Catch The Reversal (The Lincoln Lawyer, #3; Harry Bosch Universe, #21) Penned By Michael Connelly Expressed As Print

This was a really good book, We get a teamup of Haller and Bosch, Haller doing his own moves in this one that leaves you wondering who the good guys are.
And the ending with Bosch determined to find out the truth,

Haller is called upon by the DA's office to prosecute a retrial of a man who was accused of abducting and murdering a young child.
The man accused, Jason Jessup, is given a new trial after some DNA shows that it does not match him.
But all evidence points to Jessup, It's going to be up to Haller and Bosch to run down some witnesses and determine if Jessup is the killer they think he is.
Haller wants Bosch as her investigator and asks his exwife Maggie to be his first chair.
He hopes doing this will get her in good stead with the DA's office and also with him.


There is some awkwardness between Haller and Bosch in this one, Haller's ex, Maggie seems to be coming onto Bosch at times, It ended up making me dislike her, Haller acts like a jackass, but he does have a great legal mind and knows how to maneuver.
But, I have to say that the book surprised me in a good way, I wasn't expecting the ending I got,

The book is weird though since Connelly chooses to tell Haller's POV in the first person and Bosch's POV is in the third person.
Either tell them both in first person or third, Either way it was distracting, I got used to it though which is why I still rated the bookstars,

FYI, make sure you read this book after you read "Nine Dragons", I read Haller books back to back and for the most part have been reading Haller's books back to back so some things are callbacks to earlier Bosch books.
EXCERPT: Jason Jessup was a convicted child killer who had spent nearly twentyfour years in prison until a month earlier when the California Supreme Court reversed his conviction and sent the case back to Los Angeles County for either retrial or a dismissal of the charges.
The reversal came after a twodecade long legal battle staged primarily from Jessup's cell and with his own pen.
Authoring appeals, motions, complaints and whatever legal challenges he could research, the selfstyled lawyer made no headway with state and federal courts but did finally win the attention of an organization of lawyers known as the Genetic Justice Project.
They took over his cause and his case and eventually won an order for genetic testing of semen found on the dress of the child Jessup had been convicted of strangling.


Jessup had been convicted before DNA analysis was used in criminal trials, The analysis performed these many years later determined that the semen found on the dress had not come from Jessup but from another unknown individual.
Though the courts had repeatedly upheld Jessup's conviction, this new information tipped the scales in Jessup's favor.
The state's Supreme Court cited the DNA findings and other inconsistencies in the evidence and trial record and reversed the case.


This was pretty much the extent of my knowledge of the Jessup case, and it was largely information gathered from newspaper stories and courthouse scuttlebutt.
While I had not read the court's complete order, I had read parts of it in the Los Angeles Times and knew it was a blistering decision that echoed many of Jessup's longheld claims of innocence as well as police and prosecutorial misconduct in the case.
As a defense attorney, I can't say I wasn't pleased to see the DA's office raked over the media coals with the ruling.
Call it underdog schadenfreude. It didn't really matter that it wasn't my case or that the current regime in the DA's office had nothing to do with the case back in, there are so few victories from the defense side of the bar, that there is always a sense of communal joy in the success of others and the defeat of the establishment.


The Supreme Court's ruling was announced the week before, starting aday clock during which the DA would have to retry or discharge Jessup.
It seemed that not a day had gone by since the ruling that Jessup was not in the news.
He gave multiple interviews by phone and in person at San Quentin, proclaiming his innocence and potshotting the police and prosecutors who put him there.
In his plight, he had garnered the support of several Hollywood celebrities and athletes and had already launched a civil claim against both the city and county seeking millions of dollars in damages for the many long years during which he was falsely incarcerated.
In this day of nonstop media cycles, he had a neverending forum and was using it to elevate himself to folk hero status.
When he finally walked out of prison, he too would be a celebrity,

Knowing as little as I did about the case in the details, I was of the impression that he was an innocent man who had been subjected to a quarter century of torture and that he deserved whatever he could get for it.
I did, however, know enough about the case to understand that with the DNA evidence cutting Jessup's way, the case was a loser and the idea of retrying Jessup seemed to be an exercise in political masochism unlikely to come from the brain trust of Williams and Ridell.


Unless

THE BLURB: Longtime defense attorney Mickey Haller is recruited to change stripes and prosecute the highprofile retrial of a brutal child murder.
Afteryears in prison, convicted killer Jason Jessup has been exonerated by new DNA evidence, Haller is convinced Jessup is guilty, and he takes the case on the condition that he gets to choose his investigator, LAPD Detective Harry Bosch.

