The Gods of Guilt by Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly, The Gods of Guilt (New York: Little, Brown and Company; 2013), 400 pages.

  

Gods of Guilt is a Michael Connelly crime novel. The story is based around a Los Angeles based criminal defense attorney called Michael Haller, a recurring character in Connelly’s Lincoln Lawyer series. This book is about Haller defending a man accused of killing one of his former clients, a prostitute that Haller tried to reform or help leave the business. Haller’s defense investigation reveals that his new client was set up, and that the victim may have been killed because of her role as a witness in another case, an appeal against a conviction by an incarcerated drug cartel member. The deceased prostitute was a witness in a case that could free the cartel member if she acknowledged her role as an informant to the Federal Government’s Drug Enforcement Agency (“D.E.A.”). Her testimony could reveal criminal activity by a corrupt D.E.A. agent, including planting evidence that led to the conviction of the cartel member. For Haller to free his new client, he has to show in court the part played by his deceased former prostitute client in assisting the corrupt D.E.A agent commit a crime. This act would introduce to his defense the element of reasonable doubt through the identification of an alternate killer with both opportunity and motive.

This book is a typical Connelly book. It is a fast moving story that maintains the reader’s interest with generous doses of court room drama, suspense, official corruption and troubled relationships. As seems to be the case with most Connelly books, the principal characters are less than perfect and have paid a high price for their success, namely, marriage failures and alienation from their children. Gods of Guilt is an interesting book that would be enjoyed by Connelly’s regular readers, or persons that enjoy realistic crime fiction that accurately portrays the prosecution of crimes in Los Angeles. If the story is truly realistic, Connelly seems to be warning the reader, though his main character Haller, to never talk to police when they are investigating a murder without having a lawyer present because the police will most likely try to pin it on you.

The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly, The Fifth Witness, (New York: Grand Central Publishing; 2011), 439 pages.

This book continues Connelly’s series of “Lincoln Lawyer” novels based on his character Mickey Haller, a Los Angeles criminal defense lawyer. Haller operates his law practice out of his car – a Lincoln. In The Fifth Witness we see how Haller shifted his law practice away from criminal defense into the booming area of foreclosure prevention. The recession caused (paying) criminal defense work to dry up in Los Angeles, hence the move into the only growing area of legal work in Los Angeles - foreclosures. When one of Haller’s foreclosure clients is charged with murder of the banker foreclosing in her home, Haller returns to criminal law to defend her. The Fifth Witness is a courtroom drama about Haller’s defense of his client. A major feature of Haller’s defense is his attempt to propose an alternate theory of the murder, and suggest an alternate killer. A large part of this defense is his piecemeal exposure of the fraudulent activities of the mortgage company, that company’s links to organized crime, and the attempt by the victim to expose the illegal activities of the mortgage company.

This is a book about a criminal trial, and as such, it’s an entertaining story as are most books by Connelly (the exception may be the non-fiction book he published containing reprinted articles he wrote during his time as a police beat reporter). Connelly knows how to keep the reader’s interests; in this book, those skills are on display throughout. Connelly does not appear to be an idealist. His main character Haller is a street lawyer that does not want to know if his client “did it.” Haller’s major concern as a lawyer is to mount an effective criminal defense that he hopes will acquit is client. This single-mindedness and drive appears to have cost Haller his two marriages. Haller is no Atticus Finch, but he is the sort of lawyer you would like to represent you because of his resourcefulness, ruthlessness, and desire to have his client’s be acquitted. These quibbles aside, The Fifth Witness is another entertaining book from Connelly. It’s the perfect book to read if you are kept indoors on a rainy day, or for passing the time during a long trans-Atlantic plane flight.

The Reversal by Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly, The Reversal, (New York: Little, Brown and Company; 2010), 389 pages.

In The Reversal, Michael Connelly gives us another Los Angeles-based fictional crime story, this time its one that brings together two of Connelly’s most intriguing characters, veteran Los Angeles Police Department detective Harry Bosch and “Lincoln Lawyer” Mickey Haller. The two are (naturally) brought together by the intersection of a murder investigation and the court room. In this book, a convicted serial killer is granted a re-trial more than twenty years after his conviction. Defense attorney Haller is convinced by the district attorney to switch sides and re-prosecute the case. Bosch is chosen as the lead homicide investigator. Connelly employs a shifting narrative to tell the story; he writes one chapter from the perspective of prosecutor Haller, does the next chapter from the perspective of detective Bosch, alternating back and forth through the entire book.  The story shows what the characters must do to get a conviction in a case where the evidence is old, where the witnesses are either dead or missing, where the suspect is out on bail potentially looking to commit new crimes.

