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The Fifth Witness (Mickey Haller #4)

by Michael Connelly (Goodreads Author)

4.1 of 5 stars 4.10 · rating details · 16,999 ratings · 1,550 reviews

Mickey Haller has fallen on tough times. He expands his business into foreclosure defense, only to see one of his clients accused of killing the banker she blames for trying to take away her home.

Mickey puts his team into high gear to exonerate Lisa Trammel, even though the evidence and his own suspicions tell him his client is guilty. Soon after he learns that the victim...more

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Published April 5th 2011 by Little, Brown and Company (first published January 1st 2011)

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May 08, 2011 Jeanette rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-fiction, four-star-fiction, lawyer-fiction, miss-trees

Oh, Mickey, you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, hey Mickey!

No, I don't mean Mickey Haller, I mean Michael "Mickey" Connelly. I prefer the Harry Bosch series, as the Haller series tends toward long courtroom scenes. But really, I just love Connelly. His homework and legwork and writing quality and plot complexity are so far superior to others in the genre.

I recommend avoiding detailed reviews of this book. There's some exquisitely skillful misdirection in the story, and if you happe...more

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Nov 26, 2011 Neil rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm on a Michael Connelly/Micky Haller roll right now. I picked up THE FIFTH WITNESS while on vacation and stayed up late the other night to finish it. Not to worry, I went to bed satisfied.
Once again, Michael Connelly excels in courtroom drama. What continues to amaze is how well Connelly thoroughly understands the Criminal Justice System, which actually is neither a system nor about justice. It's about who can best entertain a jury with their magic show and slight of hand, which is often only...more

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Jul 19, 2011 Matt rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I honestly can't believe how many 4 and 5 star reviews this book has gotten so far.

I've read nearly everything that Connelly has written, and read most of them in very quick succession. I hate to be one of those internet extremists who either ABSOLUTELY LOVES something, or declares it THE WORST THING EVER, but... yeah. This is about the worst book Connelly has ever written.

First, it seems rather obvious that Connelly wanted a Mickey Haller novel out around the same time as the big screen version...more I honestly can't believe how many 4 and 5 star reviews this book has gotten so far.

I've read nearly everything that Connelly has written, and read most of them in very quick succession. I hate to be one of those internet extremists who either ABSOLUTELY LOVES something, or declares it THE WORST THING EVER, but... yeah. This is about the worst book Connelly has ever written.

First, it seems rather obvious that Connelly wanted a Mickey Haller novel out around the same time as the big screen version of THE LINCOLN LAWYER, whether he had a compelling story or not. He even makes a lame reference to Matthew McConaughey at one point. Hilarious.

Second, Connelly's big sin here is really taking an interesting and topical subject (the economic and foreclosure crisis of 2009-2011), and failing to do anything really INTERESTING with it. Connelly himself has published some opinion pieces over the years with a conservative bent, so I was actually surprised that his explanation of the mortgage meltdown pointed some fingers are the big banks and Wall Street. Of course, a few lines later, he made sure we understood that MOST of the fault was with the people who took out loans they couldn't afford. Sigh. I'd hope anyone looking for information on what REALLY happened has read or will read Michael Lewis's EXCELLENT book THE BIG SHORT. I wish Connelly had. You could argue that it isn't really his job to do an in-depth novel looking at the vagaries of the corporate world, and that his readers aren't expecting him to do so. I agree, to an extent, but to simply use it as a plot device here seemed somehow cheap to me.

Third, the repetition of certain elements throughout the book became unbearable. How many times does Haller turn around and yell at someone because they missed evidence or failed to uncover something? At least three or four it seemed. How many times do we have people using first names during dialog? Seriously, I know that some people might become "confused" when more than three people are talking to each other, but do we really need "hey, Jennifer," "that's a good point, Jennifer," why don't you take it, Jennifer?" all within the same PAGE? Who talks like that? The courtroom scenes are also devoid of any tension of flow because the prosecutor objects and sidebars to every second or third line out of Haller's mouth. Might be realistic, I suppose, but it reads incredibly poorly in practice.

