Regional: 1980 by Anver Abdulla

 Though Anver Abdulla is an accomplished name in Malayalam Detective fiction (he has given us some genuinely memorable detective Novels like Compartment and Onnaam Saakshi Sethuramaiyyer), not many know that he is also a screenwriter and Director. The writer’s fascination for the film industry has been evident in some of his past work (Operation Blue Star, Republic, Camera- the Novella in ‘Kappal Chethathinte Raathry’). But it is in 1980 (his latest work and the fourth installment in the Detective Perumaal franchise), his knowledge and mastery over the visual medium has come out in full glory.

One  night, an old acquaintance turns up in Detective Perumal’s house with a rather odd request- re-investigate the accidental death of the yesteryear Super Star Jagan! Jagan died almost 40 years back in the sets of a film named Padayorukkam during its Helicopter climax fight sequence shooting, which had received widespread media attention. So, when the Detective is confronted with this rather strange request, he is taken aback by the sheer absurdity of this request and he  immediately dismisses it.But a rather strange turn of events forces him to go back on this decision and pretty soon Perumal finds himself in the middle of the most challenging murder investigation of his career. Will he be successful in bringing out the mystery behind one of the most ‘notorious accidents’ from the past? 1980 is the story (but not limited to ) of this latest investigation by Detective Perumal.  

1980 is a work never confines within the limited realms of crime fiction .This can also be called as a  a work of speculative and altered historical fiction. With almost all the characters modelled on real-life personalities and real-life events, and the author’s perspective and imagination spicing up the proceedings, it often becomes impossible to distinguish the thin line between fact and fiction. Even the enigma around the late actor Jayan’s unreleased film (Panchapaandavar, incidentally set in Bombay) which had a stellar cast of Jayan, Raghavan, Poojappura Ravi and two others gets the author’s take in 1980. The Novel also serves as an ode to the Malayalam Cinema of the 70 s and 80 s. The story also has genuine heart warming moments. The episode involving the yesteryear stunt master  , and his final moments were delicately done. It is also pretty evident that the writer has also been inspired by some of the youtube interviews of yester year technicians of Malayalam and Tamil Cinema. It is remarkable that Anver Abdulla could come up with a gripping tale around an incident that shook not only the Film industry , but the whole of Indian Film Industry in the 80 s. The incident also paved the way for serious debates about the safety in the film shooting sets.

On the downside, the book also has it’s own share of cheesy moments. Some of the wild guesses of Perumal, including the speculative theory about Jagan living a secret life in America turned out to be unintentionally funny. Like wise, the portions pertaining to M.V.R’s crush with Saumini was also stretched a bit too far. Also at times, the reader finds it extremely difficult to differentaiate the real life personality from the fictional character. You also feel like Kamalhassan, Prem Nazir, MG.R, Latha , Balan K Nair, I.V Sasi, Seema et al are reprising their real life roles as fictional characters in the Novel which was some sort of dampener for the reader in me.The climax was also a bit convenient.

On the whole, these minor flaws aside, 1980 is a brilliantly written work by one of the finest writers of Detective Fiction in Malayalam.

-nikhimenon

Mini Book Review: the Woods by Harlan Coben

 

Harlan Coben is one writer who comes to my rescue whenever I face some reader’s block. So far, his books have been safe bets for me; fast-paced and entertaining! So, when I picked up his 2007 stand-alone thriller (which has also been made as a Netflix series), ‘The Woods,’ I was expecting nothing short of a paisa vasool racy thriller. Did it succeed in entertaining me? Well, read on.

Paul Copeland is a Public Attorney. Almost two decades back, four teenagers and his sister went missing in the woods of a Summer Camp. Paul is raising his daughter alone after the death of his wife. But then a body is found, and the well-buried secrets of the past come back haunting. Is the victim that of the man as claimed by the Police, or has it got something to do with Paul’s history?

