Author Michael Connelly has had a lot of time to think about Detective Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch. The first installment in the long-running literary series was published in 1992, and his most recent offering, “The Waiting,” was released last month. In his book club event with longtime editor Asya Muchnick held last week, Connelly revealed he has plans for his titular character after “Bosch: Legacy” ends.
Harry Bosch has aged in real-time and is 74 this year, and the author is contracted for 4 or 5 additional books after his most recent release. While Maddie Bosch could end up taking up her father’s mantle in the future, for now, Connelly sees a literary future in which Bosch is still alive and well. “Hopefully the last book I write is Harry as lead character and not as a supporting character behind these two women,” he said.
The newest book was described by Bleeding Cool as “the most intricately-plotted book” of Connelly’s career. At this point, Bosch is working as a private investigator and being treated for cancer while also serving as a mentor for Detective Renée Ballard and his daughter, Maddie. All three characters have key stories that Connelly focused on.
“As a reporter, I knew every detective I talked to has a file on their desk,” Connelly said. “They keep revising and working on. I’ve been doing this a long time, so hopefully, I’ve gotten better at reducing the complexity of characters working on more than one case. There are three significant storylines in this book – Renee is in all of them. Harry is in one. Maddie is in another. And I wonder if any reader has noticed Maddie and Harry have no interactions in this book.”
Connelly also said that his lead character is based on a real-life retired LAPD officer. “As long as there are real people doing it, I think Harry can do it. He has that mindset and can extend himself through Renee and now Maddie,” he explained. “I look forward to Maddie and Renee not quite taking centerstage while he plays mentor.”
The third season of “Bosch: Legacy” on Amazon Prime and its Freevee service will be the final one for the series. Connelly shared the news on social media, where he wrote, “I’m happy to announce that the third season of ‘Bosch: Legacy’ will premiere on Prime in March. I think it’s our best yet. It will also be the last season, bringing to a fitting close a 10-season run with this character, played so well by Titus Welliver.”
“But fear not, we are currently in production on the Renée Ballard show. And if you know anything about my books, then you know you have not seen the last of Harry Bosch!”
Prime Video ordered the Renée Ballard spin-off in November 2023. Connelly will serve as executive producer under Hieronymus Pictures alongside Fabel Entertainment. “It is so exciting to bring Renée Ballard to the screen and to do it with Prime Video, my streaming partners for going on 10 years,” he said. “This show will have the same authenticity and propulsive momentum of ‘Bosch: Legacy’. Fans of the books will love it.”
