El vuelo del angel (Angel's Flight) Book

As research for a novel I'm writing I'm reading detective fiction and stealing everything of value. My story takes place in L.A. of the early '90s and burgling Michael Connelly turned out to be a bonanza. Not only has Connelly written 23 Harry Bosch novels--basis for the Amazon series Bosch, which in its sixth season, combines one or more books, updated to present day, per season--but the literary Harry Bosch, LAPD homicide detective, began in Los Angeles of the early '90s. Proceeding in chronological order with the books that sound appealing, next up is Angels Flight.

Publish date: December 1998

Story: Expecting a phone call from his wife Eleanor Wish to reconcile their marriage, Det. Harry Bosch is summoned to Bunker Hill by the deputy chief. The crime scene at the inclined railroad Angels Flight is well outside the jurisdiction of Hollywood division, but for reasons he can't figure, Bosch and his partners Jerry Edgar and Kizmin Rider are tasked with investigating the shooting deaths of star attorney Howard Elias and a cleaning woman. The black lawyer was preparing a high profile civil case against the elite Robbery-Homicide Division for the alleged torture of a black ex-con suspected but later acquitted of kidnapping a 12-year-old white girl.

With most of the department a suspect in Elias' murder, Bosch's team is paired with three IAD detectives. Despite assurances from the deputy chief that he wants the killer brought to justice, Bosch concludes that the brass hope Bosch's team and the Internal Affairs guys will be so dysfunctional together that the case will go unsolved. Operating by his code "Everybody Counts or Nobody Counts," Bosch vows not to let that happen, whether it's good for his career, his marriage or Los Angeles, which only five years after the L.A. Riots, is primed to explode again whether the killer is found to be a cop or isn't.

L.A. scenery: Built in 1901 and used as a location in movies like La La Land, the inclined railroad cars of Angels Flight in Bunker Hill makes an effective murder scene at Connelly's hands. The setting allows a high profile attorney who lives up the hill and a cleaning woman coming down the hill to be in the right place at the wrong time. Howard Elias' family lives in Baldwin Bills, a neighborhood known as the black Beverly Hills, and has an office in the Bradbury Building, which was used supremely well as a location in films from Double Indemnity to Blade Runner and many in between. Connelly gets much atmosphere out of both.

1990s nostalgia: Harry Bosch has quit smoking and carries a mobile phone in his briefcase, so in a way, he's come out of the 20th century and is moving into the 21st. Computer crime plays a pivotal role in the story and Connelly, using Bosch as a reader surrogate who in 1998 knew barely anything about PCs or the Internet, has Det. Rider explain to him what a "website" or a "server" are. It's quite quaint.

Opening paragraph: The word sounded alien in his mouth, as if spoken by someone else. There was an urgency in his own voice that Bosch didn't recognize. The simple hello he had whispered into the telephone was full of hope, almost desperation. But the voice that came back to him was not the one he needed to hear.

Title in text: Irving hung up without waiting for a reply. Bosch stood with the phone still at his ear for a few moments, wondering what was going on. Angels Flight was the short inclined railroad that carried people up Bunker Hill in downtown--far outside the boundaries of the Hollywood Division homicide table. If Irving had a body down there at Angels Flight the investigation would fall under the jurisdiction of Central Division. If Central detectives couldn't handle it because of caseload or personnel problems, or if the case was deemed too important or media sensitive for them, then it would be bumped to the bulls, the Robbery-Homicide Division. The fact that a deputy chief of police was involved in the case before dawn on a Saturday suggested the latter possibility. The fact that he was calling Bosch and his team in instead of the RHD bulls was the puzzle. Whatever it was that Irving had working at Angels Flight didn't make sense.

Closing paragraph: He thought about Chastain and his final scream, a wail so loud and horrible as to be almost inhuman. It was the sound of fallen angels in their flight to hell. Bosch knew he could never allow himself to forget it.

Thoughts: It's hard to imagine Michael Connelly writing a better novel than Angels Flight. There's how seamless the architecture, history and institutions of Los Angeles are woven into the story. There's the no-win scenario Bosch finds himself in, seeking justice for a man he despised and whose murder puts Bosch's code to a real test. Connelly suggests that while Bosch has personal flaws (he has sources more so than friends) and fails a lot (his marriage is going going gone this time around) he's willing to sacrifice much of himself in order to find the truth. Everything else is secondary. I also really felt how torn Bosch was over Eleanor, who loves him but is pulling away because she can't love him as much as he loves her. And of course, I wanted to keep reading to know how everyone's secrets related to the murder Bosch was thanklessly given to investigate.

Word count: 161,562 words