The Brass Verdict is the second installment in the The Lincoln Lawyer series. When we left Mickey Haller at the end of The Lincoln Lawyer he was recovering form a gun shot wound to the abdomen. We learn at the beginning of this book that Haller took over a year off work to recover from his injuries and a resulting addiction to pain killers. He spent some time in rehab and has gotten his life back in order. He is planning a slow return to work when he is called into the office of the Chief Judge. Judge Holder tells him that his friend and colleague Jerry Vincent was murdered and that he was named in his will as the beneficiary of all of his cases. So much for his plans for a slow comeback. He now has over 30 active cases, one of which is a high profile murder case that is being billed as the case of the decade.
The detective that is investigating the murder of Mr. Vincent is none other than Harry Bosch, the lead character in another series written by Michael Connelly. Bosch and Haller work together to help solve Vincent's murder and eventually come to the realization that there is another link between them in addition to this case.
Haller tells us multiple times that everyone lies. "The cops lie, lawyers lie, witnesses lie, and the victims lie. A trial is a contest of lies and everybody knows this." He believes his high profile client Walter Elliot isn't telling him the whole story. Once Haller thinks he has it all figured out something else develops that completely changes his opinion of his client and the case. I never would have guessed how the ending played out.
I really enjoy Connelly's style of writing and the characters he has developed. I am constantly amazed by Mickey's brilliant and cunning legal skills and I can't wait to see what is in store for him both personally and professionally in The Reversal, which is the next book in the series. I think we will also have to include a Harry Bosch book in one of our future Sunday Mystery Corners to further explore his character. (Hint Hint.)
Flo's Review:
Michael Connelly wants to kill me, y'all. Granted, I don't read a lot of legal thrillers (or any kind of thrillers for that matter), but I truly think Connelly is a Master of Suspense. I think the majority of my Goodreads status updates were, "I'm so scared for Mickey!!" Michael Haller (Mickey) is a character I came to love in The Lincoln Lawyer and that love grew in The Brass Verdict. Haller is clever, knowledgeable and compassionate. Lorna, Mickey's case manager, is always one step ahead and compliments Mickey's working style perfectly. Walter Elliott is the defendant in the big case that Mickey acquires, and he is an interesting character as well. The relationship and dynamics of his relationship with Mickey are ever-evolving as two men who both like to be in charge and have to figure out how to work with each other. I love putting the pieces of the mystery together with Mickey, who again, is brilliant. Finally, I guess I should comment on Bosch...I didn't really like him. He came off to me as too demanding the whole time without giving anything up on his end. Mickey does that too, yes, but he always explains why and is not short and snippy about it. Perhaps I will grow to like him more in The Reversal, the next book in The Lincoln Lawyer series? At any rate, The Brass Verdict is a wonderful second book in the Mickey Haller saga, and I look forward to more.
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