THE GODS of GUILT (Lincoln Lawyer #5) (audiobook) by Michael Connelly


Published in December of 2013 by Hachette Audio.
Unabridged
Read by Peter Giles
Duration: 11 hours, 49 minutes.

For me, Michael Connelly's "Lincoln Lawyer" has always been second best to his mainstay Harry Bosch series. Now, that is no insult because I am a huge fan of Michael Connelly and his second best is better than most author's best effort. This book was quite entertaining throughout and an enjoyable listen.
The Gods of Guilt begins with Los Angeles criminal attorney Mickey Haller wondering how he is going to make payroll for his struggling little law firm. He can't get any leaner than he is - he has no permanent office (he works out of his Lincoln Town Car, thus the term "Lincoln Lawyer"), he trades legal work for office space if he actually has to use a physical office and his driver is working off a legal bill by driving.   When he gets a call to defend a murder suspect who has the cash to mount a proper defense,  Mickey jumps at it. The accused is a cyber-pimp who arranges "dates" for his prostitutes via websites. He is accused of killing one of his prostitutes. 
A Lincoln Town Car. Photo by Bull-Doser.


But, Mickey is disturbed to find out that the victim is a former client that he mistakenly believed has stopped being a prostitute and had moved to Hawaii. And, the more he digs the more he is convinced that his client is truly innocent and that the his former client was involved in more things than he had ever imagined when he represented her all of those years ago and the repercussions of those activities came back to her and not only killed her but threaten anyone associated with her. As Mickey and his team begin to learn what was really going on they also risk becoming targets...

 Narrator Peter Giles is a good fit for this audiobook. His smooth delivery matches the smooth delivery of Mickey Haller in court and Giles' narration works best while describing the court room drama aspect of the story.

 Notes: The term "Gods of Guilt" refers to the jury in a box, 12 "gods" who sit in judgment. Personally, I think it is a bit melodramatic and clunky and the phrase is used way too many times in the story.

 Fans of Harry Bosch will be pleased to note that Harry makes a short but very important appearance in this book.

 The audiobook can be found on Amazon.com here: The Gods of Guilt

 I rate this audiobook 4 stars out of 5.

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