At 450+ pages, this one is quite a lengthy read. Though there are many characters, none except the protagonist Paul and his old flame, Lucy, register. A couple of sub-plots involving Paul’s family(his dead wife, sister-in-law, and parents) and KGB (it might have been relevant when this book was first released almost two decades back, though!) are there, which are speed breakers at best!

I was disappointed with this novel by Harlan Coben. Agreed, this is one of his earlier stand-alone works(and a best-seller at the time of its release), and he has since churned out reasonably pacy and twisty thrillers. But to be very frank, this one falls way off the mark, be it in the thrill quotient or the pacing. The book has pacing issues. After a reasonably good start, the plot drags on and on with avoidable scenes and boring dialogues. The subplot around the court trial was interesting initially, but it turned pointless and bland after a point. The innumerable characters in the form of Lorraine and Raya Singh didn’t serve much of a purpose rather than adding pages and pages of dull prose to the narrative.

The novel does pick up pace towards the end with a couple of decent twists and reveals, but by then, I almost got exhausted and stopped caring about what was going on!

On the whole, I am giving a 2.5 out of 5 for this one!

 -nikhimenon

Stranger in the Mirror by Sidney Sheldon

                                                     

Stranger in the Mirror is one of the early works of Sidney Sheldon. First published almost fifty years ago, the book tells the story of Toby Temple, a super star stand- up comedian and his love, Jill Temple. Replete with twists and turns coming at regular intervals, the book is undoubtedly a fast paced read and is still relevant even after almost half a decade of it's original release.

The story doesn't have too many characters and is largely about the travails of Toby and Jill, their struggles and ambitions. Born as Josephine, Jill's ambition is to make it big in Hollywood. But the challenges she has to face are enormous. Toby's life is no different either. He also has to go through his own share of  humiliations and ridicule before making it big in the show biz. Clifton Lawrence is Toby's ticket to stardom. 'Stranger in the Mirror' is as much as about Clifton as it is about Toby and Jill.

Toby and Jill aren't entirely likeable characters. This story of greed, lust and passion is an intriguing read. Even after fifty years, this book hasn't become dated, rather it still feels fresh. Shows how great story teller, Sir Sheldon was!

-nikhimenon

Regonal: Maranathinte Thirakkadha by Anver Abdulla

                   'Maranathinte Thirakkadha' is a detective novel by Anvar Abdulla,published by Don Books.The protagonist is detective Perumal, an ex-CBI official-turned-Private investigator.Like in the case of many super star movies of yesteryears, in this book, the protagonist makes his appearance only towards the 'half-time'(read 'by the 100th page or so').
                   Leela Rose Panangadan is a newbie actress who has just found her super stardom.With a state award and a couple of blockbusters to her credit, she is widely considered as the 'next big thing' in the Malayalam film Industry.The producers are making a bee-line to get her dates and she has managed to garner her own share of detractors by now ,too. The prominent among them being , Gokul Das, an ageing superstar and a womaniser, who has suddenly developed a soft corner to Leela. But the smart lady that she is,Leela has been rather cold towards him till now and Gokul's enemity with Freddy, Leela's god-father is making things worse. Leela's dark past slowly catches up with her and Gokul and his cronies, including Janardhanan, the editor of a page 3,film magazine can't wait to make the best use of this situation.The actress becomes the prime accused in the murder of Robin Crish.Can Perumal save her from this mess?
                 The book is an engaging read.Though at times, you get the feeling that the author has tried the 90 s formula of long,court room dramas,towards the end he has been successful in tying all the loose ends.This is the kind of book which can be enjoyed during a long train/flight journey or on a lazy Sunday afternoon.This indeed is a good, time-pass read!I'm giving it a 3 out of 5.

