The Wrong Man

April 16, 2012
A wicked sense of humor and an appealing lead lift Ellis’s third legal thriller featuring Midwestern prosecutor-turned-defense lawyer Jason Kolarich (after 2011’s Breach of Trust), though Kolarich tends to act more like Jack Ryan than Perry Mason. When paralegal Kathy Rubinkowski is gunned down near her apartment, the case against Iraqi war veteran Tom Stoller is clear-cut. Stoller was apprehended with the murder weapon and the victim’s purse near the scene of the killing. Since his mental state is questionable, Stoller’s aunt prevails on Kolarich to represent him. The attorney comes to believe that Stoller’s apparent confession was actually referring to a horrific incident that happened during wartime, but as Kolarich is the second defense lawyer on the case, the judge allows him little time or leeway to gather supporting evidence. Toward the end, the plot veers into Tom Clancy territory with some sacrifice of plausibility. Given the heavy-handed telegraphing, few will be surprised by the revelation of the final secret. Agent: Susanna Einstein, LJK Literary Agency.

Starred review from May 1, 2012
Edgar-winner Ellis is a Chicago prosecuting attorney (he was the house prosecutor who tried Governor Rod Blagojevich before the Illinois senate), and he brings his legal expertise and insider's knowledge to the crafting of his legal thrillers. The third in Ellis' Jason Kolarich series (the others are The Hidden Man, 2009, and Breach of Trust, 2011) is one of those reads that starts, literally and metaphorically, in a dark street at night and that manages to extend that What's going to come up at me? feeling to just about every scene. A young woman, a student and paralegal, is shot to death on the street. A homeless man is found nearby and arrested; he is in possession of the young woman's purse, and he identifies the gun fired at the victim as his own. He's an Iraq War veteran, with PTSD and disorganized schizophrenia. Defense-attorney Kolarich takes on what seems to be an easily closed case, but as he delves into the paralegal's life, he discovers that any number of people may have wanted her dead. One flawEllis writes about a Chicagoesque city, when there's no reason to be coy about setting. But everything else here, from interviews through prepping the team of lawyers through the rigors and excitement of the trial itself, rings perfectly true.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)