An extremely prolific author, Michael Connelly has published more than 40 books.

He’s created in-depth universes surrounding well-known characters like Mickey Haller in the Lincoln Lawyer and Harry Bosch, who’s appeared in 24 of Connelly’s novels.

His universes continue to grow with a new addition to the Lincoln Lawyer series, ‘The Proving Ground’, which sees Haller team up with a journalist to take on big tech, AI, and uncover a whistleblower in hiding, all with billions on the line.

Connelly professes to be a fan of technological innovation, exploring things like the internet, DNA analytics, and data storage in previous novels.

“AI was kinda like, primed for me.”

“For every great discovery and invention, and move forward with technology, there’s always somebody out there who is looking to turn it against is,” Connelly told Jack Tame.

“And there were a couple of cases that really caught my eye, that made me, you know, say, yeah I know AI is gonna change the world for the better, but are we moving too fast?”

Every week there’s some new development with AI, whether it's a new problem, a new use, or a new integration into an already existing platform.

“The Proving Ground is an exploration of it,” he says.

“I don’t wanna say it’s didactic, or tells anyone how to think, but it does, you know, maybe raise a flag and say, ‘take a look at this.’”

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As the weather turns warmer, more of us are taking advantage and hanging our clothes outside in the sun to dry.

Kevin Milne’s not sure if the silly season has just come early, but he’s realised he’s quite the fan of clothes pegs – one kind in particular.

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Tonight is the grand finale, Oasis performing the final show of their reunion tour down under in Sydney, Australia.

Every show was sold out, fans ecstatic they’re able to see a band they never thought they would after their break up in 2009.

Chris Schulz joined Jack Tame as the minutes tick down before the concert begins to provide a vibe check.

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"Singapore never fails to serve up an electrifying experience, constantly refreshing and enhancing its enticements. After paying my respects to Singapore’s beloved water-spout mascot, the Merlion, overlooking Marina Bay, I ventured over to the jaw-dropping botanical blockbuster of Gardens by the Bay, armed with my Go City Explorer Pass.

"Take a stroll through Kampong Glam. Once the seat of Singapore’s first sultan, the neighbourhood's colourful shophouses are home to a jumble of cafes and boutiques wedged among decades-old perfumeries and fabric merchants."

Read Mike's full article here.

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The Breath of the Gods by Simon Winchester

What is going on with our atmosphere? The headlines are filled with news of devastating hurricanes, murderous tornadoes, and cataclysmic fires. Gale force advisories are issued on a regular basis by weather services around the world.

Atmospheric scientists are warning that winds – the force at the centre of all these dangerous natural events – are expected to steadily increase in the years ahead, strengthening in power, speed, and frequency. While this prediction worried the insurance industry, governmental leaders, scientists, and conscientious citizens, one particular segment of society received it with unbridled enthusiasm. To the energy industry, rising wind strength and speeds as an unalloyed boon for humankind – a vital source of clean and ‘safe’ power.

Between these two poles – wind as a malevolent force, and wind as saviour of our planet – lies a world of fascination, history, literature, science, poetry, and engineering which Simon Winchester explores with the curiosity and Vigor that are the hallmarks of his bestselling works. In The Breath of the Gods, he explains how wind plays a part in our everyday lives, from airplane or car travel to the ‘natural disasters’ that are becoming more frequent and regular.

The Breath of the Gods is an urgently-needed portrait across time of that unseen force – unseen but not unfelt – that respects no national borders and no vessel or structure in its path. Wind, the movement of the air, is seen by so many as a heavenly creation and generally a thing of essential goodness. But when it flexes its invisible muscles, all should take care and be very afraid.

The Detective by Matthew Riley

For 150 years, women have been going missing.

And all of the investigators who went in search of them - from 1877 to the present day - have disappeared, too.

Now Sam Speedman, a most unique private detective, is on the case.

Brilliant, direct and disarming, Sam is ... different. He's not your average private detective. But then again, this isn't your average case.

For not even he will be prepared for what he will find.

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A couple of months ago we covered Prosopagnosia – the inability to recognise faces. Following on from that, today we’re covering Aphantasia – the inability to see mental images.

Most of the time most of us, if asked to remember something or “picture” something in our minds, we create a mental image of the thing or person.

For example, if asked to remember what you had for breakfast this morning, many of us will mentally see the weetbix and toast – not always in perfect detail, but there will be a picture of the thing.

But for a small number of people, this is just a theoretical idea. They have aphantasia.

Estimated to affect about 1% of people – not a disorder in itself but considered one end of a spectrum related to how well or poorly we can visualise things in our mind.

Some people become aphantasic after a head injury or damage to the brain. Others have never had it and assume that terms like “mental pictures” were just meant to illustrate the idea of thinking about something, rather than referring to an actual thing that other people do.

There’s been a growth in the use of the term aphantasia since the mid 2000s after the publication of an article in a neuroscience journal describing the condition, which led others to go “I’ve got that too!”

At the other end of the spectrum is hyperphantasia – mental images are so clear and vivid that it’s hard to distinguish them from reality. People are aware that their visions are imaginary though – if you don’t realise this it’s an hallucination.

Some things that are associated with aphantasia: over-represented in people who work in maths and IT roles; much poorer autobiographical memory; also much poorer recognition of other people’s faces and probably some overlap with prosopagnosia; occurs more in people with autism.

For hyperphantasia – much better autobiographical memory and over-represented in artists.

Interestingly, people with aphantasia typically report that they do dream and see images in dreams.

There are some indications that there are differences in brain wiring for people at either end of the mental imagery spectrum but no conclusive proof yet! Some suggestion that most children have very strong mental imagery but that they lose this ability as they grow, and the brain goes through a “pruning” process whereby it loses connections that aren’t so useful or needed.

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On the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast for Saturday 8 November 2025, an author who is very familiar with bestseller lists, Michael Connelly joins Jack to discuss being an unofficial voice for Los Angeles, and how the devastating fires changed his perspective on the city and prompted him to start over for his new book ‘The Proving Ground’.

Jack considers what makes a good meal, and how much a Michelin Star means.

Strawberries are here and Nici Wickes shares her favourite way to serve them while the season is still early.

Kevin Milne champions a humble tool: the clothes peg.

Clinical psychologist Dougal Sutherland delves into a condition in which people are unable to see mental images.

And music correspondent Chris Schulz is vibe checking live from Sydney as Oasis get ready to perform the final gig of their reunion world tour.

Get the Saturday Morning with Jack Tame Full Show Podcast every Saturday on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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With Christmas on its way, the season of spending is fast approaching.

The allure of credit cards becomes stronger at this time of year as people try to figure out how they can afford everything they need to.

Financial planner Lisa Dudson joined Jack Tame to give some advice on how best to balance credit cards and build good habits.

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