The Brass Verdict: A Novel (Mickey Haller)
by Michael Connelly
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Book Reviews of The Brass Verdict: A Novel (Mickey Haller)
Book Review: Mickey Haller, the "Lincoln Lawyer" is back!
Summary: 5 Stars
Criminal lawyer Mickey Haller made his sole debut in "The Lincoln Lawyer" - - - and he was an instant hit. Shuttling between the more than 40 courthouses, jails and other places Haller has to hit, he settled upon the ingenious scheme of having no real office. Instead, Haller uses the backseat of whichever of his three Lincolns Mickey is being chauffeured around in that day.
That's Mickey for you. The son of a legendary criminal defense attorney, Mickey is an original. Creative. Unorthodox. Ruthless. He doesn't care if his criminal defendant clients are guilty or innocent of the crimes they are chazrged with: he just wants to give them the very best defense he can under the laws of the United States.
Agree or disagree with Haller's philosophy, his antics in and out of the courtroom are the stuff of great legal thrillers. Mickey knows not only every facet of criminal law, but he is also something (in a good sense) of a con-man as he exploits the foibles and weaknesses of human nature to get a win. As Mickey puts it "[a] trial is a contest of lies". The trick, according to Mickey, is to be patient and wait for the right lie - and use it to rip the case open.
Mickey also has a lot of background clutter: three ex-wives, one of whom is his assistant, another the mother of the daughter he dotes on. Mickey is just coming off a year's sabattical for pain-killer addiction when he learns of the murder of a one time courtroom adversary, Jerry Vincent, who he had remained somewhat friendly with over the years. Haller inherits Vincent's 42 current criminal cases, including that of Hollywood mogul Walter Elliot who is accused of murdering his wife and her lover.
A case like that is called a "franchise" for its moneymaking potential to the lawyer.
So there youu have it. A brutally murdered lawyer, the murderer still on the loose. Mickey Haller, fresh out of an addiction and a rehab, sorting through his life problems; a week or so to prepare for the start of a murder trial, deling with the other newly inherited cases.
Haller has his hands full even with his ex-wife assistant Lorna, his investigator Cisco and his newly acquired chauffeur Patrick. And, of course, we have Harry Bosch, the oddball detective from other Connelly novels, who is a fully formed character in his own right. The inclusion of Bosch never comes off, even though Connelly resorts to some desperate surprises.
The story moves - and works well - on several levels. Courtroom thriller of the first order. Sort of a police procedural. Frail man coping with problems.
All in all, a great read. Not a page turner, but a great, satisfying read.
Jerry
Book Review: Bosch & Haller--joining forces or knocking heads???
Summary: 4 Stars
Mickey Haller! Harry Bosch! Together again for the first time!!
Connelly has always enjoyed crossing his characters over, so this combo is no big surprise, really.
It's also no surprise that the combination is very effective, and leaves us wanting more. Oh boy does it. In ways we can't talk about, and if anyone tells you, they aren't your friend, ok?
Haller, returning from the depths Connelly deposited him in during The Lincoln Lawyer, finds himself dropped square in a maelstrom of events the reader will fear he's not capable of handling.
When a former adversary/ally, Jerry Vincent, is murdered, Haller is notified of his having been bequeathed the entire practice, including what is already billed in current media as The Trial Of The Century. That would be the murder trial of one Walter Eliot, Hollywood big-shot. Set to begin in a matter of days. Yikes!
Connelly is great as setting atmosphere while events unfold. He seamlessly blends flashbacks with current events to set up the relationship between Vincent and Haller.
With Bosch being the lead detective on the Vincent murder investigation, the time-honored conflicts between law enforcement and defense attorneys receives the Deluxe Connelly Treatment, and it's huge fun to watch these two do the dance.
Haller, balancing his genuine dedication to his client against his desire to survive, walks a thin ethical line as he tries to help Bosch solve Vincent's murder, and Connelly weaves the web with the subtle skill that makes him planetary in the genre.
The heart of The Brass Verdict is the murder trial itself, and Connelly moves things along at a rapid pace, while making us feel like we're sitting in the gallery at the trial, right next to Nancy Grace.
Connelly definitely has some things to say about the jury system, how it's been abused and manipulated, and why that is probably necessary for the system to be able to evolve. He does this via Haller's narration of the trial proceedings, from jury selection through opening statements and evidence presentation, on to the Shocking Conclusion, which is, of course, a necessary ingredient to any good legal thriller, right?
Connelly also brings in his sorta-alter-ego Jack McAvoy, from The Poet and The Narrows, to complete the comfortable assemblage of characters that compose what fans like to call the ConnellyVerse. All that's missing is Cassie Black!!
The Brass Verdict is a bit "bigger" in scale and feel than we're used to with Connelly, and that's a really great thing to read and be part of.
Oh, and the end? Very cool. That's all I'm sayin'!
Book Review: (4.5) The lie that became the blade that ripped the case open."
Summary: 5 Stars
Connelly consistently delivers in his novels and The Brass Verdict is no exception, LA defense attorney Mickey Haller returning to work with a vengeance after recovering from a serious wound and a stint in treatment for an addiction to pain killers. Rehabilitating his reputation, Haller gets an unexpected bonus that comes at the cost of another lawyer's life. When Jerry Vincent is shot and killed by an unknown assailant prior to a big murder trial, Haller is the beneficiary of all Vincent's cases. Plunging back into practice with perhaps more clients than he can successfully manage, Mickey gathers his team, office manager and ex-wife, Lorna, private investigator and Lorna's fiancé, Cisco, the three prioritizing Jerry's cases, the most pressing a notorious double murder. Independent film mogul at Archway Pictures, Walter Elliot is a larger-than-life defendant accused of slaying his wife and her lover in a jealous rage.
