, and reporting regularly to her pro ...more

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Apr 08, 2015 Diane Wallace rated it really liked it

Excellent read! slow at first but picked up eventually.. both compelling and intriguing and great detective storyline (paperback!)

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Mar 13, 2020 Phrynne rated it liked it

Shelves: 5000-2020, middle-earth-challenge

Have to go down the middle here with just three stars (2.5 if I could) since I liked the book enough to finish it and it had an unexpected and redeeming ending. However I have to admit to a fair bit of skimming along the way.

Unfortunately I was never able to connect with any of the characters including the MC, Cassie. It was not because she was a thief herself but just that there was not enough about her to really like. However she does redeem herself right at the end of the book and I was left ...more

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Jun 27, 2019 Brenda rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime, own-read, suspense, mystery, 5000-2019

Cassie Black; ten months out of prison for manslaughter and living a life that was boring and mundane. Her once-a-month visit to her parole officer sparked memories of what had originally put her in prison – she decided she would do one more job and hightail it out of there. Become lost to the authorities and live life on her terms.

Everything went as it should, until somehow it no longer was. Cassie knew she was in trouble, but she was determined to stay one step ahead. The gunmen who had her in ...more

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Aug 10, 2011 Kemper rated it liked it

Shelves: bad-guys-rule, thieves, crime-mystery, 2011

As we all know by now, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

Unless what happened is that you’re a professional thief and your lover/partner-in-crime gets caught trying rip to off a high roller in a hotel penthouse and ends up flying out the window, crashes through an atrium over the casino and lands on a craps table in front of you. If that occurs, then everyone will know your business, you’ll be leaving Vegas quicker than Sheryl Crow, and your transportation will be a prison bus.

Cassie Black a As we all know by now, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

Unless what happened is that you’re a professional thief and your lover/partner-in-crime gets caught trying rip to off a high roller in a hotel penthouse and ends up flying out the window, crashes through an atrium over the casino and lands on a craps table in front of you. If that occurs, then everyone will know your business, you’ll be leaving Vegas quicker than Sheryl Crow, and your transportation will be a prison bus.

Cassie Black and her lover Max made their living stealing from the rich in Sin City until Max’s luck ran out, and Cassie got sent to jail. Several years later, Cassie is on parole in LA and seems to be on the straight and narrow with a job selling sports cars. But a new development has Cassie wanting to leave the country in a hurry so she needs quick cash and asks her old friend Leo Renfro to set her up with a job.

Leo finds a gig that will pay nicely, but there’s a problem. It’s at the very same casino where Max failed his flying lesson and Cassie got busted. Desperate, Cassie takes the job despite her misgivings, but soon finds herself being pursued by Jack Karch, a shady private detective and amateur magician who has dug several shallow graves out in the desert to solve problems. Jack is also the guy who busted Max before he went out the window.

This is the second Michael Connelly I’ve read, and like The Poet, I found it very OK but nothing spectacular. The guy can come up with some offbeat plots, and his writing gets the job done. But his stuff lacks a certain something that I look for in crime novels.

The idea of a female professional thief specializing in Vegas hotels could have been very cool, but Cassie came across as sloppy. You’d never catch Richard Stark’s Parker forgetting to turn off his taser and run the battery down. I really liked the Jack Karch character at first because he seemed like very slick guy who had Vegas wired, but then in the last half of the book, Karch descends into over-the-top standard thriller villainy and became a lot less interesting.

A decent enough story, but didn’t really live up to its potential. ...more

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Apr 07, 2019 Becky rated it liked it

Shelves: 2019, mystery-and-thrillers, ebook_kindle, reviewed

This was my sort of palate cleanser book to get me back on track after reading a bunch of misogynistic duds in what feels like a very short period of time, and I can usually count on Michael Connelly for a good'un.

