Detective Bosch Crosses the Aisle
When you are far behind on a series, you can get a sense for where the characters are going by looking at plot descriptions for future books in the series. As a result, I knew that The Crossing would be the first book for Harry Bosch after his second retirement from the LAPD. I was anxious to see what he’d get up to after his career was over, and I was well rewarded.
It’s been months since Bosch retired from his job, and he’s growing restless, not that he is willing to admit that to anyone. Then, his half-brother, defense attorney Mickey Haller, calls. Haller’s main investigator has been injured, and he needs to hire Bosch to work a case. Bosch is reluctant since he’s always felt his calling was to put murderers behind bars. But Haller insists that this client is truly innocent, and Bosch agrees to take a look at the evidence so far without making a decision one way or the other.
The case involves a woman who was brutally murdered in her bed. A former gang member turned family man has been arrested for it based on some pretty strong evidence. But Bosch sees a few holes, so he starts poking around. What will he find?
The book doesn’t waste any time getting Bosch into the mystery, which is good because we all know he’s going to take the case. If he doesn’t, there wouldn’t be a book, right? While we have a pretty good idea early on who is behind what is happening, we have no idea why. Watching Bosch put together what happened and why is compelling.
As is the fact that we know Bosch is being watched. Yes, this is definitely a thriller, and that tension increases as the book goes along until we reach the explosive climax. By that point, all the pieces have fallen into place and we are just hanging on to see if Bosch can survive.
It is interesting to watch Bosch navigate a case without his badge. Yes, we did see that earlier in the series after his first retirement when we worked a couple of cases as a PI. But it’s been a while, and he has to be creative to get information without the authority that his badge gave him. I really liked that aspect of the book.
Plus, it’s just always great to see Bosch in action. He works best as a loner, so the fact that he was without a partner here is fine, although we do see a couple characters from his past pop up. We also see a couple of characters from Mickey Haller’s orbit, although Haller really does take a back seat to Bosch. Instead of being co-leads like they were the last time they officially teamed up, Haller is a supporting player. Still, I enjoyed getting to see him here. I wish the two characters would work together more often because they do have a great dynamic.
As is usually the case for these books, they have more foul content than the books I typically read. They don’t get overly graphic, but they don’t shy away from the details of the case, either. Know that when you sit down to read this book, and you’ll be fine.
This is the second audiobook in the series I’ve listened to narrated by Titus Welliver, who has famously played Bosch on the TV shows. I found his narration better here than I did in the first book, and I was able to get lost in the story.
Those looking for a great thriller will be glad they picked up The Crossing. Be prepared to stay up late once you start it.
Be sure to check out the rest of the Harry Bosch and Mickey Haller novels.
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