Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch) [Hardcover]

Michael Connelly (Author)

Book Description

Series: Harry Bosch | Publication Date: October 13, 2009

LAPD Detective Harry Bosch is off the chain in the fastest, fiercest, and highest-stakes case of his life.

Fortune Liquors is a small shop in a tough South L.A. neighborhood, a store Bosch has known for years. The murder of John Li, the store's owner, hits Bosch hard, and he promises Li's family that he'll find the killer.

The world Bosch steps into next is unknown territory. He brings in a detective from the Asian Gang Unit for help with translation--not just of languages but also of the cultural norms and expectations that guided Li's life. He uncovers a link to a Hong Kong triad, a lethal and far-reaching crime ring that follows many immigrants to their new lives in the U.S.

And instantly his world explodes. The one good thing in Bosch's life, the person he holds most dear, is taken from him and Bosch travels to Hong Kong in an all-or-nothing bid to regain what he's lost. In a place known as Nine Dragons, as the city's Hungry Ghosts festival burns around him, Bosch puts aside everything he knows and risks everything he has in a desperate bid to outmatch the triad's ferocity.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Amazon Best of the Month, October 2009: An investigation into a cold-blooded murder introduces Detective Harry Bosch to a Chinese underworld lurking in the dark recesses of the City of Angels. Its tentacles are far reaching, yet it remains shrouded in secrecy due to time-honored cultural traditions that keep the exploited from speaking out. To the victim's family, Bosch promises revenge, but when his own daughter suddenly becomes a target, he promises blood. However, working a case with leads on both sides of the Pacific provides little room (or time) for error. 9 Dragons is a gritty, coffee-and-cigarettes crime thriller full of smart twists and generous helpings of suspense. Fans of Michael Connelly can expect another exceptional thrill ride, while newcomers will be immediately engaged by the tortured and unrelenting Bosch. "He knew one day it would come to this, that the darkness would find [his daughter] and that she would be used to get him," writes Connelly. "That day was now." --Dave Callanan

From Publishers Weekly

Bestseller Connelly nimbly balances Harry Bosch's personal and professional lives, both of which take a substantial beating, in his 14th novel to feature the LAPD homicide detective. Bosch, last seen with his recently discovered half-brother, lawyer Mickey Haller, in The Brass Verdict (2008), investigates the shooting death of a liquor store owner. While the murder has none of the hallmarks of a regular gang hit, Bosch discovers the dead man was paying a weekly protection fee to a man Bosch suspects is part of a Chinese triad. Even though Bosch is warned to drop the case, he doesn't take the threat seriously until he receives a video showing his 13-year-old daughter, Madeline, being kidnapped in Hong Kong, where she lives with her mother and Bosch's ex-wife, a former FBI agent. Bosch flies to Hong Kong to try to rescue Madeline, prepared to face down one of the world's most powerful crime syndicates. Tenacious as ever, Bosch is even more formidable in his role as a protective father. 10-city author tour. (Oct. 13)
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Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (October 13, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316166316
• ISBN-13: 978-0316166317
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1.2 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (347 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #59,205 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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. His books have been translated into 31 languages and have won the Edgar, Anthony, Macavity, Shamus, Dilys, Nero, Barry, Audie, Ridley, Maltese Falcon (Japan), .38 Caliber (France), Grand Prix (France), and Premio Bancarella (Italy) awards.

Michael lives with his family in Florida.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

328 of 357 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Harry Bosch Tale Since Echo Park!, September 1, 2009

By 

Michael A. Newman (New York) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch) (Hardcover)

After disappointing Harry Bosch tales (The Overlook, The Brass Dragon) Connelly has brought back the Harry that hooked me in the earlier tales. Harry is still back in homicide (no closer duty for him) and during a slow night he is asked to investigate a shooting in a "rougher" section of LA. Harry and his partner (Ferras) grudgingly take the assignment and learn that a convenience store owner was murdered in his store. The case draws Harry's interest because he remembers the store and that the owner was once kind to him several years earlier. He assures the owner's son that he will catch the culprit.