Fourth, I couldn't stand the way Connelly chose to structure this book. He gives us a dippy liberal (ex-teacher, of course) who seems too smarmy at first glance, but seems completely innocent. He spends the entire novel showing how this is true, finding all kinds of outside evidence, presenting the evidence, getting us on HER (and Haller's) side, and then OF COURSE revealing in the last few pages how we've all been duped and she had done it all along. The truly stupid thing is that she really SHOULDN'T have killed this guy, based on everything that we were told in the previous 90% of the novel. It made little sense, but I guess that's why Connelly made her have also murdered her husband-- she didn't NEED a reason to do it, she's just crazy! Duh! I'm not one that usually guesses the outcome of mystery stories early, but I *knew* that this twist was coming; Connelly made such a big deal about how Haller believed in her innocence that you just knew it was going to play out the way it did.

Fifth, I also couldn't believe the way Connelly chose to end the book, and his obviously skewed beliefs that defense attorneys are somehow evil and unnecessary to our judicial process. Yes, Mickey Haller has always been presented as something of a scumball, and he's always made grumblings about how defense attorneys are needed but hated, etc., etc., but here we have a man who announces at the end of the book that he's decided to run for the D. A.'s office because he can't stand "hanging around with those types of people any more." Really? There's no place in the world for a crusading defense lawyer? NONE of the people who are put in front of the courts ARE innocent? The government never abuses its power? Wow. I guess we have come an awfully long way from the days of Atticus Finch and Perry Mason. In this day and age where it seems our elected officials and our corporate "masters" are using the courts to their advantages, it sure seems like we could use a guy who stood up for the underdog. I guess we're past that these days.

Lastly, there's a rather disturbing strain of misogyny that runs through this book. Aside from Haller himself, nearly all of the other characters in the book are female, and nearly all of them come out looking like fools, bitches, or harpies. Not sure who broke this man's heart, but I hope he can seek help for these issues he seems to be having.

---

It really does kind of pain me to dislike this book so much, as I've enjoyed many of Connelly's previous works. Here's hoping the next Bosch book can redeem him for me.

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Jan 23, 2012 Daniel Audet rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As I finished this book a few days ago I had another one of those writer moments where I realized just what "pro" means, and what "bestseller" means. Connelly characterizes any and all descriptive terms a person could use for an author/craftsman. He masterfully injects himself into his work on every level and the result is a very strong voice made even better by his high skill level. As I wrote a few weeks ago when I started this book, it's ALL there, everything a reader or writer could want in...more

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Nov 21, 2011 Qazyman rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Michael Connelly "The fifth Witness" 4.5

This is the first Haller book after the Hollywood blockbuster "The Lincoln lawyer", and changes are in the air. This book is focused toward a broader audience and is more commercial in nature.

You could argue this represents Connelly selling out.

But this is an experienced and successful author that is up to the challenge.

The book focuses on a timely topic, with a clear moral message, and the story and writing are exceptional.

It's like watching the Author t...more

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Jun 24, 2012 Cathy DuPont rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone but start with the first in the series.

Shelves: noir-favorites

Surprise, surprise, surprise!

No surprise to me that this was a 'blow me away' book since I've loved each and every one of the Mickey Haller series but there were surprises throughout this book. And the end, well there was a surprise on each of the last ten pages. I knew that other reviewers said there was a surprise ending, but with each one, I didn't think there could be another one. They just kept coming page after page.

Publishers Weekly stated "...The plot is worthy of a master storyteller."...more Surprise, surprise, surprise!

No surprise to me that this was a 'blow me away' book since I've loved each and every one of the Mickey Haller series but there were surprises throughout this book. And the end, well there was a surprise on each of the last ten pages. I knew that other reviewers said there was a surprise ending, but with each one, I didn't think there could be another one. They just kept coming page after page.

Publishers Weekly stated "...The plot is worthy of a master storyteller." What does that mean? It was a great, masterful storyline. It wasn't worthy, it just was! Hands down one of the five best books I've read in the past year and I've read some good books.