I'm reading his books in Bosch Universe order, and this one is in the universe, but not actually featuring Harry Bosch. Those non-Bosch books have been hit or miss for me, to be honest. A Darkness More Than Night was ridiculously bad, but The Poet was really good. This one is kind of ...more

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Oct 07, 2018 fleurette rated it liked it

Shelves: thriller, thieves

This is not the best book by Michael Connelly but still a very good one. I can easily imagine making it into a movie.

I have a sweet spot for con artists of all sorts and I totally love heist stories. And heist is a big part of this book. Cassie is out of prison on her probation time living quite life. Then out of sudden everything changes and needs some serious amount of money. She agrees to take a job but nothing goes as it should.

I do really like Cassie, she is a complicated heroine. There i ...more

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Jul 07, 2016 Scott Rhee rated it liked it

Shelves: noir, vegas, heist

True story: I once had a job offer in Vegas, but I turned it down. This was roughly ten years ago, before the housing market bubble imploded, when houses were being built by the second and spreading across the Nevada desert like some urban sprawl virus. The massive influx of people meant a demand for schools, which meant a demand for teachers.

As a fresh-out-of-graduate-school teacher, I was pretty eager to find a job. My interview for the Vegas school district went like this: Do you want a teach ...more

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Oct 15, 2011 Jane Stewart rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 4-plus-star-other, crime-suspense-thriller

4 ½ stars. The last two hours are edge of your seat. Great character development and outthinking each other. Excellent ending.

STORY BRIEF:
Cassie was in prison. She has been out on parole for 10 months. She works for a Porsche dealership selling cars. She is unsettled about something and wants to do another burglary job. She contacts her former buddy Leo who says he has a job needing someone like her - to steal money from a hotel room safe while the mark sleeps. The mark is a gambler in Las Vegas 4 ½ stars. The last two hours are edge of your seat. Great character development and outthinking each other. Excellent ending.

STORY BRIEF:
Cassie was in prison. She has been out on parole for 10 months. She works for a Porsche dealership selling cars. She is unsettled about something and wants to do another burglary job. She contacts her former buddy Leo who says he has a job needing someone like her - to steal money from a hotel room safe while the mark sleeps. The mark is a gambler in Las Vegas. She takes the job, pulls it off admirably, and gets away. To Cassie’s surprise, not only did she get his gambling winnings but also a briefcase with $2 ½ million in mob money. The hotel manager hires Jack (private investigator/hit man) to find the thief (Cassie) and get it back.

REVIEWER’S OPINION:
This is a great book for watching two very smart people outsmart each other. Jack is clever, intuitive, has guns, and uses them. Cassie has smart plans, but her most impressive abilities occur when things go wrong, and she instantly comes up with something unexpected to counter and survive. Those parts were great.

Early in the book I was frustrated because I didn’t know who to root for. Just know that this is a story about thieves, killers, and criminals. All of them are after each other. It takes a while to get to know Cassie (a thief), but she’s the one to root for. When Jack comes into the picture a little later, I was hoping the two of them would get together. He was impressed with her. This could have been a great romantic suspense book (with the hit man changing his life after falling in love). (I’m a big fan of romance novels.) But as the story continued, I realized that could not happen. Early on Jack was a good Samaritan when he saw a man abusing a woman, and he stepped in to help her. But later I learned Jack was evil. I could accept Jack killing bad guys, but when he starts killing good guys I realized he wasn’t going to be the romantic hero I wanted. Since we are in the head of the bad guy chasing Cassie, this qualifies as a thriller (crime suspense thriller). It took some time to get going, but boy, the last two hours were edge of your seat! And the ending was very well done. It was a happy ending.

What makes this so good is all the “showing” not telling. We see details of how clever things happen.

NARRATOR:
The narrator L J Ganser was very good.

DATA:
Unabridged audiobook length: 10 hrs and 59 mins. Narrator: L J Ganser. Swearing language: strong, but rarely used. Sexual content: none. Setting: 2000 mostly Los Angeles area, California, and Las Vegas, Nevada. Book Copyright: 2000. Genre: crime suspense thriller. Ending: Not mushy happy for everyone, but happy from a realistic standpoint.