As Harry starts to realize that this might not have been a routine robbery but a possible execution by a Triad hitman. Harry starts to zero in on a suspect and then receives a threatening call to tell him to back off. Harry shrugs it off and continues but then his investigation stalls when he receives a video showing that his daughter (Maddy) being kidnapped in Hong Kong. He rushes off to save her realizing that if he is not back by the end of the weekend a possible suspect in the shooting will be set free.

It is a tense plane ride to Hong Kong and Harry feels powerless because there is nothing he can do in the air. When he gets to Hong Kong he is aided by his ex-wife (Eleanor Wish) and her boyfriend. Harry has limited clues but through very good forensic science he was able to possibly know where to look for Maddy. It becomes a race to find Maddy because any delay could mean that she might already be dead.

The tension of the chase is so tense you can cut it with a knife and the "determined " Harry definitely shows through. There is one sequence at a boat where the action is pulse pounding and the tension rife.
The book also has a short but excellent appearance by Mickey Haller (the Lincoln Lawyer and Harry's half brother) and there are references to Jack McEvoy (Connelly's other main character). As long as Mr. Connelly can deliver Harry Bosch tales of this caliber, Harry will continue to be one of the most intriguing law enforcement figures in fiction today!

89 of 99 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Up To Standards, October 24, 2009

By 

Christopher Gwyn (over there) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch) (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

In his latest thriller featuring LAPD Detective Harry Bosch, author Michael Connelly branches out into international waters. The plot involves Bosch investigating a murder of the Asian owner of a liquor store in South-Central LA. For translating purposes, Bosch calls in an Asian Detective, Chu, to help with the case. What unfolds appears to be a Asian Triad gang related extortion/murder. Meanwhile, Bosch's teenaged daughter is living in Hong Kong with her mother, who works for a swanky Hong Kong casino. After arresting a suspect, Bosch is warned to back off the case or eles "there will be consequences". Well, he soon receives a video on his phone showing his daughter being held hostage in Hong Kong. Is there a leak in the department? Is Chu playing both sides of the fence? Bosch drops everything to rush to Hong Kong to try to find his daughter. Similarities with the movie "Taken" are obvious. This is where the story starts to become somewhat far-fetched. The way he is able to find his daughter is somewhat ridiculous and things are written with a by-the-numbers predictibility. I'm not going to get into details but the ending is rather lame and unsatisfying and I look forward to a better effort from Connelly next time.

52 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding in every way!, September 23, 2009

By 

Brian Baker (Santa Clarita, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch) (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

I've long been a Connelly fan, especially of the Harry Bosch series. But I have to tell you, Connelly's surpassed himself with this one. As I've thought about it, I think this may well be the best Bosch book ever.

I won't rehash the whole story line here, as you can see that in the two other member reviews already up, and on the product page. Instead, I'd like to focus on why I've made such a grandiose statement.

The Bosch series is long-running and deservedly very successful. Of course, it's had its ups and downs; all series do. But Bosch is an iconic character from the Clint Eastwood mold of Dirty Harry and the Sergio Leone spaghetti Westerns: the loner who battles through any obstacles to see right prevail and justice triumph, even if he has to break the rules. Eastwood's made a career of this, as has Connelly. That's a good thing. I like that kind of entertainment, as do a whole lot of other people, obviously.

However, in this book Connelly breaks new ground for the character, exploring an emotional vulnerability - his love for his daughter, and how it animates him - that we haven't seen before. It's the driving force of the story, and to continue the Eastwood analogy, it's the same variance on a "trademark" character we saw Eastwood explore in some of his amazing later works like "Unforgiven", "Million Dollar Baby", and "Gran Torino".

Connelly also takes Bosch into an exotic and fascinating new locale: Hong Kong. This is really a treat, and he does it very well. I'd have liked to have seen even more of his take on the area, as I know it well, having been there many times, but take it from me: what you do see is a really accurate portrayal of one of the world's truly unique locales.

The story moves forward in a very driving yet well-disciplined fashion; very exciting; intellectually stimulating, and well- and throroughly-plotted.

Six stars! But I guess I'll have to settle for five.