The Night Fire

A Ballard and Bosch Novel: Harry Bosch, Book 22

By: Michael Connelly

Narrated by: Christine Lakin, Titus Welliver

Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

A finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize

A New York Times Book Review Best Crime Novel of the Year

A CrimeReads Best Crime Novel Notable Selection  

Harry Bosch and LAPD Detective Renee Ballard come together again on the murder case that obsessed Bosch's mentor, the man who trained him - new from number one New York Times best-selling author Michael Connelly.

Back when Harry Bosch was just a rookie homicide detective, he had an inspiring mentor who taught him to take the work personally and light the fire of relentlessness for every case. Now that mentor, John Jack Thompson, is dead, but after his funeral his widow hands Bosch a murder book that Thompson took with him when he left the LAPD 20 years before - the unsolved killing of a troubled young man in an alley used for drug deals.

Bosch brings the murder book to Renée Ballard and asks her to help him find what about the case lit Thompson's fire all those years ago. As she begins her inquiries - while still working her own cases on the midnight shift - Ballad finds aspects of the initial investigation that just don't add up. 

The bond between Bosch and Ballard tightens as they become a formidable investigation team. And they soon arrive at a disturbing question: Did Thompson steal the murder book to work the case in retirement, or to make sure it never got solved? 

Written with the intense pacing and masterful suspense that have made Michael Connelly "the hard-boiled fiction master of our time" (NPR), The Night Fire continues the unofficial partnership of two fierce detectives determined not to let the fire burn out. 

©2019 Michael Connelly (P)2019 Hachette Audio

Great Story, Excellent Narration !!

Another great story by Michael Connelly and an excellent narration by Welliver and Lakin. Titus Welliver sounds like a Harry Bosch should sound. This story really held my interest all the way through. There were unexpected twists and turns. I think I've read all of the Harry Bosch stories and this story is one of my most favorites. The publisher's summary provides a very good synopsis of the story, so I won't try to add anything except that I liked the way the two primary plots dovetailed together and there was no "typical" antagonist/villain. Bosch and Ballard stories are good reads/listens. Highly recommended.

Not the Connelly I'm used to

As a fan of Connelly for years, I purchase his books as soon as they're available. His last few have been disappointing, this one included. It took a long time to capture my interest and I struggled to finish it. I can only recommend his older books which were great! Sorry to say this one doesn't live up to those standards.

Outstanding!!

Michael Connelly simply does not write bad novels. With Harry Bosch retiring Connelly introduced LAPD detective Renée Ballard two years ago. She teams with Bosch giving him access to LAPD. Like Bosch Ballard is a strong character and together they are a formidable team. Bosch's half-brother lawyer Mickey Haller, who has his own Connelly series, makes a cameo in THE NIGHT FIRE. The publisher's summary sets up this novel very nicely, so I will not add more to it.

Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch and Christine Lakin as Renée Ballard make a wonderful narrating team. Welliver plays Bosch in the TV series and has narrated the Bosch audio novels beginning in 2014.

Very highly recommended!

That voice, Titus Welliver, THANK YOU

Listening to audiobooks is not just about the story, I want a pleasurable listening experience, and TITUS WELLIVER always delivers pure joy with his supremely masculine voice.

5

If you have been a long time fan of Michael Connelly's Los Angeles PD Detective Bosch's
wonderful series -- you will have already purchased this audio. If you have not indulged in this series, this book will stand alone-- buy this then you must plan to go back and read/ listen to all the books.
What a talented writer! And what a fine narrator. :-)

Gripping

I am a fan of Michael Connelly. I have read many of Harry Bosch’s books. I read the first book of the new series with Renee Ballard, but somehow missed the second book of the series. This book is the third of the series.

The book is well written. Connelly has Bosch working on three cases. One is a cold case that a wife of a recently dead colleague gave him the murder book she had at home. The next case is with Renee about a dead homeless man and the third one is with Micky Haller. What is not to like about a story with three great characters. It was fascinating to see how he weaved the cases around each other and together. The book is a bit slow in getting starting, but then took off. I am looking forward to the next episode.