Again, since Mickey Haller is a defense attorney, there are plenty of courtroom scenes which I happen to love. Not all scenes are in the courtroom though with plenty of action outside the LA Justice Center. Twists and turns are cliches in book reviews so I won't say that. But I would be devouring page after page then BANG, an important discovery which changes the game entirely. Again, reading along enjoying every word, then BANG again, and an event happens which is a game changer. Just like an exciting football game.

Mickey Haller is the second character for Michael Connelly with Harry Bosch making Connelly a household name in reading circles. I've read them both and find Mickey has more humane characteristics than his half brother Harry. In my estimation, he has more of a warm, caring heart.

I love Mickey's courtroom scenes when he pauses for effect; or picks up his pen with a flourishing hand. Sometimes he must be an actor of sorts and he loves it all especially the challenge of winning over the jurors and the case. Does he represent the innocent? He won't ask them if they are or are not. He simply gives them the vigorous defense (his words) they are entitled to under the U. S. Constitution.

Each book I think to myself, 'they can't get any better than this one' and then Connelly hits another one out of the park, or courtroom. Love Mickey Haller...I want more. (less)

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Jun 29, 2011 Teresa Collins rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I loved this book. Anyone who was a fan of Perry Mason or Judd for the Defense will enjoy it because it is chock full of trial testimony, like word for word. But since I'm a diehard Perry Mason fan, that was ok with me.
Lisa Trammel is losing her home to foreclosure. She has hired Michael Haller as her attorney to fight the foreclosure. Lisa decides to take her fight to the streets, so she begins protests in front of the bank that holds her mortgage, Westland Financial, creating such an uproar w...more

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Nov 25, 2012 Sylvie Fox rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Mar 25, 2013 Wesley rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is one of the most self-contained books I’ve read in the past while. By that I mean the plot ties up in its own time without seeming forced, everyone gets their just desserts (in my opinion), and you leave the book feeling resolved, like it ended naturally and completely.

Almost nothing in the first fifth drew me in. There was nothing particularly exciting or necessary that compelled me to read further. But having read one book by Michael Connelly before and knowing that this would pro...more

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Mar 24, 2013 Jo-Anne rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: legal-thrillers

Trammel is 35 and has lost her job so it looks like she is going to lose her house. Haller feels sorry for her since she appears to have had a lot go wrong, such as her husband leaving and she is charged with murdering the man who put her house into foreclosure. She's founded a protest group, Foreclosure Litigants Against Greed, and its message is that "fighting foreclosure was as American as apple pie." She's been getting on TV a lot, even before the murder charge, and she uses the case to angl...more

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Mar 10, 2013 Matt Ross rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Definitely an okay book.

I did enjoy reading The Fifth Witness. That said, I think anyone familiar with Michael Connelly will be mildly disappointed and anyone familiar with The Lincoln Lawyer (its prequel) will be definitely disappointed.

The Fifth Witness tells a story, the story is interesting, and it is told with Connelly's usual skill. But it lacks the crackle and excitement of The Lincoln Lawyer. Gone from The Fifth Witness are the action scenes and suspense of its prequel. By contrast, The...more Definitely an okay book.

I did enjoy reading The Fifth Witness. That said, I think anyone familiar with Michael Connelly will be mildly disappointed and anyone familiar with The Lincoln Lawyer (its prequel) will be definitely disappointed.

The Fifth Witness tells a story, the story is interesting, and it is told with Connelly's usual skill. But it lacks the crackle and excitement of The Lincoln Lawyer. Gone from The Fifth Witness are the action scenes and suspense of its prequel. By contrast, The Fifth Witness is a detailed account of each thrust and parry of a particular trial. Most of the book takes place in the courtroom, and the majority of its testimony is dry. Only the constant narration helps the reader understand why any of it matters. Even then, I frequently doubted that story elements would REALLY have the effect on a jury the narrator told me they were having. Most evidence presented would not have convinced me, were I a juror.