OTHER BOOKS:
Most of the author’s books are within the four series mentioned below. To date he has written two novels that are not part of these series. He has also done some collections and anthologies that I do not intend to read. The two novels are:
4 ½ stars. Void Moon. Copyright 2000.
(to read) Chasing The Dime. Copyright 2002.

THE FOUR SERIES (Bosch, McCaleb, McEvoy, and Haller):
I recommend reading the Harry Bosch books in order, but it would be ok to try “The Last Coyote” or “Lost Light” first, just to see if you like the style. Then go back and read the rest in order. There is a date flow and the characters interact. See my review for The Fifth Witness for a list of all the books and my recommended reading order (for the four series). ...more

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Apr 23, 2012 Dusty Craine rated it really liked it

A great story with an unlikely hero. Like I've seen mentioned a dozen times here, there are no good guys in this story. This is a story of criminals moving in a the criminal life. The best character to hang your allegiances with is your story's central character Cassie Black. Cassie is an ex-con, ex-burglar who goes straight for a while and finds she just can't live that life. She decides to pull one last heist and disappear. But when things go sideways she finds herself stuck between where the ...more

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Jul 01, 2019 Obsidian rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2019-library-books, the-abc-challenge-ha

I don't want to even see the word "void" for a month. It's repeated throughout this book and also moons are shown. I just wanted to finish this so I could count it to Horror Aficionados ABC Challenge. If it wasn't for that, I would have DNFed this thing on Sunday.

"Void Moon" follows Cassie Black. Cassie we find out through a long winding road is an ex-felon. She decides to take one last heist in order to get enough funds to kidnap her daughter who was adopted at birth. I throw in that last part I don't want to even see the word "void" for a month. It's repeated throughout this book and also moons are shown. I just wanted to finish this so I could count it to Horror Aficionados ABC Challenge. If it wasn't for that, I would have DNFed this thing on Sunday.

"Void Moon" follows Cassie Black. Cassie we find out through a long winding road is an ex-felon. She decides to take one last heist in order to get enough funds to kidnap her daughter who was adopted at birth. I throw in that last part so you can get why I wasn't rooting for Cassie. She's self absorbed and due to her actions causes a lot of damage to people. I found out after the fact she appears in "The Narrows" and is referred to in other Harry Bosch books. That said, she didn't need a standalone. I did not care a whit about her and the other characters in this book were underdeveloped and a mess.

The book takes a really long time to get going. We start off with Cassie touring a house and I was able to put two and two together rather quickly. I didn't get all of the details right, but enough to just hard sigh through everything. I have to say that the twists in this book were just ridiculous after a while. The heist plot didn't work for me and then we found out about a plot towards the end that made zero sense to me.

Of course the heist goes wrong and then the book starts to also follow Jack Karch. Karch is a psychopath. I got nothing else but that. He has a tenuous connection to Cassie and the guy seems to get off on "winning" at all costs. Connelly follows Cassie and Karch as they run around causing havoc in Las Vegas and Los Angeles.

I can't say much about anyone else in this book. They were merely there to either be killed or help out Cassie.

The writing was typical Connelly, but without Bosch to ground the book I just didn't care. Reading about how to burgle a room and steal from a mark had me yawning. I should have just rewatched Ocean's Eleven again. The flow was awful from start to finish. Everything read very disjointed because I think that Connelly wanted to throw out surprises/twists to readers. Instead I just hard shrugged through most of it.

The ending just fell flat. I think the biggest issue I had was this book does not matter in the Bosch universe at all. I rather have another Haller book.