-nkhimenon

Murder Games by James Patterson and Howard Roughan

                     I am no big fan of the assembly line thrillers that come out of the James Patterson syndicate. As a matter of fact, I try to avoid them as far as possible since most of the recent works from the JP factory (books written by one of his many collaborators , but invariably featuring 'his' name in 'bigger fonts' in the jacket cover)have been pretty medicore. I picked up 'Murder Games'(also published as 'Instinct' in some territories) as it had been recently made into a successful television show. I must say that the book turned out to be much better than I expected.
                   The setting and the basic premise are pretty generic.There is a serial-killer on the run and our protagonist ,Elizabeth Needham is an NYPD detective who is in charge of this case .She turns to the brilliant professor, Dr Dylan(whose book on criminal behaviour the killer seems to be following) for help .Meanwhile the upstate tabloids have found a nick name for the killer, "The Dealer".Murder Games is basicallt the cat-and-mouse game between "The Dealer" and our investigators-Elizabeth and Dr Dylan.
                  The twists were interesting and the climax was also pretty decent.I kind of liked how the author(s) etched out Dr Dylan's personal life.Like anyother book from the JP syndicate, the language is pretty easy-to-read and the chapters are also short.

On the whole, I'm giving it a 3 out of 5.

-nikhimenon

Regional: Kattima by Jayan Shivapuram

'Kattima'  is the kind of book which looks like something but ends up being something else altogether. If you go by it's cover, in all probability you might get deceived into believing that it's a work of detective fiction. I'm sorry to say that it's neither a time pass enjoyable pulp nor a flawless literary gem. I seriously don't know to which category this one belongs to(or who will enjoy reading this kind of stuff,for that matter). At the end of 150 pages or so, what I was left with was sheer exhaustion and absolute boredom!

The plot goes something like this-Devi Aunty is found killed in her room with the murder weapon (a shining butcher's knife is also lying close by) and her roommate, a twenty something girl tries to figure out who (what) killed her beloved aunty. From here, rather than going into a full on investigation mode or an interesting character study, the narrative meanders on through the girl's memories and about the sexual escapades of a lady named Rajamma!

To give it's due, the novel had a killer opening sequence.Nothing less,nothing more!

I'm giving this a 2 out of 5.

-nikhimenon

Regional: Kapalam by Dr B.Umadathan

            I had read Umadathan Sir's 'Oru Forensic Surgeon nte Ormakurippikal'(Memoirs of a Forensic Surgeon), a few years back  which was undoubtedly one of the few authentic works pertaining to Forensic Science which had come out in Malayalam till then.The book basically was a memoir and dealt with some of the cases Umadathan sir had solved during his service. 'Kapalam'(The Skull) is it's follow up which has been brought out by D.C.Books (incidentally the book came out soon after Dr Umadethan's death in July, 2019).Unlike it's predecessor, this one is a fictionalised version of fifteen other cases which Dr Umadethan had worked on. 
            Forensic Surgeon Dr Unnikrishnan,his wife Mrs Mani ,Chief Chemical Examiner and Investigator Hari are the recurring characters featuring in the fifteen stories in this book. Though the book claims to be a fictionalised take on some of the cases which Dr Umadathan had worked on during his life time, it's pretty evident that most of the characters in these stories are fictional replicas of real-life personalities. Kapalam' has 15 'stories' of criminal investigation ranging from poisoning,fire-arm homicides and deliberate self harm.
            The writing is quite crisp and fast paced and never lets you down.Though some might find the repetition of some basic tests(diatom,DNA ,nitrate test) and techniques in some stories irritating, it's pretty fine, considering the limited resources the investigators have at their disposal,especially in a resource limited setting.
             The book covers some important aspects of forensic criminal investigations like diatom tests (traditional test, but still very effective), Haemoglobin analysis, forensic toxicology, DNA Fingerprinting and chemical analysis of viscera.The descriptions and explanations are never over-long and don't tire the reader at any point of time.

On the whole, 'kapalam' is an engaging read.