The characters of The Lincoln Lawyer are no further developed in The Fifth Witness, except in its last page when Mickey Haller makes a sudden life transition that makes little sense in the context of the rest of what we know about him. Three new characters are presented: the judge, the prosecutor (Ms. Freeman), and Mickey's accused client (Lisa). All the new characters are drastically unlikeable. The judge is presented as a weak decision maker whose primary concern is to award perfectly half of all of his decisions to each side, regardless of the merits of their arguments. Ms. Freeman is presented as the pinnacle of prosecutorial skill, but never really comes off as all that skillful. And Mickey's client is pegged as being selfish and comes off exactly that way.

All in all, I'm not sure Connelly was trying to get anywhere with this book at all, except to relate (in sometimes tedious detail) the facts of one murder case. To that end, he did succeed. More often than not, I enjoyed reading it. But I felt disappointed throughout that the former freshness of The Lincoln Lawyer was not developed or even re-captured.(less)

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Mar 05, 2013 Jeanette rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've read many of Connelly's books and this is one of the best court room dramas he's written. Mickey Haller, the "Lincoln lawyer", has not had many criminal cases and he's turned to representing people who are experiencing home foreclosures and need someone to help them in what they believe are fraudulent dealings. One of his most annoying clients, Lisa Trammel, is involved in such a foreclosure and she's taken to picketing the bank where her loan was held and writing negative Facebook messages...more

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Nov 07, 2012 Lorin Cary rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In The Fifth Witness Michael Connelly brings us another episode in the career of defense attorney Mickey , AKA The Lincoln Lawyer. Here Mickey defends Lisa Trammel, a client accused of murdering the bank officer handling her foreclosure It’s quite a year and Connelly provides lots of insights into how defense lawyers build a case. We see Mickey’s arguments unfold in court bit by bit, as he and his team uncover unsavory information regarding the company actually handling the foreclosure. My diffi...more

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Sep 30, 2012 Ruth Ferguson rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, first-reads, mystery, series

The story was entertaining and relevant although 10 years from now might feel dated. It focuses on a woman charged with killing the guy at the bank trying to foreclose on you. There are indeed unexpected twists and turns which feel plausible as they unfold.

This is the first Michael Connelly book that I have read and honestly did not even know he was the author that wrote the book the Lincoln Lawyer movie was based on, until I was turning my AudioBooks.com app on and happen to notice it in small...more

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Sep 07, 2012 Dale rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

While I am a devoted and enthusiastic fan of Connelly's Harry Bosch series, I am merely a fan of the Mickey Haller Lincoln Lawyer series. On the whole, it just lacks the same brooding intensity of the Bosch series - that sense that the world is not right and Harry Bosch is on the case to sort out at least one little part of it.

Hot shot defense lawyer Mickey Haller has fallen on rough times in this recession and he is forced to take foreclosure defense cases to keep his practice healthy. Fortunat...more

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Aug 31, 2012 Booknblues rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Rolling with the times, Mickey Haller has shifted from high powered defense to foreclosure cases as his bread and butter and that seems to be the way he will be going until one of his clients, Lisa Trammel is charged with the murder of her banker. She is not his favorite person, but it seems as if getting back into defense should help to right the ship:

“I define a nuisance client as one who does not understand the bounds of our relationship, even after I clearly and sometimes repeatedly delineat...more

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Aug 31, 2012 Lizzie Hayes rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

‘The Fifth Witness’ by Michael Connelly
Published by Orion, 14 April 2011

Defence attorney Mickey Haller has latched onto the many people facing foreclosure on their homes following the economic downturn which has highlighted the number of unrealistic mortgages granted in the good times. One such person is Lisa Trammel who places the blame for her situation squarely on Mitchell Bondurant the CEO of the bank who holds her mortgage. In addition to retaining Mickey to fight her corner she has additio...more

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Jul 18, 2012 Judy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It was a nice change of pace to read a story of courtroom drama. I really wonder if a judge spends so much time reprimanding the lawyers.

