Shortlisted for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger 2009.

CWA Judges’ comments: 'A highly accomplished legal thriller. Very readable with good twists and an engaging lead character. Never less than compelling to the very last page.'

Lawyer, Jerry Vincent is murdered leaving his client list to his down-on-his-luck colleague, Mickey Haller. Haller thinks his time in the spot light has come as one of his newly acquired clients is worth millions and could put Hallers career back on track. However when Harry Bosch is put on the case and is convinced one of Vincent’s clients murdered him Haller realises his golden list of new found clients may actually be a list of suspects and he might be the next target. Connelly delivers yet again with another brilliant suspense-filled page turner.

Synopsis

Defence lawyer Mickey Haller has had some problems but now he's put all that behind him and is ready to resume his career. Then another lawyer, Vincent, dies, and Haller gets an unexpected windfall: he inherits all Vincent's clients - putting his stalled career back on track at a stroke.

Not only that, but Vincent had taken on a high profile and potentially lucrative murder case. It'll be a trial that promises big fees and an even bigger place in the media spotlight - and if Mickey can win against the odds, he'd really be back in the big leagues.

The only problem is the detective handling the case - a certain Harry Bosch - is convinced the killer must be one of Vincent's clients. Suddenly Mickey is faced with the biggest challenge of his career: how to successfully defend a client who might just be planning to murder him.

Reviews

'a superb legal thriller that manages three final twists ...The labyrinthine workings of LA law, bribery and the machinations of the FBI all play a part in a scenario that soon has Mickey in fear of his life. The first line of The Brass Verdict is 'everybody lies', so there are plenty of surprises. And, of course, as a writer of fiction, Connelly proves to be a brilliant liar.'  Mark Sanderson, EVENING STANDARD
 
"Michael Brandon gives a terrific reading." DAILY EXPRESS
 
'While the themes of Connelly's LA crime novels are familiar (power, envy, corruption), his plotting is anything but.' ESQUIRE

About the Author

Michael Connelly decided to become a writer after discovering the books of Raymond Chandler while attending the University of Florida. After graduating in 1980, Connelly worked at newspapers in Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, ending up 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. The rest is crime writing history.   He lives in Tampa, Florida, with his wife and daughter.   Author photo © Wendy Werri More books by this author Author 'Like for Like' recommendation