-nikhimenon 

Riley Sager's Last Time I lied

                      Riley Sager's 'Last Time I lied' is a slow burner. It's one of those books which moves at a leisurely pace in the beginning but still manages to hook your attention and never let you put it down or move on with something else!
           Camp Nightingale is a summer camp run by one of the multi-millionaires of the town ,Franny-Harris- White. She has two adopted sons, Theo and Chet. But when three of the young girls from the camp Vivian, Natalie and Allison go missing from the camp all hell break loose and Franny is forced to shut down the camp, also leaving behind Emma, the only other roommate of the three missing girls, traumatized.
          Fifteen years later, Franny decides to reopen the camp and she decides to invite , Emma  also to the camp as the instructor-in -charge of the present occupants(Krystal,Sasha,Miranda) of the cabin (named Dogwood,) from where the three girls went missing fifteen years ago. Emma manages to form a bond with the three young girls,but pretty soon she realises that Camp Nightingale harbours many sinister secrets which might have led to the disappearance of Vivian and her friends.
          As I mentioned in the beginning , Riley Sager takes his own sweet time in setting up the plot and establishing the characters.The first one hundred pages or so are a bit dull and the narrative mostly moves at a lethargic pace,but once the mystery begins unravelling slowly, there is no looking back.In the layered narrative,Riley Sager manages to pack in as much intrigue and mystery as possible ,unravelling them, at regular intervals.
         The tail end twist was splendidly done and I never saw it coming.But I wish Sager had given some more detail about the circumstances that might have led Katherine to take up that drastic challenge! 

On the whole,I'm giving a 4 out of 5 for this genuine psychological thriller!

-nikhimenon

Hydrangea by Lajo Jose (Regional)

           Hydrangea is Lajo Jose's follow up to his highly successful 'Coffee House', the second book in journalist turned private investigator Esther's crime series.Like his previous work, Hydrangea is also an investigative crime thriller, but unlike 'Coffee House' which had a heavy 'S.N. Swamy-K.Madhu' movies' hang over to it, 'Hydrangea' is modelled mostly on the western 'stalker' crime thrillers(Lars Kepler's book with the same name seems to be Lajo's reference point for this work, as the similarities and inspiration are pretty much evident).
           So, the plot goes somewhat like this- A serial killer is threatening the city with his maverick crimes and the modus operandi is pretty weird, he shoots a short video of his unassuming victim pretty much before the actual act of crime and sends it to the city police chief ,virtually challenging them to stop the crime from being committed. But since the videos don't leave much clue about the victims except for a grainy image of them in their cabins, the police also can't do much about it.Private Investigator Esther and the firm which she is working for,headed by Ali Imran also gets entangled in this rigmarole and their task is cut out as the killer is on his violent spree!
           Lajo Jose has definitely improved when compared to his debut novel and this time around his plot is sharp and the narrative is also quite fast paced.The pointless banter between Aparna and Esther has been trimmed down for good this time around.The characters of Ali Imran, the lady IPS officer and that of Esther were quite poorly developed.And last but not the least,Lajo's obession with his debut work is quite evident with multiple instances of that book being referred to in Hydrangea, which to be honest, was a bit irritating, after a point.
         But whatever said and done, I enjoyed reading Hydrangea.Though it's heavily inspired by the Western thrillers of similar genre , Lajo has delivered a decent addition to the almost extinct Malayalam Pulp Crime genre!

I'm giving it a 3 out of 5!

-nikhimenon

Trials Of Truth: India's LandMARK Criminal Cases by Pinky Anand

                             Trials of Truth :India's Landmark Cases is a work of non fiction co-written by Pinky Anand, senior advocate at the Supreme Court of India which discusses some of the landmark cases in the history of independent India. The book also attempts to look at the different facets of human criminal mind which might have instigated these gruesome crimes.
                   Nanavati Case, Jessica Lal Murder , Tandoor Murder, the infamous Billa-Ranga Case, Priyadarshini Mattoo Murder, Rajeev Gandhi homicide,Cyanide Mallika, Nithari Killings,Nirbhaya Case,Terrorist attacks of 26/11 all find it's place in this book.Each chapter opens with the author's opinion on the circumstances, the description of the crime itself and it's aftermath.For those readers who are hearing about these cases for the very first time, this book is undoubtedly a must read.
                  The basic problem with this book is that all the cases which are discussed in this work have been in the public domain for quite long and it doesn't help that the book seldom rises above their detailed wikipedia entries which anyone can access free of cost. The author hasn't really tried to give a lawyer's (insider) perspective to these cases either.However as I mentioned before, for the non discerning reader who is perhaps hearing about these cases for the very first time, this one is indeed a must buy.The language is pretty simple and at just about 200 pages or so, this work is not a very lengthy read by any stretch of imagination! I'm giving this a 2.75 out of 5.