(view spoiler) ...more

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Dec 07, 2017 Rob rated it it was amazing

Shelves: serial-thrillers

An other ripping yarn from Michael Connelly.
Something a bit different this time round. There are no goodies here only baddies just some baddies are worse than others.
I found the book a bit slow to get going but that didn't last long, by the end everything in my life was put on hold until I got to the explosive end.
The main character, Cassie Black an ex convict and once burglar in Los Vegas but now a Porsche car salesperson in L.A. Seems to have turned her life around but for some unknown reason, ...more

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May 15, 2016 Jim rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 3series, 1audio, 2fiction, mystery-thriller

A different MC for Connelly, Cassie Black is a thief, but still one of the good guys, at least comparatively. This was good, but really a 3.5 star read until the end which seemed as if it would be predictable. I'll simply say that bumped it to a 4 star read for me - power packed & excellent. Again he shows masterful foreshadowing & attention to detail.

Again, I read this in published order, Callie Black #1, which I highly suggest. A Darkness More Than Night comes next. It is Harry Bosch #7 & Ter ...more

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Jul 28, 2011 Matt rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook

While not a stellar read, it was an interesting one. Connelly uses his regular crumbs from other books to tie them all in, but this one pretty much moves itself along. Its premise is a great caper within a Las Vegas hotel and the fallout ftom it all. Some good storylines woven into it, though having the main character be the villain is a little harder for me to create a connection. I guess I prefer the white night narrator.

Connelly kind of floats this book out there and leaves it to sail its own ...more

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Jan 15, 2018 Nancy Ellis rated it it was amazing

I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did! Several Connelly fans whose opinions I respect had said it was good, but they didn't like it nearly as much as the Bosch books. Well, Harry Bosch is admittedly a tough act to follow, but I think this book is just about as good.

A void moon is an astrological phase when the moon is not in any "house" and is supposedly a time of bad luck. It certainly has brought bad luck to Cassie Black, recently out on parole after serving five years of a sentence I didn't expect to enjoy this as much as I did! Several Connelly fans whose opinions I respect had said it was good, but they didn't like it nearly as much as the Bosch books. Well, Harry Bosch is admittedly a tough act to follow, but I think this book is just about as good.

A void moon is an astrological phase when the moon is not in any "house" and is supposedly a time of bad luck. It certainly has brought bad luck to Cassie Black, recently out on parole after serving five years of a sentence for an attempted burglary of a Las Vegas casino in which her partner/lover was killed. Shortly after going to prison, she gave birth to their daughter and let her go in adoption. She has now located the young girl and is planning to kidnap her and run away with her, since the girl's family is moving to Paris. Cassie goes back to her old associate, Leo, and asks to be included in a big job to get enough money to run away with the little girl. He assigns her a role in a very big operation coming up in the same casino which was so disastrous for her those years ago. Leo is the superstitious one, by the way, and warns her not to be in the mark's room between a certain time frame. You can imagine how many things go wrong, one disaster leading to another, and Cassie becomes hunted by the casino's private "security" who not only wants to get the missing money back but also wants to kill Cassie and everyone associated with her. Whew!

I was kind of dragged down at first by the descriptions of the techniques and tools of big-time robbery, but it was fascinating, and I found myself amazed at the research done by the author to be able to present so many details. At the end of the book in his Acknowledgements, he says that all the tools used in the book are available to the public. I hope I never need to use any of them! I do love reading about Vegas, though, since I have become slightly familiar with it, having family there. The characters in the story, Cassie, Leo, even the creepy Jack Karch, grab your interest, and you feel compelled to continue to the end just to find out what happens to everybody! All in all, I would have to say this really was as good as a Harry Bosch story after all! ...more

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Mar 03, 2016 Lisa Lemons rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, crime, books-i-want-to-own

About a month ago, I put out a recommendation request on Goodreads which can be found here. The very next day, I received a recommendation from Antonio for Void Moon. I honestly had been looking for a book like this for the past year, so many thanks to Antonio for helping me finally find the story I was looking for.

I have a soft spot in my heart for anti-heroes, those good guys who aren’t all that good but have the best intentions at heart. Those intentions are always selfish in nature, but they ...more

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Mar 04, 2009 Ed rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed, crime-fiction-mystery-thriller

I am a big Michael Connelly fan and wondered how I had missed this book. Well, perhaps it's because it isn't up to his usual standards.

