Void Moon by Michael Connelly






Originally published in 1999.

In Void Moon Connelly takes a break from the Harry Bosch stories and introduces a new character, a professional thief named Cassie Black. Black is sexy, smart and very good at picking locks. Currently, she is on parole in Los Angeles working at a high end car dealership where her specialty is selling cars to up and coming script writers. Black was convicted for being involved in the crime that caused the death of her partner in crime (and in romance) several years earlier in Las Vegas (apparently states can exchange parole cases which is how she ended up in L.A.)

 Black's specialty was robbing high rollers in Vegas casinos, usually in their rooms while they slept. She has been contacted to do one last job with a big payoff by an old colleague and, of course, things go wrong. Soon enough, the Vegas underworld is after Black and mayhem and destruction are on her tail.
 
Michael Connelly
It would be a spoiler to tell you why Black needs the money and even more so to tell you her true intentions for the money. Suffice to say, Black's intentions are not all that honorable (in fact, they are horrible) and I found myself in the rare position of reading a Connelly book and not really rooting for the "good guy". Well, that's because there are bad guys and worse guys in this book. Some may say, well that's the way life is. That may be so, but I find myself not really getting into the story. I can't identify with anyone.

 All of the characteristics of a good Connelly story are there - action, intrigue, good character development, interesting bad guys. But, I found myself waying the various cost/benefit analyses wondering which bad guy should win and hoping for a moment in which they could all take themselves out without hurting any innocent bystanders.

 You can find this book at Amazon.com here: Void Moon by Michael Connelly.

 I rate this book 3 stars out of 5.

 Reviewed on February 5, 2011.

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