<b>In this first installment of the Renée Ballard series, #1 bestselling author Michael Connelly introduces a "complicated and driven" young detective fighting to prove herself on the LAPD&apos;s toughest beat (<i>The New York Times</i>).</b><b><br /></b>Renee Ballard works the midnight shift in Hollywood, beginning many investigations but finishing few, as each morning she turns everything over to the daytime units. It&apos;s a frustrating job for a once up-and-coming detective, but it&apos;s no accident. She&apos;s been given this beat as punishment after filing a sexual harassment complaint against a supervisor.<br />But one night Ballard catches two assignments she doesn&apos;t want to part with. First, a prostitute is brutally beaten and left for dead in a parking lot. All signs point to a crime of premeditation, not passion, by someone with big evil on his mind. Then she sees a young waitress breathe her last after being caught up in a nightclub shooting. Though dubbed a peripheral victim, the waitress buys Ballard a way in, and this time she is determined not to give up at dawn. Against orders and her partner&apos;s wishes, she works both cases by day while maintaining her shift by night. <br />As the investigations intertwine, Ballard is forced to face her own demons and confront a danger she could never have imagined. To find justice for these victims who can&apos;t speak for themselves, she must put not only her career but her life on the line. <br />Propulsive as a jolt of adrenaline and featuring a bold and defiant new heroine, <i>The Late Show </i>is yet more proof that Michael Connelly is "a master of the genre" (<i>Washington Post</i>).