Written in 2000, it describes the efforts of a Las Vegas thief and parolee, Cassie Black, to raise enough money to kidnap her natural daughter and take off for Tahiti.

It starts slow and then slows down. It finally picks up the pace about 150 pages in and in the last 40 pages moves very quickly to tie up all the loose ends. The ending is not very satisfying but s ...more

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Apr 15, 2011 Deana M rated it liked it

Out of all the Michael Connelly books I have read up to this point, this has been my least favorite so far. I had a hard time getting in to it, but once I did it was a pretty fast read. There really is no good guy/bad guy in this book. All the chracters are from the wrong side of the law, but out of those there is one character that makes you root for them~and that is Cassie Black. When Jack Karsh enters the scene, the book gets a little graphic and a lot bloody. I am all for mystery/good-guy/ba ...more

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Feb 19, 2020 Fred rated it liked it

Shelves: mystery

Cassidy Black is the main character, ex-convict & works at a Porsche dealership, after 5 years in prison, for trying to rob a casino, while visitors while asleep.

Later when caught & going to jail, Cassie did not know she was pregnant with Jodie.
Jodie was adopted by other parents when born.

Cassie is in for another casino robbery plan. She needs to be in hotel’s room designated as the “Void Moon” - away from everything/everyone during the robbery. After the robbery...

The owner of the casino hires ...more

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Aug 25, 2018 Jamie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: crime-fiction, mystery, michael-connelly

4.5/5

This stand alone Bosch Universe novel started out solid enough but quickly built up into something special.

A nice change from Connelly's usual police perspective, Cassie Black is an paroled hot prowler about to embark on one last job to disappear on its payday. The back stories unfold quite well and its characters become full rather quickly. The "synchronicity" of the story arcs was enjoyed most and wasn't telegraphed or all that cheesy. I also enjoyed the mentionings and nods to Bosch char ...more

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Jan 04, 2016 Tom Swift rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Michael Connelly is one of the best. This is a stand alone novel, it is not part of the Harry Bosch series. A great crime thriller, bad guys in Vegas and Los Angeles. Any books from this author are worth the ride.

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Sep 06, 2017 Susan Elizabetha rated it really liked it

A good read. But I enjoyed the Harry Bosch, Michael Haller and the Poet books much more.

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Aug 18, 2019 Scott rated it really liked it

Shelves: mystery

Void Moon is the third time that Michael Connelly steps away from his favorite Los Angeles homicide investigator, Harry Bosch. Published in 2000, it is Connelly’s ninth novel and this time the focus is on Cassie Black, a former criminal out on parole, and currently selling Porsches to Hollywood go-getters. Cassie previously served five years in a Nevada prison for conspiring with her prior partner and love of her life, Max Freeling, to steal from casino winners while they are sleeping in their h Void Moon is the third time that Michael Connelly steps away from his favorite Los Angeles homicide investigator, Harry Bosch. Published in 2000, it is Connelly’s ninth novel and this time the focus is on Cassie Black, a former criminal out on parole, and currently selling Porsches to Hollywood go-getters. Cassie previously served five years in a Nevada prison for conspiring with her prior partner and love of her life, Max Freeling, to steal from casino winners while they are sleeping in their hotel rooms. Cassie was arrested when heir last con failed big time, ending with Max taking his own life, and leaving Cassie pregnant with their daughter.

When the book begins, Cassie has been released from prison and taken a job selling cars in Hollywood so that she can watch her daughter from a distance, who lives with adopted parents in the San Fernando valley. Cassie discovers that the father has been transferred and they will be taking her daughter with them to Paris. With almost a year left on her parole, Cassie makes the rash decision to take one last illegal job so that she can take her daughter and leave the country.