The book is ten hours and four minutes. Titus Welliver and Christine Lakin do a good job narrating the book. Titus Welliver is an actor; he plays Harry Bosch on a T.V. series by Amazon. He has won an Earphone Award. Christine Lakin is an actress and has won an Earphone Award for her audiobook narration.

Disappointing production, rushed story

When you put Harry Bosch, Renee Ballard & Mickey Haller you’re probably expecting a delightful story especially for longtime Connelly fans. This badly missed the mark. It’s the only Connelly novel since City of Bones that didn’t have me fully engrossed. It’s worth reading for fans of the three before mentioned principals but just don’t expect too much.

The storylines, and there are many, are too many for a book as short as The Night Fire. If the novel was three times longer, better developed and and less rushed into release it could have been one of the best books involving great potential stories slowly winding around one another before ending with a confluence that would tie everything together. Instead you have a disjointed set of separate events. It’s just as several events converge and it becomes really suspenseful that the novel quickly ends.

I have no knowledge of the book being rushed into release but if you read it you will probably come to the same conclusion. If only the book was further developed it could have been great. It would be great to have all those characters involved in the next novel too, but I would rather wait another 2-3 years for a longer book.

As much as it pains me to say it, Harry Bosch might need to be retired to ancillary status unless he finds some other job as a private or contract detective. Just grabbing random cases seems especially far-fetched for a retiree. At least he could tie up more of the cases in which he played some part. Maybe he finally joins a security firm. My personal hope would be for Harry to join forces with Rachel Walling & Jack McEvoy either as partners in an investigatory firm with Haller & Ballard in supporting roles . That’s my dream. Until then I will probably reread this book on Kindle and see if I am more impressed.

The production it was easily the biggest disappointment with this book. The way Dark Sacred Night was performed with Ballard chapters read by a female voicing all characters and male voicing the Bosch chapters was a real hit. With that in mind having both performers voicing their characters in the same chapters was a strikeout. I hope next time they return to the previous format.

The duel acted chapter formula could have worked but it was clear to me (though I could be wrong) that the performers did not record , at the same time, in the same studio together. That made for a mess that ruined the entire audiobook for me. It could work in the future if the scenes were actually acted out together but for whatever reason they were not. My advice to readers is to actually read the book instead of listening. Maybe that could save the novel from my criticisms. I hope you enjoy the book despite my review. To each their own.

A little too dramatized.

Don’t like the switching back and forth of the narrators. Also find Lakin a poor voice actor, unconvincing and flat, especially with the male voices. I especially dislike it when both voices are in the same scene. It’s disruptive somehow. I still love Bosch and welliver is a terrific voice for him. Get rid of Ballard she’s dead weight.

Who Wrote This

As a long time fan of Michael Connelly's story telling ability and his writing style I was quite disappointed with The Night Fire. To have such a dramatic change is style and story structure left me with the feeling that someone else was tapping the keys.

Where Connelly books going...

Connelly needs to emphasize Bosch more. This new trend to force Ballard in his books is ruining his work. Her character is once again too robotic, scripted and over the top to the point of exaggerating virtuous. Her victim mentality is draining and something no other Connelly character has, Bosch doesn’t let his past hold him down where Ballard uses it as an excuse and even more than Harry crosses the line of morality. Her character is not a good depiction of the great work Connelly has done over the years and seems as though he is pandering to people and is forced to put that character in the book. She just quoted Harry’s one liners and tries to be something she is not. The voice of Ballard is the same, too forced and awkward and tries to over emphasize other characters. Connelly needs to continue to stick to Bosch being the main character. This book is much better than its predecessor in that Harry and Titus tell most of the dialogue as the narrator and Bosch has a much larger role. This is a positive step for Connelly after several prior duds. Maybe he will continue to get back to what made his books amazing. - from a longtime fan and a reader of every published Connelly book to date.