The Black Box (novel)
The Black Box is the 25th novel by American crime author Michael Connelly, and the sixteenth novel featuring Los Angeles Police Department detective Harry Bosch. The book[1] was published on 26 November 2012, "in part to honor the 20th anniversary of the character".[2]
 Hardcover edition | |
| Author | Michael Connelly |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Harry Bosch #16 |
| Genre | Crime novel |
| Publisher | Little, Brown and Company |
Publication date | November 26, 2012 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover) |
| Pages | 560 pp. |
| ISBN | 978-0316069434 |
| Preceded by | The Drop |
| Followed by | The Burning Room |
Plot
Bosch tackles a 20-year-old cold case which took place during the 1992 Los Angeles riots. A white photojournalist is found killed near a burned-out store. Harry Bosch and Jerry Edgar were the original detectives called out to the scene. Riots Task Force later took up the case but it remained unsolved over the years. The case is reopened when Harry matches a shell casing he discovered at the scene to three other murders. Attempts to stall Harry's investigation by his supervisor as well as the police chief, to avoid a bad publicity fallout, fail. In his personal life, Harry's daughter Maddie says she wants to become a member of the LAPD, after having expressed an interest in a law enforcement career in The Drop. The story also introduces a part-time recurring character, Nancy Mendenhall, an IAD investigator. The 'Black Box', just like ones in the airlines, refers to the piece of the puzzle that will tie all ends together.
Reception
The book placed at #2 on the Chronicle bestseller list for San Francisco Bay Area booksellers, in December 2012.[3]
In 2012, The Black Box won the world's most lucrative crime fiction award, the RBA Prize for Crime Writing worth €125,000.[4]
References
- "Coming Next? The Black Box". MichaelConnelly.com. Retrieved February 29, 2012.
- Barber, Brian (12 December 2011). "Michael Connelly not ready to 'Drop' beloved Detective Harry Bosch". Tulsa World. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- "Michael Connelly wins the RBA Prize for his novel 'The Black Box'". Catalan News Wire. 7 September 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2013.