Cassie approaches the leader of her old team. Leo Renfro, who is also Max’s half-brother. He sets her up with a “special” heist job that requires her to go back to Vegas and the Cleopatra casino – the same place where her failed last job and Max’s untimely death took place. The victim is supposed to be a high rolling gambler carrying up to $500,000 in winnings in his briefcase. Leo thinks that Cassie is very capable of handling the work required – preparing the hotel room in advance and sneaking in while he is asleep – to get the job done successfully. However, Leo is a very superstitious man, and warns her not be in his room during the period of the "void moon" which occurs between 3:00 am and 4:00 am in the morning.

Cassie heads to Vegas, risking being caught and returned to prison if she is discovered by law enforcement. She successfully sets up her victim’s room and later breaks in during the night, but things start to go wrong in many ways. First, the victim wakes up, making her hide in the closet during the “void moon” that Leo warned her about. Second, it looks like she won’t be able to escape without him seeing her… Then things get even worse... The next morning, the victim is found dead, shot in the head, and his briefcase gone. And once Cassie is finally able to get the secured briefcase open, she gets the surprise of her life. She has been set-up in more ways than one, and her life is hanging by the edge of a thread as a psycho is sent to hunt her down and eliminate her at all costs.

I don’t want to describe any more of the plot because it should be read and enjoyed without any knowledge that may spoil the fun. This is a fun, escapist read that provides fun and thrills on every page. It is a complex adventure that is weaved together superbly by a master storyteller. I could use several cliché descriptions - “fast-paced”, “unpredictable”, and “page-turner” - that would all apply whole heartedly in describing this page turner.

This was the third time that Connelly strayed from his famous and successful “Detective Bosch” character, and like the two times before, he pulls off a stunning and entertaining winner. Connelly used a news writer, an ex-FBI agent, and now a female criminal as his lead protagonist, and each time it’s worked. Connelly breathes colorful life into his characters, including personal histories, strengths, and flawed weaknesses that make them real and authentic – both in thought and in action. I also want to mention there’s a special place in my heart for State Parole Agent Thelma Kibble. Although she wasn’t in many scenes, she stole the moment with a shining personality filled with endearing strength that hid a real passionate care for others.

I especially enjoyed the pacing and flow of the story itself. Like an onion, Connelly peeled it one layer at a time, keeping a brisk and focused stride, letting the complex and multi-layered plot unfold one step at a time. Connelly is one of the smoothest writers I have ever read. I can sit for hours and never get thrown by a clunky sentence or description at all. His writing style is lyrical and virtuoso in its spellbinding delivery,

As I have described in my previous reviews, there are so many strengths that Connelly has as a writer. He is a master of plotting, characters, and setting – his plotting is tighter than a steel drum. He unfolds Cassie’s heist and what follows in a methodical, no-nonsense, just the facts Mam focus, that demands and keeps our full attention. In addition, he uses both Las Vegas and Los Angeles settings to breathe vibrant life and ambient energy into his story, adding depth and three-dimensional character that empowers the story.

Overall, after reading nine books by Michael Connelly, I find that I am repeating myself. I made this statement about every one of his Bosch novels, and then his separate outings with Jack McEvoy and Terry McCaleb. And now I am saying it again with Cassie Black because of what a great read it is. The simple truth is that with each book he writes, Connelly continues to get better, and better as a writer.

It feels like every book of his that I read, I found myself feeling immense joy as I devour it. This one was a nice change of pace from the Bosch series and stood tall on its own merits. Although it wasn’t his best, after nine books, I have not found a Connelly book that I didn’t love. This one included. ...more

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Oct 27, 2015 Siobhan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Michael Connelly is one of those authors. You know what I mean, whereby the word ‘those’ is written in italics or spoken with more emphasis than the rest of the sentence. He is a name you can speak and everyone will instantly know to whom you’re referring. Most have read one of his books, if only to see what he is all about. Considering the number of books he has written, and the following he has, it should come as no surprise that he has been sitting on my to-read list for a very long time. Wit Michael Connelly is one of those authors. You know what I mean, whereby the word ‘those’ is written in italics or spoken with more emphasis than the rest of the sentence. He is a name you can speak and everyone will instantly know to whom you’re referring. Most have read one of his books, if only to see what he is all about. Considering the number of books he has written, and the following he has, it should come as no surprise that he has been sitting on my to-read list for a very long time. With Void Moon, I finally worked around to giving him a read.

