The Overlook (Harry Bosch) (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: snap ties, radiation monitor, Alicia Kent, Stanley Kent, Rachel Walling (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Bestseller Connelly's dazzling 13th Harry Bosch novel (after 2006's Echo Park) reunites Bosch with his former flame, FBI agent Rachel Walling. Bosch must break in a new partner, rookie Iggy Ferras, when they're called to look into the execution of physicist Stanley Kent on a Mulholland Drive overlook. When a special FBI unit, headed by Walling, arrives and tries to usurp his case, claiming it's a matter of national security, Bosch refuses to back down. Walling's focus on the potential theft of radioactive material from the hospital where Kent was lending his expertise to cancer treatment and her unwillingness to share information only make Bosch more determined to solve the case. This is a quick read, almost half the length of Connelly's previous novels, but he spares no punches when it comes to complexity and suspense. The scramble to investigate threats to national security, justified or otherwise, is a timely subject and one on which Connelly puts a brilliant new spin. (May 22)
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From Bookmarks Magazine

Michael Connelly originally published The Overlook as a serialized novella in the New York Times Magazine; the 16 sections contained 3,000 words each. Although expanded to novel form, The Overlook weighs in as a good, if slim (and perhaps, as a few critics claim, slight), addition to the Harry Bosch series. For the most part, the novel succeeds in maintaining Connelly's trademark fast-paced action, plot twists, suspense, and spare, humorous writing-all over the course of 12 hours. Some reviewers cited tired characters, dull romance, a bizarre time frame, and plotting missteps, but for followers of Harry Bosch, The Overlook is a worthy addition.
Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (May 22, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316018953
• ISBN-13: 978-0316018951
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (210 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #174,271 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 13 in The Harry Bosch Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars DON'T OVERLOOK THIS CONNELLY OFFERING, March 28, 2008

By	Bookworm (St. George Utah) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Overlook (Harry Bosch) (Mass Market Paperback)

The Overlook is classic Michael Connelly. Featuring Detective Harry Bosch, late of the LAPD's Homicide Special Squad, and his new partner Ignacio (Call me Iggy) Ferras it offers a mystery that contains all the excellent police procedural murder investigation elements that bears Connelly's signature coupled with an in depth look at the nasty little war that goes on between local and Federal government agencies when they are involved in the same case.

It seems that the murder victim in this case is tied to the disappearance of radioactive material suitable for making a dirty bomb, so of course the FBI and Department of Homeland Security come into the picture and proceed to play a nasty little game of hide and seek with a couple of witnesses thereby reeking havoc on Harry's investigation and thwarting him at every turn.

Harry, of course, is not to be deterred in this cat and mouse game and author Connelly succeeds in providing his readers with yet another story that is intricately plotted, filled with clever clues and misdirection and offers a read that is satisfying down to the very last page. 3 1/2 stars for this one

29 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Harry Interlude, August 15, 2007

By	Brett Benner (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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This felt like exactly what it was: An expanded serial. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it just felt like it should be the first part of a larger set of stories regarding Bosch. Actually by the time I had finished the book, which takes place over twelve hours, I felt more like I was reading an episode of the television show '24' complete with the terrorist angle to seal the deal. For Bosch fans this is fine to pass a couple of hours until the next big case comes along, but like having a sundae and only getting a scoop of ice cream, it left me wanting more. On a side note, and one that's completely fun, Harry leaves his phone number for another character in the book,and you can actually call it and hear his message machine.

21 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading, but not one of Connelly's best, August 3, 2007

By	Bill Garrison (Oklahoma City, OK USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

THE OVERLOOK is the latest Harry Bosch novel released by Michael Connelly. This book, previously released in serial form, is about half as long as a regular Bosch novel. I'm a fan of Connelly and I've only read 5 or 6 of his books but have to admit I'm disappointed in this book. First, considering it's length, you are getting half the novel you usually get from Connelly. Knowing that, the content of the novel has to be judged even more critically, ie. quality, not quantity. In the Bosch books I've read, they've always been short on twists and turns. They've been more like straight forward procedurals that slowly grow on you as the novel moves on. In The Overlook, the novel doesn't have a chance to build up steam, it has to capture you right away. And I don't beleive it does.

Harry is awake, at home around midnight, when he recieves a call. He's a homicide detective now and there's been a murder. Harry calls his new partner Iggy to meet him there. Stanley Kent was murdered at the Overlook, a scenic spot in Hollywood that looks out over the city. Rachel Walling, an FBI agent that Bosch has a history with, also shows up at the scene. The FBI is also highly interested in Stanley Kent. Kent worked in the medical profession with cesium, a highly radioactive material used to treat cancer. Because of the cesium, the FBI believes there may be a possible terrorist angle to the case. Bosch goes to the Kent house and finds his wife, Alicia, naked and hog-tied in the bed.

We learn all that in the opening, and the middle part of the book is what disappointed me. First, since this book is so short, there isn't much room for plot twists and turns. In this book there isn't any. Connelly details the investigation in extreme detail, and unfortunately, none of the details are very interesting. Second, Connelly establishes that the primary conflict in the novel will be jurisdiction. Harry wants the case since it is a homicide. The FBI is more concerned about the national security angle. The novel follows Bosch going back and forth with Walling, backstabbing, playing politics, all in the name of jurisdiction. I'm sure law enforcement agencies have jurisdiction problems all the time, but as a plot device in a novel, it gets old. And it especially doesn't work as the central conflict that drives the novel.

Now, the novel has strong points as well. I've found many Connelly novels to focus on what seems to be boring details, only to have the details come back to matter later. That is true in THE OVERLOOK as well. Every seemingly tedious observaiton Bosch makes in the beginning plays a part in how the case is solved. Bosch fans will enjoy this novel, as I did, because of its brevity and because Bosch is his usual self. I didn't much care for Connelly's commentary on the motives of the FBI in the case, but that really doesn't play a part in the quality of the book. I recommend this to all Bosch fans, but I certainly wouldn't pay full price for a book this short.