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The Waiting is the 6th book to feature LAPD detective Renee Ballard, but it鈥檚 part of Michael Connelly鈥檚 Harry Bosch universe. More and more Ballard is exhibiting the same willingness to circumvent the rules as Bosch himself. It makes for a lively investigation process and it鈥檚 all in the name of solving her cases and bringing closure for the victim's families.

Ballard heads up LAPD鈥檚 Open-Unsolved Unit and has put together a strong team of volunteers adept at working through the massive list of cold cases still on the books. Although the team members don鈥檛 have a badge, they all have strong backgrounds for the work they do and the results have been good, granting Ballard quite a high level of autonomy.

There are 3 significant threads to follow in the course of The Waiting鈥檚 storyline.

The first kicks off while Ballard is enjoying a morning surf. Her car is broken into and she鈥檚 robbed of her police ID, her badge and her service weapon. She chooses not to let her superior know, rather, she does her own off-the-books investigation. Following the trail from thief, to stolen goods fence to illegal goods buyer, she finds that she鈥檚 about to uncover a potential terror attack. But she鈥檚 got to tread very carefully considering how she first learnt of the threat.

The second involves one of the cold cases being worked by the team. The case was dubbed the Pillowcase Rapist and the person they鈥檙e after was a serial rapist with the final rape victim also murdered. The team has come up with a familial match from a man arrested on a domestic violence call. If the DNA match comes through, the man鈥檚 father could be charged as the Pillowcase Rapist.

The only problem is, the potential suspect is the presiding judge of the superior court.

The third arm, and possibly the most significant for Bosch and Michael Connelly fans, is Maddie Bosch joining the Open-Unsolved team for one day a week. She鈥檚 hoping to fast-track her rise to detective. Maddie comes to Ballard with a possible stunning chance to solve the infamous Black Dahlia murder. Solving it may also solve a series of other Open/Unsolved murders along the way.

The Waiting exhibits all of the superior storytelling qualities that has made Michael Connelly so popular. Although the three main storylines unfold concurrently with Ballard at their center, they鈥檙e allowed to each develop at their natural pace, building to an absorbing conclusion. It鈥檚 all held together effortlessly to form another extremely tightly plotted story typified by the logical police work employed in each case.

It was nice to get another small dose of Harry Bosch here. Although his role is of a minor nature, his influence on Ballard remains large. And then there鈥檚 the introduction of Maddie Bosch, giving her a much larger role with the promise of more to come. There鈥檚 already an indication that we鈥檙e in for a treat in future books that involves this whip-smart police investigator.

Naturally, there are hitches, roadblocks and, at times, members of the team are placed in mortal danger, but that鈥檚 to be expected when there are so many big personalities involved. Another totally absorbing Los Angeles thriller delivered by a master of his craft.

My thanks to Allen & Unwin and NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC allowing me to read, enjoy and review this book.