The story starts out with a marginally loony, abrasive woman accused of murdering a man involved in the foreclosure of her house. I still don't understand how Mickey Haller, her attorney, ever was able to move again, let alone work, after his severe beating, nor do I understand why the goons who did it had to be so brutal. If the reason for it was to slow Mick...more

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Jun 28, 2012 Johnny rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery

There is simply no room for critical observation about Michael Connelly’s The Fifth Witness. I devoured it like a fan boy. I stayed up late to finish it, reading hours at one sitting—even though I had just started it on the commuter train. My theory of the murderer was completely bogus. I wasn’t expecting either the climax or the anti-climax. I was knocked flatter than a punch-drunk pugilist on his last legs. Unlike said pugilist, I was smiling when I came off the (in this case, figurative) canv...more There is simply no room for critical observation about Michael Connelly’s The Fifth Witness. I devoured it like a fan boy. I stayed up late to finish it, reading hours at one sitting—even though I had just started it on the commuter train. My theory of the murderer was completely bogus. I wasn’t expecting either the climax or the anti-climax. I was knocked flatter than a punch-drunk pugilist on his last legs. Unlike said pugilist, I was smiling when I came off the (in this case, figurative) canvas.

The Fifth Witness earns its title from a questionable legal gambit where a defense attorney tries to get a “hypothesis of innocence” by pointing a finger at an alternate suspect to the defendant and manipulating said suspect to plead the Fifth Amendment. By getting the alternate suspect to plead, in front of a jury, the amendment which protects against self-incrimination, the defense attorney is able to imply possible (hence, hypothesis) guilt on the part of the alternate suspect, raising probable doubt in the minds of the jury. As the book demonstrates, it is a risky maneuver which can cause the case to backfire, the attorney to be reprimanded, the case to succeed, or perhaps, a mistrial to be declared.

I won’t reveal which occurs in The Fifth Witness; I merely admit that such a gambit is attempted at one point. I will reveal that the key word for this novel is “manipulation.” There is manipulation in the investigation, manipulation with regard to legal maneuvers, manipulation with regard to relationships, manipulation with regard to trial motions, manipulation involving witnesses, and even manipulation with regard to “playing” the judge. Connelly manipulates the emotions of the reader as skillfully as prosecutor Andrea Freeman manipulates the rules of evidence and protagonist/defense attorney Mickey Haller orchestrates the pacing of the case.

On top of the manipulation, there is something personal going on with Mickey Haller, the protagonist hero of all the “Lincoln Lawyer” novels. In the midst of all the tutorials with his fresh-faced young assistant (experiencing her first crack at playing second chair in a major trial), there is a world-weariness and uncomfortable introspection going on within Haller himself. Some of the thought process seems more like Haller’s half-brother, Harry Bosch, than like confident, ambitious Haller. I like that; I like it a lot.

There is also some humor. To pay for the defense, Haller markets the defendant’s story to a Hollywood Studio and, like the film version of The Lincoln Lawyer, Matthew McConaughey would play Haller. The Hollywood aspect provides some extra humor and a bit of exciting double-dealing, some smoke to go with the plot’s mirrors. Fans of Connelly will appreciate this and go with it. And, as I think back, even the anti-climax to this novel is rather amusing.

Those who follow my reviews are free to ignore my rating on this one. I don’t remember cell phones being allowed in courtrooms (they certainly weren’t allowed when I was sitting on the jury in the DUI case in Washington), but I suspended my disbelief enough to let vital revelations enter the trial experience via texting. I’m not sure one is still able to fund a defense via the defendant’s book and movie rights (seems like some recent laws have been passed, though I think they allow it ONLY for purposes of the defense), but I suspended my disbelief enough to let the plot unfold. In other words, in spite of possible flaws, I was hooked. Enough said!
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Jun 16, 2012 Tony rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Michael Connelly- The Fifth Witness 5 Stars

Mickey Haller has no criminal law clients left, now he must rely on foreclosure defence to support his office. Running his business from the back of his Lincoln, Haller has just about given up on criminal law. Now one of his clients has been accused of killing the man responsible for foreclosing on her home and he has been hired to get her set free. Mickey Haller is back as he attempts to get Lisa Trammel off of her possible life sentence.