Together, Bosch and Haller set off on a case fraught with political and personal danger.
Opposing them is Jessup, now out on bail, a defense attorney who excels at manipulating the media, and a runaway eyewitness reluctant to testify after so many years.


With the odds and the evidence against them, Bosch and Haller must nail a sadistic killer once and for all.
If Bosch is sure of anything, it is that Jason Jessup plans to kill again,

MY THOUGHTS: The Reversal by Michael Connelly is an intense read, I have never been a great fan of the courtroom drama, which this largely is, but I am starting to think that I would read a shopping list if Connelly has written it.


Featuring both Mickey Haller and Harry Bosch, The Reversal is neither a straight courtroom drama, nor a detective story, but a clever and compelling combination of the two.
The tension increases throughout the book, relieved only by glimpses into the family lives of the two main characters, and sometimes not even then!

I have previously readin the Mickey Haller series, the Lincoln Lawyer, and rated it.
This is just so much better, a good solidread,

I listened to the audiobook of The Reversal by Michael Connelly, narrated by Peter Giles, via OverDrive.
All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions, Please refer to my Goodreads, com profile page or the 'about' page on sandysbookaday, wordpress. com for an explanation of my rating system, This review and others are also published on my blog sandysbookaday, wordpress. com sitelink wordpress. com/ This is the third entry in Michael Connelly's Mickey Haller series, after sitelinkThe Lincoln Lawyer and sitelinkThe Brass Verdict.
The Reversal, though is almost as much of a Harry Bosch novel as it is a Mickey Haller.


As the book opens, Haller gets an unusual offer from the L, A. County District Attorney who wants Haller to join the team as an independent prosecutor for the purpose of retrying a convicted child killer who has been granted a new trial after a successful appeal.
Haller agrees to the proposition with several stipulations: He will operate completely independently of the D.
A. 's office he can pick his own second chair from the D, A. 's staff, and he can select his own investigator from the L, A. P. D.

When the D, A. agrees, Haller selects as his second, his first exwife, Maggie McPherson, AKA Maggie McFierce, As his investigator, Mickey selects his halfbrother, Harry Bosch, This makes for a very interesting cast of characters and it's fun watching the three of them work together.
The story is told, basically, in alternating chapters, one from Haller's firstperson POV and the next from Bosch's third person POV.


The accused killer, a creep named Jason Jessup, had been convicted twentyfour years earlier.
New DNA evidence has raised doubts about his guilt and he has now been freed from prison.
Most people, Jessup included, assume that the state will not attempt to retry him after all this time, and Jessup is looking forward to a big payday upon his release.


Jessup is in for a big surprise and so is the reader, as Connelly repeatedly refuses to do the expected and produces a variety of twists and turns that will keep the reader turning the pages long into the night.
A bit of the tension leaks out of the book at the end with a conclusion that seems somewhat rushed and is a bit of an anticlimax after the events that have led up to it.
Still, this is a very entertaining book and Connelly fans will not be disappointed, I love a good legal thriller and the Mickey Haller books have been some of my favourites.
Add in the addition of his halfbrother, Harry Bosch and this story had me hooked, This was another fantastic story, and I loved the scenes in the courtroom, I enjoyed seeing Haller working for the prosecution, and also his exwife being on the same team as well and working with Bosch.
The ending might have been written with a film in

mind because it was very Hollywood blockbusterish but it was another thrilling finish to a story and I cant wait to meet Mickey Haller again.
Just brilliant all round and highly recommended, March
Retrial of Jessup a child murderer who abducted and killed a youngyears old Melyears ago.
He spent it in jail but a DNA examination of semen found on dress came back negative to him and positive for another person.
The supreme courts reversed its decision and ordered a new trial,

Mike Haller the famous Lincoln Lawyer is crossing the aisle and becoming a special prosecutor to prosecute Jessup and not to defend him.
. . his first time crossing the line and he could be enjoying speaking in the name of the people.


Bosch is Mikes investigator and he digs and digs in the past and the present to show the truth.


A real page turner
Continuing my read and review of Michael Connellys Mickey Haller books

Michael Connellysnd book and third outing with Mickey Haller as the protagonist “The Reversal” was first published back in.
Mickey is the son of Michael Haller, a famous defense attorney in the Los Angeles area back in the sixties and seventies.
Mickey himself is a somewhat successful criminal defense attorney operating in Los Angeles County, Unlike his father, his office is a Lincoln Town Car, and his clients are primarily drug dealers, gang members, and gangsters.
Mickeys first exwife, Margaret “McFierce” McPherson, is a prosecuting attorney and mother of his daughter, Hayley.
His second wife, Lorna Taylor, is his case manager and frontline defense to his clients, Mickey is also the younger halfbrother of Detective Harry Bosch, Connellys longrunning detective series,

When “The Reversal” starts, Haller has been invited to a lunch meeting with Gabriel Williams, Los Angeles County District Attorney.
Williams has a favor to ask him, He wants Haller to serve as a special prosecutor in the retrial of Jason Jessup, previously convicted of kidnapping and killingyearold Melissa Landy.
After servingyears in prison, Jessup has been released because of new DNA evidence testing, and LA County needs an impartial and independent prosecutor to try the case.
Once Haller is allowed to have his exwife, Maggie “McFierce” McPherson, serve as his coprosecutor, as well as using this as an opportunity to promote her career, he accepts the job.