As I said, Michael Connelly has been sitting on my to-read list for quite some time. I wasn’t really sure where to start. I’d been planning to start with the Harry Bosch series, working from the beginning, as that seemed to be what everyone thoroughly enjoyed. Plus, I’m a sucker for a good series. I constantly tell myself I’m working through far too many as it is… yet I still find myself buying more books that are part of a series than I do standalone novels. I just love following characters throughout constantly developing stories. Thus, when I found a Michael Connelly collection going cheap, I jumped at them. Ten books for a little over what I would pay for just one book: count me in! Within the collection, there were the first in many of his character’s stories. There were also the most recent, meaning if I enjoyed the first I would need to go out and purchase the in-between books. There was also a single standalone novel – Void Moon. It was through this that I decided to go for the standalone novel rather than being lured into yet another series whereby I’d be playing catch up with the rest of the fandom.

After finishing Void Moon, I can safely say I understand why he has so many fans. There is no doubt that I will now be delving into his Harry Bosch universe, working my way through the books until I’m up to date. If Void Moon was any indication of what I can expect in his other work… well, I can imagine Michael Connelly will quickly be working his way up my list of most read authors.

I’ll be honest and say I wasn’t pulled in from the very start. At the start of the book things seemed to drag a bit. There seemed to be too much set up for me. The story was moving forward, but the action promised in the synopsis was not appearing. I’d been promised a thief and murderer showdown of epic proportions, yet I was given all the build-up into our thief re-entering the life of high roller pay-outs. Due to this, I was a little bit let down.

That changed, however, once we reached the point of the actual crime being committed. At that point, I could not put the book down, finishing what was left of the story in one sitting. What I’m trying to say is don’t let the first part of the story put you off finishing the book. Once we move beyond part one, the book moves at the kind of pace I’d expected of it. The story moved forward, things start to intertwine, and everything comes into play. We are given what the synopsis promised: we have a good old game of cat and mouse in the criminal world.

Honestly, it was such fun. Certain things failed to give the shock that was probably intended, but I wasn’t really expecting a mystery from this one. It was thriller, and with all the action going on I wasn’t bothered by how I worked out certain aspects of the story before they were explained.

Overall, it was a great introduction to Michael Connelly’s work. As I’ve already stated, I’ll certainly be reading more of his books in the future. ...more

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Jan 23, 2018 Ms.pegasus rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, thriller

I've always found Michael Connelly's writing a bit uneven when it came to female characters. The romantic interludes never felt convincing to me. The opening of this book is no exception. The setting is in a high end Las Vegas casino bar. Cassie, the main character, casts one last long rapturous gaze on Max as he departs. It's the “one last job” trope conveyed with an anxious vibe.

The next chapter is set about seven years later in L.A. Cassie has an inexplicable interest in the owners of a modes I've always found Michael Connelly's writing a bit uneven when it came to female characters. The romantic interludes never felt convincing to me. The opening of this book is no exception. The setting is in a high end Las Vegas casino bar. Cassie, the main character, casts one last long rapturous gaze on Max as he departs. It's the “one last job” trope conveyed with an anxious vibe.

The next chapter is set about seven years later in L.A. Cassie has an inexplicable interest in the owners of a modest house now up for sale. The details of the failed job, the whereabouts of Max, and her interest in the house are all unknowns. What we do know is that she served five years in prison and is now holding down a stable job in sales at the Hollywood Porsche, interrupted by regular appointments with a perceptive pragmatic parole officer named Thelma Kibble. Despite this promising path toward rehabilitation, Cassie exhibits an unexplained restlessness. She wants in on one final job — one lucrative enough to set her up for life. There is an urgency in this desire. Does the adrenaline rush she finally feels after making this decision sufficiently explain her motives?

