The Wrong Man by David Ellis

The Wrong Man is David Ellis’ third book in a series of legal thrillers featuring defense attorney, Jason Kolarich.  Kolarich is a wise cracking, hard working young lawyer still overcoming the tragic loss of his wife and child in the now distant past.

Kolarich is asked to represent a homeless Iraq veteran, Tom Stoller who is accused of murdering a young paralegal.  Clearly Stoller is suffering from PTSD from his combat duty.  But when an unsympathetic judge disallows an insanity plea, Kolarich is forced to create reasonable doubt by finding alternative suspects.  As more evidence is uncovered, the attorney comes to believe in his client’s innocence.  The murder seemed too professional and Stoller too detached to have been capable of the crime.  By researching the victim’s past, the legal team discovers that the young paralegal may have stumbled onto a domestic terrorist group who hired the mob to silence her.   With insufficient proof however, Kolarich cannot adequately defend his client and finds himself in the crosshairs of the villains.  Now his task is three-fold… save his client, save himself, and save the city from a terrorist attack.

The Wrong Man is my first David Ellis novel but definitely not my last.  He creates likable characters and places them in precarious complex situations.  The plot was maybe a bit of a stretch but the clever twists and turns make for first class entertainment.  After I finished the book, I learned that Ellis is a practicing lawyer who prosecuted and convicted Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich in his impeachment trial.  Now I know where he gets the flair for the dramatic.