Michael Connelly once again proves himself a master storyteller
The law of innocence is simple — and complicated — as Michael Connelly shows in his 35th novel: “For every man not guilty of a crime, there is a man out there who is. And to prove true innocence, the guilty man must be found and exposed to the world,” states one character.
Sounds easy, but sometimes this isn’t just hard but impossible, as L.A. defense attorney Mickey Haller knows all too well as he proves in Connelly’s stellar “The Law of Innocence,” the sixth time the author has wrapped a novel around this character. This time, Mickey will defend his most unusual and important client: himself.
Leaving a party after a successful win, Mickey is arrested by a cop, who finds the body of a career con artist in the trunk of the attorney’s Lincoln Towncar. Facing a first-degree murder charge, Mickey chooses to defend himself, ignoring that adage that a lawyer who defends himself has a fool for a client. He also decides to forego the $5 million bail set by the judge, reasoning that the fee could bankrupt him, instead requesting a speedy trial.
From his jail cell in the Twin Towers Correctional Center in downtown Los Angeles, Mickey strategizes with his legal defense team, which includes his half-brother Harry Bosch, Connelly’s usual series character. His team ferrets out evidence and clues as Mickey works on his case, trying to figure out who framed him while constantly worried that he may be a target of other prisoners, or the guards and deputies who know his reputation as an aggressive defense attorney.
“The Law of Innocence” moves at a brisk clip, working as a legal thriller, a police procedural and a character study of Mickey. Bosch uses his skills as a former LAPD homicide detective, making it clear that he would not help if he didn’t believe in his half-brother’s innocence, while the rest of Mickey’s team navigate the legal machinations. The action never lags, even though the majority of scenes take place either in the prison or the courtroom, two claustrophobic settings.
Connelly invests deeply in his characters, using each novel to explore their psyches. “The Law of Innocence” shows new sides of Mickey, whose propensity for working in the backseat of his car earned him the Lincoln Lawyer nickname. Mickey thought he knew what his clients went through when in jail, awaiting their time in court. Now that he is incarcerated, Mickey realizes how little he knows. Now “the inescapable sounds” of his life are “echoes and iron” as he hears his fellow prisoners shouting and banging on steel doors. “The Law of Innocence” becomes a primer on the legal and prison system as Connelly turns a mirror on both.
With the story taking place primarily in early 2020, “The Law of Innocence” offers a new challenge to Connelly’s affinity for zeroing in on contemporary issues. As Connelly builds tension, he weaves in rumors of a spreading virus; people begin wearing masks, and chaos erupts at the supermarket.
Intelligently plotted, “The Law of Innocence” again proves Connelly is a master storyteller.