-nikhimenon

QBR: The Mystery of The Three Orchids by Augusto De Angelis

                                                       Vintage Crime
                                                        186+ pages, 
                                                    Pushkin Vertigo (2016, originally 1936)
                                                       RT Rating: 3.2/5

The Verdict: 'The Mystery of The Three Orchids' is an engaging mystery.It is indeed a proof of the genius of  Augusto De Angelis, the man widely regarded as the father of Italian Crime Fiction.

 
Synopsis: A Murder has happened in one of the fashion houses in Milan. Valerio, the right hand man of Christina, the owner of the Fashion house is found dead in her room.Inspector De Vincenzi is called to investigate the crime.But pretty soon, the bodies start piling up and within a span of 48 hours, there are three murders with Orchids beside these three bodies.Will De Vincenzi be able to solve the crime?

 
The Good: the setting, twists and the climatic reveal. Never did I feel that this work was written almost 80 years ago! 

The Bad:The reader never gets to know much about Inspector De Vincenzi (may be one should read the first books in the series for that!)

Recommendations: Buy it!

-nikhimenon

QBR: Don't Let go by Harlan Coben

                                           

                                                    Crime/Thriller

                                                    386+ pages
                                                     Arrow (2018)
                                                     RT Rating: 3.2/5

The Verdict:'Don't Let Go' is an engaging stand alone thriller from Harlan Coben, one of the most successful crime writers of our times. Definitely worth a read!

 
Synopsis: Nap is a cop who has lost his brother(Leo) and his lover(Diana) after a freak accident 15 years back.The incident forced Maura, Nap's girl-friend to go into a hiding.Now years later, there is a series of killings and Maura has suddenly made an appearance.Nap is convinced that there is some sort of connection between his brother's murder and these recent murders.Will Nap be able to uncover the truth?

 
The Good: As usual, Coben's narrative moves forward at a breakneck speed,there is never a dull moment and the twists happen at regular intervals, the CIA-Military base angle was well done, the 'sleeper-cell' twist was also believably done,the Bolitar cameo was a pleasant surprise. 

The Bad:Nap's characterisation reminded of Myron Bolitar at times,towards the middle portions,the book dragged a bit.

Recommendations: Buy it!

-nikhimenon

The Tandoor Murder by Maxwell Periera

              The 'Tandoor Woman' or the 'Tandoor Murder' was undoubtedly one of the most sensational crimes that took the nation by storm in the mid-1990s. Those of you who were born in the late 80 s or the 90 s would definitely remember the news paper reports which gave the sorrid (and quite often pretty much exaggerated) account of the gruesome murder. As a late 80 s kid myself, one of my vivid memories of the nineties pertains to the infamous and much publicized Naina Sahni ('Tandoor') murder case (the other one being the ISRO- espionage/'spy case' including the Maldivian women and the eminent scientists)

            In Tandoor Murder, Maxwell Periera gives a detailed account of this 'crime of passion' and also reconstructs the entire chain of events of the same. An upcoming politician (Sushil Kumar) from the ruling party has a secret love-life (marital life) ,suspects his lover (wife) of infidelity, murders her in a fit of rage only to realize later that he has no means to dispose off the corpse.The cunning manipulator that he is, decides to burn it off in the Tandoor of the restaurant that he owns, with the help of his aid, Keshav. The plan goes awry due to the inadvertent interference by a smart, diligent police constable (Kunju) and from then starts Sushil Kumar's run for cover.How the investigation team nabs him and brings him to the books is what the book is all about.The investigation and the trial process over the years is painstackingly written with great deal of detail and the reader almost feels that he is in the middle of the investigation process.