I loved this b...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Nancy Wait rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Michael Connelly is one of the few authors I can read while I'm writing. This is because he is so CLEAR about how he presents his stories. I never thought I would be one to enjoy any kind of crime fiction. This was an author who was so far off my radar that I never even heard of him until last year by chance when he wrote one of those free Notes thingys Barnes and Noble offers for Nook readers. It was about writing without a net. Nice!
Why Connelly appeals to me especially I think, is because as...more

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Jun 07, 2012 Nancy Brisson rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Fifth Witness by Michael Connelly is a great summer read. It is a courtroom drama with the Lincoln lawyer Mickey Haller. Haller literally does business out of the back of his Lincoln Continental driven by Rojas. This Lincoln is bullet proof and is a great asset for a lawyer down on his luck. Business is bad. Mickey has had to work to help homeowners fight foreclosures (this is California where foreclosures are the case of the day). It takes a lot of foreclosure cases to produce a decent inco...more

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Jan 14, 2012 Marcy rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I actually am a trial lawyer specializing in homicide cases. I've done over twenty murder trials on both sides, so I probably should just stop reading these kinds of books because I always find procedural and legal errors that annoy me and then I annoy everyone else by pointing them out and complaining about them. A disclaimer here: no on will watch any of the CSi or Law and Order shows with me anymore. Most common response I get: "it's just fiction, get over it.". So, I'm not going to nit-pick...more I actually am a trial lawyer specializing in homicide cases. I've done over twenty murder trials on both sides, so I probably should just stop reading these kinds of books because I always find procedural and legal errors that annoy me and then I annoy everyone else by pointing them out and complaining about them. A disclaimer here: no on will watch any of the CSi or Law and Order shows with me anymore. Most common response I get: "it's just fiction, get over it.". So, I'm not going to nit-pick this book. But the problem with the book is not just an accumulation of little errors, the problem is that it is founded on a completely implausible premise: that an experience and presumably good criminal trial lawyer would base his entire trial strategy on being able to badger a witness into taking the 5th (or "flipping the dime" or whatever cute phrase he had for it). Only a very bad lawyer would do this because, in reality, all of that would have happened - if it was allowed to happen at all, which is doubtful - outside of the presence of the jury. In the context of the story it felt like a cop out, like the author couldn't be bothered to think up a strategy for his lawyer to use to win the case that was both compelling and strategically sound. I know that the author is not a lawyer, but if he has elected to write a story that is focused almost entirely on a trial, that doesn't seem like too much for the reader to ask. I was very disappointed that I had waded through the detailed chapters of trial testimony only to be rewarded with that.

Also, I felt like, at the end of the book, the author just gave up on the main character Mickey Haller. I read the Lincoln Lawyer and enjoyed it because Mickey Haller is the kind of fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants, charismatic type of individual that you really do encounter arguing cases for the defense in criminal courts. He's fun. But the big revelation that the end of this book that he wants to to mothball his fleet of Lincoln's and run for DA felt like a betrayal of the character.(less)

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Jan 05, 2012 Sheila rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Mickey Haller, previously dubbed as the Lincoln lawyer (the back seat of his Lincoln is his office) is focusing his attention on homeowners who are victims of foreclosure. Many of the situations are completed under fraudulant circumstances but it is big business for some companies working with the banks. Mickey is busy enough to have hired on a newly graduated lawyer, Jennifer. Mickey receives a call from Lisa, one of his foreclosure clients. The banker in the bank she has her mortgage with has...more

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Jan 05, 2012 Barbara rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: harry-bosch-novels, i-love-la, social-issues, thriller

