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“Connelly is himself a master manipulator, and there’s always something deadly serious behind his entertaining courtroom hijinks. Here he describes the background of the real estate collapse, exposing the venality involved in mortgage foreclosures. And just to keep it light, he throws in a few inside jokes about Hollywood hustlers and the things they’ll do to get their hands on a hot property.”
— New York Times
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“About half the novel deals with the murder trial itself, and it’s here that Connelly excels, easily surpassing even John Grisham in the building of courtroom suspense. It’s clear that Connelly just loves this stuff…The idea that Connelly is very good comes as no surprise, but the consistency of his excellence is remarkable, given that he’s publishing two books a year right now. I picked up The Fifth Witness one night last week, intending just to get a feel for the story, and found I couldn’t put it down until I’d finished it more than five hours later.”
— Los Angeles Times
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“The Fifth Witness deftly shows us the workings of a justice system fraught with peril inside and outside the courtroom…By the time this twist-filled legal ride is done, the parties involved have confronted the known and unknown alike.”
— Wall Street Journal
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“Connelly is a master at knowing when to shift focus. He knows when to put his foot on the gas and when to take it off. Once Connelly has you on board, turning the pages, you won’t want to climb off. As popular entertainment goes, it doesn’t get much better than this.”
— Boston Globe
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“As ever, Connelly makes Mickey the perfect conduit through the hazardous jungles of LA courtrooms and low-rent neighborhoods. But the social underpinnings here are what really engage the author: The Fifth Witness will not be comfortable reading for bankers, but neither is it indulgent toward those who feel that the world owes them a house and a living. Mickey may champion the latter, but he knows that most of his clients will end up on the scrapheap. This is as diverting an outing for Connelly’s hero as we have been granted.”
— Independent (London)
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“Superb storytelling, corkscrew twists, and a killer finale. Rush out and buy it—you won’t regret it for a moment.”
— Daily Mail (London)
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“Connelly demonstrates his versatility here. His latest legal thriller, replete with authentic characters and compelling dialogue, provides a fascinating glimpse of our justice system in action that’s sure to entertain.”
— San Diego Union-Tribune
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“Mickey Haller is an irresistible character: smart, cynical, funny, and always with a trick up his sleeve. Connelly, a former crime reporter, knows how to keep a story moving and give us characters to love and hate.”
— Charlotte Observer
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“Plot and judicial gymnastics are the focus here, making The Fifth Witness an easy, amiable read with a tang of venom for zest.”
— Oregonian
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“I’ve said many times that Connelly continues to show why he is one of the best—and most consistent—living crime writers. The Fifth Witness adds evidence to the case.”
— South Florida Sun-Sentinel
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“This is Connelly at his thought-provoking best.”
— People
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“Readers who love a good down-and-dirty courtroom battle will love this superb new novel featuring Mickey Haller.”
— Globe and Mail (Canada)
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“The book is a legal thriller to end all legal thrillers. I didn’t see the twists and turns coming at me, and was hard pressed to put the book down to sleep. I didn’t want it to end, a sure sign of a winning book.”
— Deadly Pleasures magazine
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“Keyed with suspense and last minute surprises, Michael Connelly’s latest courtroom procedural will keep you reading and guessing to the end. Editor’s recommendation.”
— Barnes & Noble editorial review
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“Compelling…Connelly has a sure command of the legal and procedural details of criminal court and even manages to make the arcane, shady world of foreclosure interesting…The plot is worthy of a master storyteller.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review)
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“Crime-fiction megastar Connelly can always be counted on to try something a little different. In The Reversal…Connelly offered a tour de force of plotting on multiple levels. Here, he narrows the focus considerably, concentrating almost exclusively on what happens inside the courtroom but bringing to the traditional give-and-take of prosecutor, defender, judge, and jury an altogether more complex commingling of personality and legal strategy than is typically on view in legal thrillers. He accomplishes this with a particularly rich first-person narration in which Haller takes us through the courtroom drama as it happens, noting his blunders and praising himself for quick-thinking improvisations. It doesn’t hurt, either, that the plot is meaty…Combining ripped-from-the-headlines information on the mortgage crisis with a cast of characters that defies stereotypes at every turn of the plot, Connelly shows once again that he will never simply ride the wave of past success. And, neither, apparently, will Mickey Haller, as he reveals a shocking change of direction in the novel’s final pages.”
— Booklist (starred review)
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“Connelly brings back the Lincoln Lawyer for a satisfying case that pits him against a real-estate foreclosure mill…The courtroom scenes—thrust, parry, struggle for every possible advantage—are grueling enough for the most exacting connoisseur of legal intrigue.”
— Kirkus Reviews