Book Details
| Title: | Nightshade | |
| Author: | Michael Connelly | |
| Times Read: | 1 | |
| Last Read: | 08.09.25 |
Other Books Read By This Author (40)
- 9 Dragons
- Angels Flight
- The Black Box
- The Black Echo
- The Black Ice
- Blood Work
- The Brass Verdict
- The Burning Room
- Chasing the Dime
- City of Bones
- The Closers
- The Concrete Blonde
- Crime Beat
- The Crossing
- The Dark Hours
- Dark Sacred Night
- A Darkness More Than Night
- Desert Star
- The Drop
- Echo Park
- Fair Warning
- The Fifth Witness
- The Gods of Guilt
- The Last Coyote
- The Late Show
- The Law of Innocence
- The Lincoln Lawyer
- Lost Light
- The Narrows
- The Night Fire
- The Overlook
- The Poet
- Resurrection Walk
- The Reversal
- The Scarecrow
- Trunk Music
- Two Kinds of Truth
- Void Moon
- The Waiting
- The Wrong Side of Goodbye
| Date Read | Note |
| 08.09.25 | This year we're getting two Connelly novels. The usual Mickey Haller book's coming out at the usual time but he's trying out a new protagonist in the form of Stilwell (first name already forgotten or perhaps never known): a LA Sheriff's detective stationed on the island of Santa Catalina 20-some miles off the coast of Los Angeles. I suspect this book exists because Connelly visited the island and liked its story. That was the most interesting part of the book for me, having heard mention of Catalina throughout my life but never actually been or looked up much about. The only thing I knew was that there were no cars there, which is not technically true, at least circa 2025. Maybe in the 80s it was, who knows. The mystery plot that all the island lore hangs on is a bit uneven. I thought the dynamic of a LA county sheriff spanning the island and mainland was interesting but the actual murder investigation (and second case which is now requisite in Connelly novels) felt very rushed to me. Although who knows... perhaps the back-loading of plot will live on to be the distinguishing factor of this book. Who am I to nitpick the cases being solved just because there's only fifty pages left. The character of Stilwell is also a little thin here. I feel like Mickey Haller and Renee Ballard were introduced with more depth to establish their presence in the Connelly Universe but this guy is still largely unknown to me. I know that he get upset at reasonable things and he's willing to stretch the rules in order to do what he feels is right, but that... is like every other protagonist ever. If Connelly continues with him I'd like to get a little more out of this guy. I also wonder how long the legs of Catalina are though in terms of storytelling. By all accounts the island doesn't see (m)any murders so it might prove difficult to keep the setting realistically involved, but if Stillwell leaves the island then he's basically a cookie-cutter Bosch? We'll see. I did like the island stuff quite a bit though. It made me go on google maps and watch a few youtube vlogs to learn more. So all in all, not my favorite Connelly but there was enough there to keep me interested, and as always the prose itself is top-tier mystery. I always equate these books as "boy-romances" meaning they are as easy to read for guys as romance novels are for women, and in that regard I think Connelly's still got it. Reading one of his books is always a joy simply because the words fly by. |
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