In a message dated 3/15/08 2:23:42 PM,
abrasax93@yahoo.com writes:
>
> On the other hand, there is no humor of the type
you
> find in McBain/Hunter or Leonard to lighten
the
> intensity and heighten the engagement. Bosch is
a
> depressed person who keeps going because of
his
> obsession with his job. He's very intelligent but
he
> gets stuck thinking in one direction and this
causes
> most of his problems. Also, Connelly seems
obsessed
> with tacky nick names. Garland's father is Thomas
Rex
> Garland, hence T. Rex. The ADA is Rick O'Shea,
the
> killer is Reynard Waits. And to top it off,
Harry
> Bosch's given name is Hieronymus! Come on! I'm
reading
> this very realistic crime novel and the characters
all
> sound like comic book villians. I must say that
every
> time I run into one of these names it pulls me out
of
> the story and makes me think how silly these
names
> are. Still, Waits' police sobriquet, "The Bagman"
is,
> in my opinion, very good and believable.
>
I was going to comment on Connelly's propensity for funny
nicknames later on in my protracted and superficial essay,
but now is as good a time as any. it is certainly a trait of
his. by and large however, they are nicknames given to the
characters by other characters. but sometimes, as in Echo
Park or in Blood Work, the names are aliases which are
clues
if this is your first exposure to the author, know that Echo
Park is representative of the quality of the Bosch series in
general. while there are digressions in the form interspersed
in the series, everything you like about the book is
nonetheless prevalent throughout what will be 14 volumes by
the time of his next release. a laudable achievement
it is true that there isn't humor in the narrative such as
you'll find in say, Robert Crais, Don Winslow or Carl
Hiaasen, but the character does have a dry and even
passive/aggressive wit, albeit not often expressed
thanks for giving me the opportunity to comment, thereby
removing my guilt to write and post another installment
today. ahhh, saturday
John Lau
************** It's Tax Time! Get tips, forms, and advice on
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& Finance.
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