I’m trying something new.
It’s already the end of March and I haven’t posted a single review. Did you think I stopped reading? Not a chance. I just haven’t felt the Muse upon me lately. So, I’m trying a new approach. Let’s go!
Absolute Power by David Baldacci
Pub date: 1996
How I read it: Audiobook
Narrator: Scott Brick
Tags: Legal + political thriller; suspenseful; action-packed; old but not dated.
In a nutshell: Young lawyer on his way up, rich fiancée by his side, but his heart belongs to his ex. He’s equally loyal to her estranged burglar father who had the bad luck to witness a devastating crime that might get him killed. High-stakes politics collides with an Everyman quest for justice.
Writing: Baldacci is great at all of it: smart dialog, perfect pacing, intentional character-building.
Arrogant people habitually overestimated their own abilities and underestimated everyone else’s.
And another thing: Absolute Power was immediately developed into a movie directed by and starring Clint Eastwood. The book is better but the movie’s still worth a watch. Gene Hackman is SO good as a bad guy.
Bottom line: I read two of his 60 books last year and I’ll definitely read more Baldacci.
Thirteen by Steve Cavanagh
Pub Date: 2018
How I read it: Book and audiobook**
Narrator: Adam Sims
Blurb: Michael Connelly said, “A dead bang BEAST of a book that expertly combines Cavanagh’s authority on the law with an absolutely great thrill ride. Books this ingenious don’t come along very often.”
Tags: Legal thriller / courtroom drama; mystery; unrequited romance.
In a nutshell: This is the third in the Eddie Flynn series but still works as a standalone. Flynn is a defense lawyer who uses his past life as a con man to help get his clients off. He’s a fun combination of tough and soft and is defending a movie star client who didn’t do it…but the killer’s on the jury!
Writing: Cavanagh is an Irish lawyer and author – not sure which is his side hustle. His prose is poetic, clever, and chummy. His plotting and timing are impeccable. Eddie’s a gem of a character.
The art of the con and the art of the cross were one and the same.
And another thing: There’s a scene where the serial killer on the jury lets his mask slip and the jury expert sees it and is completely unnerved. He says it was like a scene in a movie he saw years ago, a “horror movie about socialites in New York, maybe one was a lawyer, maybe one was a devil, I don’t know…” in the scene “a girl was changing in a store dressing room and she smiled at the camera and just for a second her face changed, that grin turned into an evil snarl… sharp teeth and devil eyes…”
I felt a chill when I read this because I knew exactly what movie he was talking about. That scene with Charlize Theron and her NY ‘friends” in The Devil’s Advocate freaks me out as well.
Bottom line: I resisted the urge to immediately go back to the beginning and read his first two books (the reading conundrum I mentioned here). They’re on my list, though, I’m not done with Eddie Flynn.
The Proving Ground – A Lincoln Lawyer Novel by Michael Connelly
Pub date: 2025
How I read it: Book and audiobook
Narrator: Peter Giles
Tags: Legal thriller; AI; civil justice, Los Angeles stories.
In a nutshell: Families are suing an AI company over its chat bot and the tragedy it caused. Side plots are ripped from the headlines including an ADA scam and the Palisades fire.
Writing: Typical Connelly – succinct storytelling; Mickey’s endearing and infuriating mix of earnestness with a chip on his shoulder; crisp and tight courtroom scenes.
I would make this stand directly in front of the jury, and that was why they called that spot where there was nothing between you and the jurors the proving ground. It was where you put up or shut up.
And another thing: The Michael Connelly Universe is the gift that keeps on giving. In addition to all the books there’s the tv and movie content: The Lincoln Lawyer movie with McConaughey (not a fan), The Lincoln Lawyer show on Netflix (big fan); Bosch, Bosch Legacy, Ballard, and coming soon a prequel featuring a young Bosch is in the works. Oh, and as I did some fact-checking for this I found that the 2002 movie Bloodwork was based on his book by the same name and directed by Clint Eastwood!
Bottom line: I will never stop reading Michael Connelly.
I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes
Pub Date: 2014
How I read it: Book and audiobook
Narrator: Christopher Ragland
Blurb: David Baldacci said, “I Am Pilgrim is simply one of the best suspense novels I’ve read in a long time.”
Tags: Thriller; shadowy government agencies; spies and operatives; 9-11, terrorists.
In a nutshell: Ex-operative at the highest and most secretive level reluctantly gets sucked back into the world of murder, espionage and terrorism. His mission is to save the world from a bio weapon.
Writing: The story slowly unfolds with precise pacing, going back and forth in time. Hayes builds a full and rich picture of the main character throughout. It’s a page-turner with heart.
You’re not like any agent I’ve ever known, Scott. Your weight is your heart… you feel maybe more than you should.
And another thing: Some scenes are hard to stomach with their harrowing depictions of extreme violence and torture.
Bottom line: This should be a movie.
** I can’t be the only one who will read a book two ways, depending on where I’m at and what I’m doing.
bookthrasher 