Harry Bosch makes a cameo in Connelly's novel that features "Lincoln Lawyer" Mickey Haller, Bosch's somewhat estranged half-brother. Haller is developing a side business representing those who've been foreclosed on and his next case involves a woman, Lisa Trammel, who's begun a grassroots campaign to end the nefarious dealings of a local bank. When the vice president of the bank turns up dead in the bank's parking garage, Lisa is arrested and Mickey goes to work, squaring off against a woman pro...more

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Dec 10, 2011 Eric_W rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: legal-drama, mysteries-and-thrillers

Bosch makes a cameo appearance as Haller’s half-brother, for what purpose I could not ascertain. I like Connelly very much, especially the Harry Bosch series, and I liked Lincoln Lawyer, which featured Mickey Haller, the lawyer who operates from the backseat of a Lincoln. This book seemed a bit “off” although it may have been the narrator, Peter Giles, who was certainly not as accomplished as Adam Grupper.

Haller has made mortgage foreclosure cases a specialty (Connelly expounds at length and oft...more

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Dec 06, 2011 Sangita rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A gripping courtroom drama..Set in the times when there are foreclosures happening in the market,this is the story of one such client who is now accused of murdering the home loan dept's CEO.

The books talks in detail about how courtroom wars are fought..Court Room war strategy is important and all the more so when evidence is not on your side..Also an interesting take on how lawyers might not actually believe in their own client's innocence..All this is written in a very matter of fact way rathe...more

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Dec 05, 2011 Deana M rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I love Michael Connelly's Mickey Haller character. Haller is a lawyer who works out of the back of his Lincoln town car. As a defense lawyer, his business of representing criminals in the LA area has dried up. He decided to take his business in to the house foreclosure arena. While doing this he has a client named Lisa Trammel whose house was under foreclosure proceedings. No biggie, Mickey was getting the bank to back off so she could save her home. But, the situation changes when Mickey is cal...more

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Nov 28, 2011 James Thane rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

In a difficult economy, the criminal defense business is not all that it used to be and so Mickey Haller, the Lincoln Lawyer, is reduced to defending clients who are about to lose their homes to foreclosure. One of his clients, a not very pleasant woman named Lisa Trammel is not content simply to let Mickey wage the legal battle on her behalf. She begins her own campaign on line and in the streets to defend herself and others against what she perceives to be the villainy of the greedy bankers wh...more In a difficult economy, the criminal defense business is not all that it used to be and so Mickey Haller, the Lincoln Lawyer, is reduced to defending clients who are about to lose their homes to foreclosure. One of his clients, a not very pleasant woman named Lisa Trammel is not content simply to let Mickey wage the legal battle on her behalf. She begins her own campaign on line and in the streets to defend herself and others against what she perceives to be the villainy of the greedy bankers who are attempting to kick them out of their homes.

Lisa becomes enough of a nuisance that WestLand Financial, the bank that is attempting to foreclose on her home, secures a restraining order against her. Shortly thereafter, Mitchell Bondurant, the banker who heads the mortgage department at WestLand, is savagely killed in the bank's parking garage. Critical evidence points to Lisa Trammel as the killer, but she insists that she has respected the restraining order and that she was nowhere near the bank the morning that Bondurant was murdered.

Lisa retains Mickey to defend her against the murder charge and Mickey suddenly finds himself back in court, doing what he loves. He can hardly love his client, though, who turns out to be a major pain in the neck and who complicates the defense in a variety of ways. Mickey constructs an alternate theory to explain the crime and the question is whether he can get a jury to buy his suggestion before his client torpedoes the case and Mickey along with it.

This is another cleverly constructed legal thriller from Michael Connelly with a "ripped-from-the-headlines" storyline. The courtroom scenes, in particular, are very well done and will keep you on the edge of your seat. As in all of the Haller books, there is also an ongoing subplot involving Mickey's relationship with his ex-wife and their daughter. Connelly's fans and others who enjoy legal thrillers but who have not yet made Mickey Haller's acquaintance are sure to enjoy this page-turner of a book.

