Here I wanted to mention two books I’ve read and enjoyed recently, and one I’m reading right now. First off, I really liked Michael Connelly’s new book, The Dark Hours. As a longtime Harry Bosch fan, I was sad that Harry featured so little in the book, but on the Renée Ballard side, I think this is the best book yet. And, let’s face it. Harry is in his seventies and Ballard is his replacement. Even if you too are a diehard Bosch fan, I think you will enjoy this book. Ballard has won me over.
Next up, For Reasons of Their Own by award-winning New Zealand author Chris Stuart is easily my favorite crime thriller of the year. It’s twisty and suspenseful with a host of interesting, realistic characters. I really liked the main character, Australian Detective Inspector Robbie Gray. She is from the same mold as Renée Ballard. Stuart is a fabulous writer that anyone who loves a good crime thriller will enjoy. For Reasons of Their Own is available here on Amazon.
Finally, I’m about halfway through the latest Spenser novel, Robert B. Parker’s Bye Bye Baby by Ace Atkins. I’m a longtime fan of Parker and especially like his Spenser and Jesse Stone novels. If you’re not familiar with this series, bestselling author Ace Atkins took over writing it after the passing of Robert B. Parker in 2010. It took Atkins a couple of books to find his footing, but today his Spenser novels have become almost indistinguishable from the originals written by Parker himself. Unfortunately, here again is cause for sadness. Atkins announced earlier this month Bye Bye Baby is his last Spenser novel as he has other projects he plans to pursue. It will be interesting to see what becomes of this series, arguably Parker’s most popular. Like Harry Bosch, Spenser has aged since Parker created him. Actually, he is even older than Harry Bosch who is a Vietnam veteran in Connelly’s novels. In comparison, Spenser is a Korean War veteran. But since Parker never made much of Spenser’s age, it’s still easy to imagine him as late forties or early fifties. Of course, the Robert B. Parker estate won’t be coming to me for advice, but if I were handed this series to write, I believe I’d return to setting the novels in the past when Spenser was in his prime. Since Adkins has focused the last several books on prominent current headlines, that shortens Spenser’s remaining time as a credible detective considerably because of his advancing age. But I am enjoying this novel so far, which I learned today is attracting some controversy. Bye Bye Baby comes out January 11, 2022. I was fortunate enough to snag an advance readers copy from the publisher.