The Late Show

 Shirley J.                         Adult Fiction                                 Female detective, harrassment, murder

The Late Show by Michael Connelly  544 pages  (Book 1 of the Renee Ballard series)

Detective Renee Ballard has a tough go on her job.   Because she brought allegations about another male employee earlier in her career she has been assigned to what is considered the crappiest shift in the crappiest location, Hollywood, in Los Angeles.    Determined to give them a forget you attitude she makes the best of her circumstances.  She loves being a cop, her dad was a cop, too.   Being a woman in a man's world of police enforcement every day is a struggle to get some respect but she holds her own and gives back as good as she gets, in an old boys network.   Her hands get slapped on most things and when day comes she turns over whatever she had been working on to the day shift until she works a case where a prostitute has just about been beaten to death (but she lives) then a waitress is killed,  Was the latter a case of wrong place wrong time?   Detective Ballard starts noting links between the two cases.  Her partner and other cops eventually tell her to back off but she searches for information by day to solve the cases before the brass pulls them away from her.   Oh yeah, she just happens to get pregnant by her very married detective coworker over drinks after work one night.  Good story, well told.  I think I will read the entire series as the character is smart, funny and doesn't take all the bull only the bull she must while still working her case to end solution.  I recommend this one to all murder mystery fans, cop story fans, female detective fans and feminists.