Micky Haller doesn't like his latest client. Lisa Trammel had already turned to him for help when her bank threatened to foreclose on her house. When she is accused of murdering one of the bankers, she naturally expects that Mickey will represent her. But Lisa balks at much of Mickey's advice, and he occasionally sees a disturbing viciousness that she barely holds in check.
The case is made more complicated by the fact that the prosecutor is a friend of Mickey's ex-wife, Maggie, whom Mickey is trying to woo again. Mickey will take advantage of any weakness he can exploit to win his case. His cutthroat ambition, along with the prosecutor accusing him of not playing fair, threaten to undo the new closeness he's been enjoying with Maggie.
Michael Connelly, one of my favorite authors, writes two series: Mickey Haller courtroom mysteries, and Harry Bosch police procedurals. Both are terrific, and I'm hard pressed to say which series I prefer. The Fifth Witness is similar to The Lincoln Lawyer, in that Mickey has to tread a very thin line between his personal moral code and the rules governing defense lawyers. I have to say, I never pictured Mickey Haller as looking even remotely like Matthew McConaughey, so I was stunned to learn that the actor would play him in this spring's The Lincoln Lawyer. But McConaughey did a great job, tried not to look too gorgeous, and was quite impressive. Nevertheless, I still didn't picture McConaughey when I read The Fifth Witness. For one thing, it's very hard to imagine someone who looks like he does having to work so hard to win back his ex-wife. I'm hoping they turn many more of Connelly's books into movies and that eventually, I won't be able to picture anyone else playing Mickey.
Meantime, back to books: if you haven't already discovered Michael Connelly, you're missing one of the best mystery writers of our times.
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