Elliot is adamant in his innocence, wary about trusting an attorney he doesn't know, but unwilling to delay the trial. Mickey faces an uphill battle with this demanding client, controlling Elliot's outsized ego paramount if he is to deliver an acquittal: the man's lifestyle does little to engender sympathy. Focusing on this case, the others in various stages of resolution, Connelly sets up a tight scenario, a contest of strong personalities as Haller jockeys to remain alpha dog for the duration of the trial. And when veteran LAPD homicide detective Harry Bosch steps in to investigate Vincent's murder, Mickey is reluctant to open the dead man's files to the police. Past retirement, Bosch is world-weary and impatient, Haller an obstacle to finding Vincent's killer. To that end, Bosch reveals enough information to scare Haller into cooperating, if only to protect himself from the same fate as the hapless Vincent.
This is a taut, perfectly paced tale, an escalating murder trial with a continuing threat that keeps Mickey off balance as the two men, detective and attorney, dance awkwardly around the issues that divide them. Neither wants to reveal too much to the other, yet Bosch needs Haller for answers and Haller needs Bosch for the questions that may ultimately save his life. Connelly skillfully provides an intimate look into the workings of the Los Angeles Criminal Courthouse, the judges, assistants, prosecutors and internal machinations of the criminal justice system. With implied menace and over-the-top personalities, this is a legal page-turner that is unpredictable and entertaining. An unlikely pair, Bosch and Haller are a curious team, their constant sparring failing to obscure a grudging friendship. Luan Gaines/ 2008.
Book Review: Reviewing: "The Brass Verdict" by Michael Connelly
Summary: 4 Stars
The plan had been a simple one. After not being in the courtroom for two long years (addiction and other issues) defense attorney Mickey Haller was going to ease back into working at a slow pace that would safely manage the stress, the psychological temptations, and the potential for relapse. It took Judge Holder a few minutes to blow that idea right out of the water.
The death of his colleague Jerry Vincent means that Mickey Haller inherited all thirty-one of Vincent's active cases. Some are real dogs and will be easily discarded. Others he can do something with and move on fairly quickly. And then there is the huge case. It involves Walter Elliot, studio boss, who is accused of murdering his wife and her lover at their beach house. And it might have been the case that got Jerry Vincent killed.
The murder of Jerry Vincent is complicated and being investigated by Harry Bosch. Opposites in how they see the law, the investigation and the court system and yet Harry and Mickey are two side of the same coin which further strengths their adversarial relationship as well as uniting them in an uneasy partnerships. They both want to see justice done and want Vincent's killer caught. They both have gone about achieving street justice in unorthodox ways in the past and it will happen again here.
The result is a legal procedural that is both detail and fast moving despite its 422 pages. A novel that resurrects Mickey Haller of "The Lincoln Lawyer" in more than one way. This second book of the series is your classic fork of the life road type book frequently seen in the fourth or fifth book of the series when the character is symbolically and literally at a major cross road of his life. The decisions he makes will forever change who he is and how he is perceived by others.
Part courtroom drama and part psychology study the novel only gives nodding attention to Bosch which is a disappointment. Even in those passages where Bosch has dialogue it really doesn't read like Bosch. Additionally, a significant discovery at the end of the book could have been brought about much earlier and explored especially since most readers will suspect the truth so early in this book. However, maybe that idea will be explored in greater detail in the next book.
Despite that quibble, what is here is highly entertaining and a mighty good read. You can't ask for much more though another mainly Bosch mystery novel would be nice.
Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2009
"By The Light Of The Moon"
The Carpathian Shadows Volume 2
Book Review: Not Everyone Lies
Summary: 5 Stars
Connelly's Detective Bosch is an uncommonly well developed and explored character. It stands to reason that our author having described the world from Bosch's view, the best way for the reader to deepen his experience of Bosch is to see him interact with other characters without being privy to his thoughts and intents. An interesting gambit; for Bosch has placed Mr. Connelly in the upper echelons of this genre and it is a brave author who places his franchise in a supporting role. I am heartened to see that Mr. Connelly remains no less a moralist than Bosch's namesake painter, who sought to portray a clear difference between good and evil, innocence and sin, through his art.
Yet despite all the fun with the hugely enjoyable plot and characters, The Brass Verdict contains a much more sobering message. Our system of justice is as fallible as the people who make it run. The opening page is a classic: it contains truth that I intend to utilize in my own legal practice when I attempt to persuade my clients that the Courtroom is the last place to resort for a decision--much better to settle if you can. Yet despite the lies and ugliness of the "real" world, however encumbered we may be by societal expectations, rules, laws and even our own desires, we remain free to determine our own contribution and to participate in the building of a perfectly just society.
We take our system for granted. We take the protection of police for granted. We take the impartiality of juries for granted. We take the honesty of witnesses and judges for granted. But what else can we do? Unless we adhere to the fiction of the "whole truth and nothing but the truth" it all falls apart. Unless we choose to believe in the potential for a better world and then act upon that belief, we remain helpless victims--Mr. Connelly admirably points out that we must each be accountable, that private decisions will ultimately have a most public consequence.
One of the strongest themes in Mr. Connolly's works is the power of family and friendships. His characters learn the hard way to value their children. His books reward loyalty and goodness. In a world that is prepared to throw out the concept of truth as a childish fiction more appropriate to the good old days when people went to Sunday School, Mr. Connelly uses his talents to remind us that truth remains and that goodness is its own reward; he cautions us that we disregard truth at our peril and for that he deserves our respect.
Highly Recommended