***SPOILER ALERT*** PLEASE DO NOT READ ANY FARTHER UNLESS YOU WANT TO KNOW HOW THE BOOK ENDS!

As a side note, one of the things that intrigues me about this series is the fact that in these books, as in real life, virtually all of the clients that Mickey Haller sees as a defense attorney are actually guilty. This is still a fairly unusual thing to happen in a legal thriller. This genre originated, as a practical matter, with Erle Stanley Gardner's Perry Mason series. Mason remains probably the most famous fictional criminal defense attorney of all, and yet amazingly all eighty-five of the clients he defended in this series were actually innocent!

This has continued to be the case with most other books like this. As the book progresses, our defense attorney hero must not only conduct a brilliant defense of his or her client, but he or she must also expose the Real Killer in the process.

To Connelly's credit, he doesn't do this. Still, though, he seems uncomfortable with the idea of allowing his hero, Attorney Haller, to exercise his considerable talents in the service of allowing a bad person to escape his or her just desserts. In the last Haller novel, Connelly addressed the issue by allowing Haller to switch sides and join the prosecution. In this book, as in The Lincoln Lawyer, we have another twist at the end that allows Mickey to achieve justice in spite of the brilliant defense he has mounted. To my mind, this tactic worked well the first time around, but I'm not so sure it's as plausible here. Connelly may have resolved the issue with another totally unexpected twist at the end of this book, and it will be interesting to see the direction that the author takes Haller in the future.(less)

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Nov 26, 2011 Alison rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Michael Connolly takes us through the arrest and trial of Lisa Trammel; a women who became an activist when her house was going through foreclosure during the height of the economic bust in recent years. Long out of being a defense attorney, Mickey Haller fount it profitable to represent homeowners in foreclosure. When he receives a call from Lisa Trammel he knows his life is about to change. Lisa has been charged with murdering the very banker she believes is responsible for taking her home awa...more

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About Michael Connelly

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teache...more Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads' database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. Once he decided on this direction he chose a major in journalism and a minor in creative writing — a curriculum in which one of his teachers was novelist Harry Crews.
After graduating in 1980, Connelly worked at newspapers in Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, primarily specializing in the crime beat. In Fort Lauderdale he wrote about police and crime during the height of the murder and violence wave that rolled over South Florida during the so-called cocaine wars. In 1986, he and two other reporters spent several months interviewing survivors of a major airline crash. They wrote a magazine story on the crash and the survivors which was later short-listed for the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. The magazine story also moved Connelly into the upper levels of journalism, landing him a job as a crime reporter for the Los Angeles Times, one of the largest papers in the country, and bringing him to the city of which his literary hero, Chandler, had written.
After three years on the crime beat in L.A., Connelly began writing his first novel to feature LAPD Detective Hieronymus Bosch. The novel, The Black Echo, based in part on a true crime that had occurred in Los Angeles, was published in 1992 and won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel by the Mystery Writers of America. Connelly has followed that up with 18 more novels.
Connelly's books have been translated in 35 languages and have won the Edgar Award, Anthony Award, Macavity Award, Los Angeles Times Best Mystery/Thriller Award, Shamus Award, Dilys Award, Nero Award, Barry Award, Audie Award, Ridley Award, Maltese Falcon Award (Japan), .38 Caliber Award (France), Grand Prix Award (France), and Premio Bancarella Award (Italy).
Michael was the President of the Mystery Writers of America organization in 2003 and 2004. In addition to his literary work, Michael was one of the creators, writers, and consulting producers of Level 9, a TV show about a task force fighting cyber crime, that ran on UPN in the Fall of 2000.
Michael lives with his family in Florida.

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The Brass Verdict (Harry Bosch, #14; Mickey Haller, #2)

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“You know you're going to get burned from time to time. It's just part of the game. So when it happens you have to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and forget about it because they're about to snap the ball again.” — 14 people liked it

“Don't go growing a conscience on me," I said. "I've been down that road. It doesn't lead you to anything good.” — 12 people liked it

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The Fifth Witness (Mickey Haller #4)

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