Michael Connelly introduces a new character here, Detective Renee Ballard. And she's a welcome addition to the world he has created. Renee is a ballsy woman who has had a run in with a ranking officer and been placed on the late show, the dark of night. As is always the case, Connelly has his character dealing with two cases at once, the beating of a trans woman and the execution murder of several folks. She's not supposed to be working the second case, and does off-book. Setting, dialogue, pacing, tension are all top notch.