City of Bones by Michael Connelly

Another Harry Bosch novel, and this one was as good as the others. The bones of a 10-year-old boy are found in a shallow grave in Laurel Canyon, and it turns out a longtime resident of the neighborhood was a convicted child molester, and he is the first and most obvious suspect. But, once the identity of the victim is discovered, his dysfunctional family becomes a primary focus, the mother who, to save herself, fled from her abusive, monster of a husband, leaving their two defenseless children with him. Bosch is on the scene, and Connelly gives him a tragic love interest. Bosch has conflicts with his own partner, but especially the deputy chief of police who has grown sick of this detective’s defiant behaviors through the years. The author keeps the reader wondering until the end, so many possibilities about who really committed the murder until the very last unexpected twist. I am a Connelly fan – look forward to the next one.