          The language is pretty simple and Maxwell Periera hasn't gone overboard with his writing. Though he has touched upon a similar case (the infanous Priyadarshini Mattoo Murder Case) and the double standards of the media in one of the closing chapters, the book more or less focuses solely on the Tandoor Case. The book never becomes a boring read and this work of Non Fiction is undoubtedly one of the better books from India this year. 

Verdict: I'm giving the book a 3.5 out of 5.

-nikhimenon

Broken Harbor - Tana French

Book Specifications:

Original Title Broken Harbor

Author Tana French

Published July 2nd 2012 by Hatchette Books Ireland

ISBN 1444705105 (ISBN13: 9781444705102)

Series Dublin Murder Squad #4

Paperback, 533 pages

It’s not often (heck, more like never) that you get a crime-novel that moves you.

But Tana French manages to do that, Detective Mike ‘Scorcher’ Kennedy seems stiff-lipped, straight-a***d, stubborn - “Rule Number Three, and Four and Five and about a dozen more: you do not go with the flow in this job. You make the flow go with you.”  and those adjectives we typically use to describe the English but he has a heart...occasionally. And a mind too.

It all starts with a brutal, mass family-homicide. Pat Spain along with his two kids has been killed and his wife Jenny too has barely escaped...or has she?

Some digging leads to the name (and capture) of Conor Brennan...who strangely is not being the kind of witness Kennedy is used to. No sudden defences, no denial. Nothing. Only a quiet acceptance of the facts accusations.

And Kennedy’s partner Richie...the rookie who’s turning out to be a good find has different ideas about the crime.

With the accusation-arrow spinning too much for Kennedy’s taste from Pat to Conor and Conor to Pat and a dark past too(Broken Harbor was where his mother died),and adding to the mix Kennedy’s crazy sister Dina(she kinda made sense to me.I should be worried) and a  teetering-on-the-edge Jenny, Kennedy just might have too much too handle.

Just till they find out what really happened.

*I just wrote that paragraph and heck, it sounds like something straight off the jacket cover! Am I good or what!

And for those of you wondering what on earth this small print nonsense is, it’s just me having a complex. And the permission slip is here."You are allowed to have a complex”! Score!!!

I took some time reading this book (three days, 533 pages!) but there were always good parts to every session.

And the case isn't going to be easy -  If you’re good at this job, and I am, then every step in a murder case moves you in one direction: towards order. We get thrown shards of senseless wreckage, and we piece them together shards of senseless wreckage, and we piece them together until we can lift the picture out of the darkness and hold it up to the white light of day, solid, complete, clear... This case was different. It was running backwards, dragging us with it on some ferocious ebb tide. Every step washed us deeper in black chaos, wrapped us tighter in tendrils of crazy and pulled us downwards.

I’d always have something to think about just like a work of literary fiction and that’s hard to find!

Along with the detecting, and crime scenes, and post-mortems and things, you have the little sentences that touch you – “There isn't any why. That’s what I mean, trying to organize me. I'm not crazy because anything. I just am.”

 That you want to highlight and smile about - One of the definitions of insanity, my friend, is doing the same thing again and again and hoping for different results.

 That amazes you about the humanness of literary-characters - Interesting fact from the front lines: raw grief smells like ripped leaves and splintered branches, a jagged green shriek.

And I loved it. It was new reading a novel of the literary-crime genre (if that is one) but I loved it!

And I got my entry to the crime-section for the challenge done. HA!

Recommended as a gift to the crime-novel loving husband/boyfriend/nephew/wife/niece...or whoever you want to give a book that has SOMETHING in it along with all the slick gun-toting stuff they love!

A four point three (though some crime novel-lovers would give it more) and a thumbs up for surprising me!

And then there were none by Agatha Christie

Publisher: Collins Crime Club
ISBN: 9780007136834
Genre: crime, fiction, mystery
Pages: 315
Bestsellers: so many :)
Published: 1939


Nightflier Speaks:
This book review is on the request of our reader Smita.