Haller is also able to employ Harry Bosch his halfbrother and LAPD Special Crimes detective as his case investigator.
Harry is trying to balance his workload while learning to cohabitate with his ownyearold daughter, Maddie, following the murder of her mother and Boschs exwife in Hong Kong several months ago.
Harry is discovering that being a father to a teenage daughter is harder than tracking down criminals and killers.


Working together as a team, Haller, Maggie, and Bosch soon realize their case has big challenges.
Afteryears many of the witnesses are either gone or dead and much of the evidence no longer appears to be as strong as it once was.
The retrial was granted based on finding out the DNA evidence from Melissas dress was not from Jessup it was actually from the dead girls stepfather who is dead.
Other than mostly circumstantial evidence, their case rests mostly on the testimony of Melissas older sister, Sarah, who saw Jessup take her from their yard and escape in his two truck.
The problem is Sarah sunk into serious drug and addiction problems during the years following and has pretty much disappeared.
And to make matters worse, Haller is facing his toughest defense opponent, "Clever Clive" Royce, who is attacking Mickeys case at every step and mounting a strong media campaign, painting Jessup as a victim of justice.


Together, Mickey Haller and Harry Bosch are facing a full deck and time is not on their side

This is the second time that Connelly has brought Haller and Bosch to work together on a case and it is absolutely awesome.
In reading my way through Connellys books from the beginning, I have appreciated the different ends of the spectrum that Haller and Bosch represent.
They are great to compare and contrast with one another, Although both are interesting and complex, they are each compelling in their own way, Mickeys background and upbringing were less stark and dramatic than Harrys, He handles his legal cases with an entrepreneurial spirit and close relationships with trust, Where Harry focuses on overcoming a past that lacked parental influence, Mickey struggles with being in the shadow of the legacy of his fathers success.
In contrast to Harrys brooding and pessimistic outlook on life, Mickey is more optimistic and optimistic by nature.
He focuses on how things can well and scrambles to make the best out bad situations.


I especially enjoyed how Connelly delivered another legal thriller that not only delivers excellent courtroom drama, but also takes the reader through a frontseat view of the entire legal process from beginning to end, including all of the behind the curtain legal maneuvering and politics.
There were so many well delivered moments of legal warfare that I almost lost count, Connelly lays out another complex legal thriller and multiple secondary character relationships in a connected, interweaving plot that provides an engrossing pageturning experience.
It had a dash of John Grisham at his best, but it was a fresh and original take that had Connellys unique crime beat experience written all over it.


Its almost crazy how I can always count on Connelly to provide me a wining legal thriller reading experience.
The narrative flowed effortlessly from one scene to another, one conversation to the next, and one twist to another until the multiple climaxes paid off and I could breathe a sigh of relief.
There was no extra verbiage or unnecessary descriptions taking away from the storys focus, Each of the courtroom scenes built more and more drama until culminating in a delicious climax.
And transparency requires me to admit that any appearance by my favorite FBI agent and profiler, Rachel Walling, always makes me happy.


The only thing keeping me from giving this book five was that I struggled a bit with the ending.
Two things bothered me. The first there was a lack of closure around the primary mystery, I dont want to spoil anything, but some aspects were left in a vague and unanswered state.
The second was a dropping some of the clues and evidence developed throughout the story, Without going into details, Rachel Walling was brought in to provide a criminal profile that was used as a key element of the plotting, and then it just disappeared at the end.
No use of it to link the clues to resolution or anything, This was an unusual experience for me when reading Connelly, and I am just going to give him the benefit of the doubt this time.


Overall, even with my complaints this book was an absolute joy to immerse myself in.
Mickey Haller is a complex character with a few real strengths, many poignant weaknesses, and internal demons driving him to become a lawyer who believes in and seeks for justice.
His background and unique quirks make him an interesting addition and balance to the harddriven dark passion of Harry Bosch.
Now that Connelly has found ways for them to work together on a case, we readers get the pleasure of both worlds legal thriller and police procedural served in a perfect combination of crime fiction.
I cannot think of any better paring in fiction and it leaves me wanting more

.