The Concrete Blonde by Michael Connelly

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the third in Connelly’s Harry Bosch series, and starts by giving us a flashback to the Dollmaker case that’s been referenced a few times in the first two books. The narrative then jumps forward to the present, and leads us into a court case where Bosch (and the LAPD) is being sued by the Dollmaker’s widow. As the trial gets under way, Bosch receives a letter from someone claiming to be the real Dollmaker, suggesting that Bosch killed the wrong man four years earlier. What follows is an interesting mix of legal drama meets crime thriller.

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Dear Crossing by Marjorie Swift Doering

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I picked this one up out of curiosity, and on reflection I have to say it wasn’t too bad. It’s a bit by-the-numbers in places (washed-up cop with a drink problem and a broken marriage), but manages to keep itself fresh with a storyline that includes more than a few twists along the way.

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A Murder of Quality by John le Carré

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is the second book by John le Carré, and the second to focus on the character of George Smiley. It is also the only book to feature Smiley that isn’t a tale of cold war espionage.

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A Darkness At Sethanon by Raymond E. Feist

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A Darkness At Sethanon is the third (fourth if you’re reading the American edition) and final instalment in Raymond E. Feist’s epic Riftwar Saga, and brings to a close many of the plot threads originally started in the earlier books.

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Batman: Year One by Frank Miller

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’ve long been a fan of Batman, having grown up with the Adam West TV show and the comic book stories of the seventies and eighties, to the Tim Burton movies of the late eighties/early nineties, and more recently the Christopher Nolan reboots of the franchise on movie screens. Through every incarnation, I’ve always considered him one of the better superheroes, even though technically he’s not super and arguably he may not even be a hero in the truest sense. However, there’s always been something about the character that’s just made me see him as simply ‘better’ than the rest of the ever-expanding pantheon of superheroes and vigilante crime-fighters.

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