The Reversal again demonstrates Connelly’s skill as a natural storyteller of crime thrillers and police procedure. He engages his readers by bringing together two entertaining and believable characters in Bosch and Haller. He takes nothing for granted and provides sufficient back-story for both new readers of his fiction, as well as his regular readers of his past works. Connelly knows Los Angeles, and knows how it courts and police department operate. In typical Connelly fashion, the story is fast-paced, engaging, and peppered with numerous twists and turns, and surprise detours. Even though this book is engaging, it is somewhat bleak in that it’s regularly punctuated with death, crime, corruption, violence, cynicism, and the hard-nosed characters that seem comfortable with the grime of crime. The book is somewhat notable for its absence of joy, humor, fun or delight. Such are the lives of Connelly’s stern committed, driven principle driven characters. But this should be expected in any crime novel; anything other than this would be unusual at least, if not inauthentic. Nonetheless, The Reversal is very well written, and is a fine example of crime writing and legal/court room storytelling, that is further proof of the assertion that Connelly is one of America’s finest crime fiction writers.

"The Drop," by Michael Connelly

Michael Connelly, The Drop, (New York: Hachette Book Group; 2011), 483 pages.

The Drop is another book in the Harry Bosch series written by Michael Connelly. Bosch is an uncompromising Los Angeles Police Department detective of retirement age, who stays on the job because he must;. Solving murders is what he does, and he does it well. Bosch is a character with a single-minded pursuit of justice on behalf of the murder victim. He is determined and single-minded in pursuit of the murderer, often to the detriment of his family relationships, his work partner and his boss. His motto is everyone matters, or no-one matters.

Bosch is in familiar surroundings in The Drop, namely, the open unsolved or cold case unit, although with a twist. On the same day, Bosch is assigned two new cases, one open-unsolved, and another a new case. In the new case, Bosch and his work partner were chosen by the Commissioner for the new case, the murder of the son on an old Bosch nemesis now in politics. The plot involves Bosch and his partner working the case while negotiating the rocks and shoals of Los Angeles Police Department   and Los Angeles City Council politics. Bosch's second case is a cold case that became active due to a positive finding from a DNA test. A problem is revealed with the DNA test when it is positively matched to a person aged 8 years at the time of the murder. Bosch's relentless pursuit of the killer in light of this unusual DNA evidence reveals a startling and gruesome killer that had been operating in Los Angeles for more than 20 years.

Connelly displays all his writing talent in The Drop. He has a gift for the seemingly accurate and realistic portrayal of police procedure. He combines his eye for detail, knowledge of police procedure and gift for storytelling to write a fine book. This combination gives us an entertaining and fast-moving story consistent with Connelly's previous work of police mystery writing.

The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly

The Scarecrow, by Michael Connelly, (New York: Hachette Book Group; 2008), 562 pages.

In The Scarecrow, Michael Connelly goes back to the old well of The Poet, and takes another drink.  The characters from that book feature again in The Scarecrow in another story about the hunt for a serial killer. The principal character, Jack McEvoy is an all-but-washed up journalist at the Los Angeles Times. While reporting on a murder confession, he discovers, and believes, that a confessed killer has been framed and that the real murderer is a serial killer. Unable to convince the Los Angeles Police Department, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and his own employer of the merits of his theory, McEvoy attempts to solve the crime himself, and in the long a circuitous investigation, gets his co-worker killed but like all goes journalist heroes, gets his killer in the end.

As the cover blurb notes, this book is "high-grade entertainment," and suitable written to retain the reader's attention through surprises and twists. Connelly is an entertaining writer, and this book is of sufficient quality to live up to the author's reputation of producing crime fiction at its best. Readers of crime fiction should find this book adequately entertaining, as long as you can accommodate the fact that the entire story's premise is that a journalist is more capable of solving a string of murders than two law enforcement agencies. If readers can rationalize away that fact they should enjoy this book.

"9 Dragons," by Michael Connelly

9 Dragons, by Michael Connelly (New York: Hachette Book Group; 2009), 469 pages.

In 9 Dragons, Michael Connelly gives the reader another Los Angeles-based fictional crime story, centered on Connelly’s always intriguing character, Vietnam veteran and formerly retired Los Angeles Police Department Detective Harry Bosch. In 9 Dragons, Bosch is once again confronted with murder and death, and once again shows rare fortitude in the face of a rising tide of indifference among his fellow detectives who seem too willing to accept easy solutions and an easy way out. Not Bosch.