On a lazy saturday evening, with no one at home, I started reading Agatha Christie's 'And then there were none' with a bowl of maggi (instant) noodles and entered the mysterious world of Soldier Island. I have to stress at this point that this setting spooked me and in turn made me enjoy the book. 


The book tells the story of 10 perfect strangers, brought together on an island shrouded by mystery, to spend a week together. Each character's story is told in crisp 1-2 page monologues and that forms the premise. And then on the first day of stay itself the deaths start. Not only are the deaths preposterous, but they follow a pattern. A pattern illustrated by a poem (10 little soldiers). The deathly events continue and the survivors try to unravel the killer. What happens is an intriguing story of psycho-mania, justice and cold-blood.


The story is fast paced. It took me hardly 3 hours to finish. There are no major plot holes. Agatha Christie is a master at that, I think. Few characters had an element of intrigue, which made me as a reader think about situations in their life and take a decision. But as an observer I kept wondering about the real/detailed stories of the 10 protagonists. May be more details would have made the story richer. 
(On another note the story also reminded me of an old hindi movie Gumnaam. Its title track still gives me the scares!)


But as a thriller the book worked perfectly well for me, because I slept with lights on that night. Also I read an Agatha Christie after 8 years!! So this experience also made me nostalgic. So thank you smita for the request and in turn making me re-live school days.


I hope if you read the book, you enjoy it as much as I did.


Price: 157 INR (crossword)
Rating: 4/5

Lost Light - Michael Connelly

LOST LIGHT

A Harry Bosch novel

ISBN - 978-1-4091-1684-4
FIRST PUBLISHED - 2003
PUBLISHERS - Hachette
PAGES - 341
BINDING - Paperback
GENRE - Crime/Thriller
SOURCE - Publishers

AUTHOR - Michael Connelly

BEST-SELLERS - The Brass Verdict

SYNOPSIS - Harry Bosch has finally quit the LAPD. When he left, he took a file with him - the case of a young woman murdered four years earlier. The crime was linked to a $2 million robbery on a movie set, and the LAPD think the money was used by terrorists.

Now, with time on his hands, Harry looks at the old file again. Something about the victim affected him deeply and the case has haunted him ever since. But when he decides to re-investigate, he falls foul of both his old colleagues and the FBI. And then someone from Bosch's past turns his world upside down.

FL Speak - Even though I curse myself for discovering Michael Connelly too late, nevertheless I'm overjoyed at reading his novels back-to-back. Lost Light is one of his earlier novels. In fact it is Harry Bosch's 9th case.

Just like every other Michael Connelly case, this book kept me up all through the night. As the synopsis says, Harry has quit the LAPD. Its been a year but he hasn't been able to get rid of the case from his mind. Now that he's no more bound to other cases, Harry decides to go through his files as to why this one was not solved earlier.

Angela Brenton was murdered on her 24th birthday. She was violated and the angle pointed towards a pervert with a grudge. 2 days later $2 million was stolen from a Hollywood studio during a shoot. Angela Brenton worked in that studio. Years later, when Bosch decides to re-investigate the case, he was stone walled by his own department. After a call by a former cop who took over the investigation years ago, the FBI started breathing down Bosch's neck. It looks like some of the stolen money found its way to terrorists. And with a female FBI agent missing for 2 years, this case has taken a whole new meaning.

Bosch searches for clues that the previous cops missed and without help from the FBI who were hell bent on stopping him from interfering with terrorism matters, Bosch knew he had to rely on the notes he already had and search for the clue that eluded everyone all these years. And things come to a shocking end when the death of Angel Brenton, the robbery of $2 million and the case of the missing FBI agent intertwine over the next few days.

I'm telling you lot again. Michael Connelly is one of the finest crime writers ever. And Harry Bosch is his finest creation. Lost Light is that spark in the darkness when everything else fails, but not the determination of the cops who protect us in this vile world.

My Rating - 5 stars

PRICE - INR 350/-