My interest in this thriller was captured by Connelly's skill in providing devious sociopathic villains and colorful secondary characters. I loved Thelma with her astute sense of Cassie's mood and blunt admonitions. One of my favorite characters was Leo, a quirky, eclectically superstitious, extremely cautious middleman who connects criminals to jobs. He was Max's older step-brother and takes a fatherly interest in Cassie. It is Leo who floats a conviction about the omen of the void moon. He gleans this idea from his dabbling in astrology. It is the brief interval when the moon is between astrological houses, he explains. There was a void moon during the ill-fated Vegas job. He warns that there will be a void moon the night this current job is scheduled to take place.

Connelly applies his trademark skills for building suspense and inventing surprisingly convoluted plot twists. Although I missed his familiar repertory of characters, this book held my interest and steadily tightened the tension. ...more

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Apr 22, 2016 Jeanette rated it liked it

Connelly must have written this one with the movie in mind. There's action, even within the technical aspects, it's nearly continual movements. Cassie sells luxury Porsche automobiles and we don't miss a crash up with one of those either.

Violence is high. Higher than in the average Bosch. And yet this one also does as much for Las Vegas as it does for L.A. Their streets and locations alive throughout this novel.

But to me, it doesn't carry the depth of personality which the Bosch novels continual ...more

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Jul 19, 2011 Sidna rated it it was ok

I am a big fan of Michael Connelly, but this is not his best work. The main character in this book is Cassie Black, not one of his series characters. She had a bad childhood in Las Vegas and ends up getting a job as a dealer. Vegas is not as bad for people who live there as Connelly portrays it. He definitely prefers LA to Vegas! She is tired of that life and gets herself involved with a small time thief. They have a relationship until he is killed in the course of pulling a job. She is convicte ...more

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Apr 23, 2011 Susan rated it it was amazing

This is one of Michael Connolly's stand-alones and in my opinion one of his best books. The female protagonist, Cassie Black, completely won me over, even though she's an ex-con and planning another casino heist in Las Vegas. She's got her reasons.

Connolly shows her preparations in great detail. She wants, needs and expects it to be a perfect heist. Wrong-O, Cassie.

Cassie hits the road to escape the psycho Vegas "fixer" sent after her by the mob. Strangely, or perhaps craftily, Connolly imbues ...more

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Aug 31, 2018 Stephen rated it liked it · review of another edition

Quick easy read and mildly interesting but not up there with the Bosch books...

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Dec 19, 2017 Carol rated it liked it

I find that I have read/listened to 7 books of Michael Connelly. Then I listened to Void Moon, and I still don't understand how the phenomenon works and applies to the story. I'm probably the least understood of all the followers in the Goodreads audience, and there are a lot of you out there. I see what you all read and love with Connelly. Somehow it got loaded on my IPad, and it's been there a long time, so I listened to it.

As I still don't understand what Void Moon is, so I looked up a defin ...more

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About Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly

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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 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 26 more novels.

Fifty-eight million copies of Connelly’s books have sold worldwide and he has been translated into thirty-nine foreign languages. He has 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), Premio Bancarella Award (Italy), and the Pepe Carvalho award (Spain) .

Michael was the President of the Mystery Writers of America organization in 2003 and 2004. In addition to his literary work, Michael is one of the producers and writers of the TV show, “Bosch,” which is streaming on Amazon Prime Instant Video. Watch in the USA: http://amzn.to/192NqZE. Watch in the UK: http://amzn.to/1BAHm3Z. Watch in Germany: http://amzn.to/1zQ8T1X. He was also 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. And he can sometimes be seen on the hit TV show Castle playing poker!

Michael lives with his family in Florida. ...more