In 9 Dragons, the story unfolds in three parts. In the first part, Bosch and his distracted partner investigate the murder of an ethnic Chinese male store owner. Bosch follows some leads, interviews witnesses and the surviving family members at their other place of business, and follows up on some leads with other units of the Los Angeles Police Department. At the same time, Bosch explores the possibility that the murder is related to Chinese organized crime.

Bosch’s ex-wife and daughter live in Hong Kong. When his daughter goes missing and is later conformed to have been kidnapped, Bosch thinks her disappearance is related to his murder investigation and immediately flies to Hong Kong to find her. In Hong Kong he joins with his ex-wife and her boyfriend to commence the search. This search forms the second part of the story, and is made notable for two notable events: the death of Bosch’s ex-wife, and Bosch’s righteous killing rampage pursued in his successful quest to find his daughter and return her to Los Angeles with him. The third part of the story is Bosch’s solving of the murder. He realizes that his daughter’s disappearance and kidnapping is unrelated to the murder investigation, and, that the murderer had been leading him astray all along with a series of lies that started at the start of his investigation.

Connelly’s 9 Dragons is another fine addition to the growing collection of Harry Bosch murder novels. The story has Connelly’s regular account of the difficulties faced by police officers that are married to their job: they often loose their families, and wives to the demands of being a police officer. Harry Bosch is such a police officer: he is married to the job; he never gives up, and is often the last and only person who cares about finding justice for the dead victim.

This book is not great literature – it would be hard to claim that it was. Rather, it is exceptional crime fiction, or murder mystery fiction ideal for consumption on a long plane flight, or in front of a fire on a cold, wet afternoon, while waiting in the dentist’s office, or any other moment you have a spare bit of time for a fast-paced and gripping story that’s both authentic and well told. Read it and you won’t be disappointed.

The Brass Verdict, by Michael Connelly

In The Brass Verdict, Michael Connelly gives the reader another Los Angeles-based fictional crime story, this time its one that brings together two of Connelly’s most intriguing characters, veteran Los Angeles Police Department detective Harry Bosch and “Lincoln Lawyer” Mickey Haller. The two are (naturally) brought together by a crime, the murder of Haller’s acquaintance and fellow lawyer Jerry Vincent. Following Vincent’s murder, a Judge orders Haller to take over Vincent’s caseload, which includes a high profile murder trial where a prominent movie studio owner is accused of murdering his wife and her lover. While Haller attempts to familiarize himself with his new clients and their cases, Bosch investigates Vincent’s murder. Both Bosch and Haller suspect that Vincent’s murder is related to his representation of the movie mogul, suspicions that prove well founded. Haller’s trial preparations reveal evidence of bribes, jury tampering, and eventually, a judicial jury rigging conspiracy. In telling the apparent small story of a murder and a trial, Connelly reveals a larger story a legal and judicial conspiracy. Haller’s discoveries are not disclosed to Boschs due to attorney-client privilege, but Bosch, we’re led to believe, somehow knows already, but is seeking proof. To add further intrigue, Haller’s movie mogul client is murdered, and an attempt is made on Haller’s life, an attempt foiled only through the intercession of the vigilant no-nonsense Bosch.

The Brass Verdict again demonstrated Connelly’s skill as a natural storyteller of crime thrillers. He engages his readers by bringing together two engaging but believable characters in Bosch and Haller. He takes nothing for granted and provides sufficient back-story for new readers of his fiction, as well as regular readers of his past works. Connelly knows Los Angeles, and knows how it courts and police department operate. In typical Connelly fashion, the story is fast-paced, engaging, and peppered with numerous twists and turns, and surprise detours. Even though this book is engaging, it is somewhat bleak in that it’s regularly punctuated with death, crime, corruption, violence, cynicism, and the hard-nosed characters that seem comfortable with the grime of crime. The book is somewhat notable for its absence of joy, humor, fun or delight. Such are the live of Connelly’s stern committed, driven principle driven characters. But this should be expected in any crime novel; anything other than this would be unusual at least, if not inauthentic. Nonetheless, The Brass Verdict is very well written, and is a fine example of crime writing and legal/court room storytelling, that is further proof of the assertion that Connelly is one of America’s finest crime fiction writers.