Mickey Haller – the Lincoln Lawyer – is back. And alongside the usual baggage he brings to a case, Haller also has a corpse stuffed in his beloved car’s trunk. Not surprisingly, the cop who found it was none too happy and before you can say, “quarantine pod,” Haller is behind bars defending his own life. Michael Connelly provides a smooth, fast read of irony.
The Law Of Innocence might be too quick for its own good but is not dead enough to require an autopsy.
The Law Of Innocence starts off with Haller framed. Haller’s usually smug stance changes into one of depression as his world view collapses faster than a narrative on a Fox reality show. When placed in a corner, a man freezes or he fights. Haller swings away. And he brings along his step-brother Harry Bosch, who is probably one of three men you would want at your back while fighting in the ring. The battle commences and is a worthwhile one. Don’t expect a TKO.
By the way? James Bond and Captain Kirk would be the other two.
Haller goes in-and-out of prison while getting in-and-out of fights with the Feds, the prosecution, and a conspiracy involving green energy and the Vegas Mafia. If that ain’t enough, Connelly stirs in the contemporary spice of an oncoming global pandemic to punch up a modern feel. Because readers want to remember 2020. Like any good mystery, starting with a dead body certainly is attention grabbing but Connelly is too allured by the aroma of his star to maximize on the stench of the cadaver, one deserves a proper burial. Ignorance of that malodor breaks away from the satisfaction of a resolution. One that should have been gory as hell is instead presented as medium-rare with a side of sour grapes.
Connelly is a master. He knows what he is doing and has an audience that totally backs him. The Law Of Innocence is an enthralling read that falls deep in a shallow plot. And where the buried treasure is nothing more than a participant trophy.
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