Without giving too much away, I think there are two main additions. One is a new character who is an LAPD captain in charge of their own department of Homeland Security. I wanted this character to sort of embody the fear and even borderline paranoia you see in society these days. I think the guy is a bit over the top at times but that is intentional. I was also able to add in some Harry Bosch history. This is a 12-hour story but it also moves backward in time, even going back to a scene with Harry in Vietnam.

What is the best part about being a best-selling author? What is the worst part?

It gives me a lot of freedom. I don't need to tell anyone what I am planning or writing. I have a lot of latitude and trust from my editors in this regard. I am not sure there is a worst part. I guess the part that is most difficult to deal with is the demands on my time. There is a sense of duty to kind of keep the fire burning, so that often entails more travel on book tours, more interviews, more things that take me away from what brought the success in the first place.

A friend wrote the other day that if you want to read good writing you should avoid reading the books on the bestseller list? Do you agree with that? I said that there were exceptions to that including books you, Laura Lippman, Robert Crais and Ian Rankin write.

That is a generality that has been around for years and I did not believe it before I hit any lists and I don't believe it now. The problem is in believing or following generalities. Sure there are books on the lists that lack in editorial quality and they are there because they had struck some formula that appears to the common denominator in reading tastes. But the opposite is true as well. I think if you looked over time you would see that there are many books on the lists that are there because of great writing and social meaning. I remember I first came upon Ross MacDonald's work after seeing it on a bestseller list.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

First of all, I hope I am still writing. Maybe at a slightly slower pace than now, but still pretty productive. But I hope that in ten years I have added significantly to the character of Harry Bosch and through him an ongoing take on the evolution of Los Angeles.

When we did a prior interview you said that Harry’s daughter adds a vulnerability to him. Does his relationship with FBI Agent Rachel Walling, who is also in the new book, add to that vulnerability?

I think so. There is a fledgling relationship starting that and if Harry makes that tie then it brings on vulnerability. The bullet-proof vest sort of comes off. It also makes things more complicated. A father's desire to protect and nurture his daughter is basic and primal. With a relationship with Rachel will be fraught with all kinds of dangers as well as potential fulfillment for him.