Novelist Still a Reporter

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Michael Connelly, who began his writing career as a reporter, once again reports his way to an intricately plotted, well executed crime novel.

As I read “The Brass Verdict,” I pictured Mr. Connelly, narrow notebook and pen in hand, sitting in courtrooms, interviewing attorneys, cops, and criminals—in the LA way, of course—“Off the record, on the QT, and very hush hush.”

With the pride and preciseness of a professional reporter, Michael Connelly consistently gets it right—LA, the justice system, the courtroom, the cop shops, and most of all, the blue religion

This time out, Mr. Connelly loses his blue religion—or nearly—leaving his series detective Harry Bosch in the background in order for L.A. lawyer, Mickey Haller, last seen in “The Lincoln Lawyer” to tell the story. It’s only fair. It is, after all, Mickey’s story, but you can bet Bosch won’t stay in the background for long.
Haller inherits the practice and caseload of a fellow defense attorney, Jerry Vincent, who’s been murdered. With the practice comes the high-profile, double-homicide case against famed Hollywood producer Walter Elliot, accused of shooting his wife and her alleged lover. It’s the case of a lifetime, and it takes priority. As Haller scrambles to build a defense, he finds himself getting entangled with LAPD Detective, Harry Bosch, the inimitable hero of Connelly’s long-running series (“The Black Echo,” etc.), who’s working Vincent's murder. When Haller realizes that the Elliot affair is bigger than simply a jealous husband killing his cheating wife, he and Bosch grudgingly agree to work together to solve what could be the biggest case in both their careers. But in the process, Haller realizes Vincent’s killer may be coming after him.

“The Brass Verdict” brings together Michael Connelly’s two most popular characters, Bosh and Haller, for an entertaining legal thriller with more twists and turns that Mulholland Drive.

With obvious painstaking research and concrete details that lend credibility, Mr. Connelly writers novels that thrill and excite, but also read like true crime stories. He’s got a reporter’s ear and eye, and puts them to good use in novels only a skilled, experienced, careful reporter could write. And if “The Brass Verdict” leaves you wanting more Harry Bosch, I’d be willing to bet that’s exactly who journalist Connelly is researching and reporting about right now—so a year from now we can enjoy another of Bosch’s resonate cases.

Personal Note: Michael Connelly is a friend, and I have to say that not only is he a good writer, he’s a good guy—one of the nicest, most generous authors you’re likely to meet. Though one of the most successful crime fiction writers in the world, he spends a lot of his time supporting and encouraging other writers—even those far, far less successful (like me).

Exciting News: Michael Connelly will be the Special Keynote Speaker for the 10th Annual Gulf Coast Writers Conference, September 18-20, 2009. For more information, go to www.GulfCoastWritersConference.com