Michael Connelly - Trunk Music
Orion £16.99
There are few authors who can insist that the reader forgoes sleep in order to finish their book, who make you feel as if their characters are old friends that it’s more than good to see again, who entertain, enthral and always surprise - Michael Connelly is one of those rare crime writers.
"'Trunk Music" takes us back to the world of Hieronymous Bosch, a maverick homicide detective of the Los Angeles Police Department. "Harry" Bosch is, thankfully, back on the job after an involuntary leave of absence. His house in the hills has been rebuilt after the earthquake and he is half way through painting the living-room when he lands himself his first murder case. A man's body has been found by Powers, a unifomed Police Officer, in the trunk of a Rolls Royce parked on the Cahuenga Pass, off Mullholland Drive. The man has been shot twice in the head, and the only other item found apart from the body, is a tube of Preparation H - haemorrhoid cream. At autopsy, it is found that he doesn't even suffer from this condition, so what has he been using it for? The mind boggles!
Tony Aliso, the name of the man found in the trunk, was on his way back from Los Vegas. He had a Film Production Company, of sorts, in L.A. where he lived, but had been in Vegas mixing business and pleasure. It seems that Tony had been laundering money through this film company for The Mafia. Harry, and his new team, soon discover that 'The Inland Revenue were just about to start an investigation into Tony's company, and this would have inevitably exposed the scam. Have The Mafia disposed of him to keep him quiet? It seems so. All the obvious clues point directly at a Mafia boss working out of Vegas, hence the title - "Trunk Music" - a Mafia term for this sort of hit.
The murdered man, Tony Aliso, has been having an affair with a young stipper called Layla. His wife Veronica seems to know nothing about the shady side of his business affairs, and seems to care even less about his extra- marital-activities. She makes it clear, when interviewed by Harry, that she isn't exactly heart-broken by her husband's death, but does want the murderer of her meal-ticket brought to justice.
The author writes briefly about the technical aspects and modern innovations of today’s policing, for example he describes the use of laser beams to show up finger and foot prints. But he does it without droning on for page after boring page, about forensic evidence. One book I read recently, whose author shall remain nameless, took four pages to describe one little bullet! Yes, of course the reader of this sort of book wants accurate and informative descriptions of The Police investigations. But some other famous crime novelists should take note of Michael Connelly's style, for he seems to instinctively know just how much information we the readers actually require. By concentrating on people and relationships, and why crimes happen, and with subtle layering within the story, he gives all the necessary clues to reach the right conclusions. Then miraculously, still manages to surprise us at the end. If you haven't yet discovered this author, lucky you, because you have five previous books to catch up on! Michael Connolly's stories just get better and better, the onty complaint I have, is that I want MORE of his books NOW!!!
(Leandra Holder)
