The Wrong Man

Jason Kolarich, Book 3

By: David Ellis

Narrated by: Luke Daniels

The 24-hour news cycle is abuzz when the police arrest homeless Iraq war veteran Mike Stoller for the murder of a young paralegal on her way home from night-school class. Stoller doesn't deny killing the woman, but his post-traumatic stress disorder is so bad that he has no real memory of that night.

Jason Kolarich agrees to take the case only weeks before trial, and realizes that, unlikely as it seems, his client is probably innocent. The murdered paralegal had been tracing a money trail leading to a conspiracy of terrorists who come from the last place you'd expect: corporate America. Her murder was no random crime, and the wrong man was charged - leaving Jason Kolarich racing to save Stoller while simultaneously preventing a terrorist's bomb from detonating in his city.

©2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.; 2012 David Ellis

Best one ever! Love this author!! Buy this book!!

This was the 2nd David Ellis book I purchased never having read the author before. David Ellis writes similar to John Grisham with a Jonathan Kellerman or James Patterson thriller/mystery edge. Jason Kolarich digs deep to solve his cases. Love the sarcasm and attitude of main character - Jason. Was extremely pleased with this book. Highly recommend this author. I don't think you need to read the books in order, but you may want to since this is the best one. Great performance by Luke Daniels - compared to others - he really becomes Jason in this book - really developed the character. I'm reading "Hidden Man" right now and it is just as good except the narrator hasn't quite come into character - but still a good mystery/thriller/lawyer jargon book. You won't be sorry if you become a David Ellis fan!

Calm, crescendo, tsunami, calm

Read the publisher's summary, I try not to write spoilers.

From a calm beginning to a frantic rush to sort out seemingly unrelated threads, this book kept me entertained from beginning to end. The background for the mysteries is well done; I didn't ever get bored. The characters range from tragic veteran to home grown terrorists to mob hit persons. All is wrapped up in a satisfactory manner. My one disappointment was the somewhat obvious ending. I am not sure it should have been done differently, but it seemed like an afterthought to a well paced book.

Luke Daniels gives one of his great performances.

I will try another book in the Kolarich series.

Good But Not Great

Good book and worth a read to all crime fiction readers that are in to legal thrillers. Maybe Americans relish plots where their government is facing imminent terrorism, but that story line is so tired. Jason is a typical complex character, and sees the world as such, so why make him a crusader for the government? Leave him to pursue justice in what ever means suitable and appropriate to his character, but just not the dull nationalist and patriotic way. That just limits him and is not indicative of the present day critical thinking person who views governments with a dose of healthy skepticism. Jason loses that perspective in the latter chapters and a reader, who thinks critically, thus becomes detached from Jason's character.

Great book, great narrator

This audio book was good from the first 5 minutes to the last with a very good plot twist at the end.

Good Mystery Writing

If you could sum up The Wrong Man in three words, what would they be?

Good Mystery Writing.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

I liked the way the story developed as various layers of the story were revealed.

What does Luke Daniels bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I liked the narrator but had a bit of trouble hearing the characters that talked in a whisper.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes

3.5 Stars The Ending Got Silly!!

This is the third book in a series about lawyer Jason Kolarich. I haven't listened to the others and that didn't affect my enjoyment of this book. It's a solid legal thriller about a lawyer who is defending a homeless man accused of the murder of a young law clerk. The case against the homeless man looks clearcut but as Kolarich starts to investigate, he discovers pieces of evidence that don't add up. Soon it becomes apparent that he and his team are in danger and that both the Mafia and a very nasty group of terrorists don't want him to find out the truth behind the murder.

What I liked about this book is the lead character (also the narrator) who is interesting and engaging. The courtroom scenes also felt more realistic than is usual in this genre. The story unfolded at a good pace for the most part with various twists that kept me guessing.

However in the end I felt that it all got too silly. Our lawyer turns into an action hero who can also out-think the FBI. The final pages should have been "can't-put-the-book-down gripping" but instead they had me rolling my eyes and losing interest.

Overall not a total write off, but not as good as it could have been. I am going to listen to the first 2 books in the series.

Luke Daniels was outstanding with the delivery of the story

Painfully predictable

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

The story has potential but when I called all the "twists" waaaay before they happen, its not much fun.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Probably not

Any additional comments?

The narrator did a horrible job of portraying different women. They all sounded the same: breathy with a slightly southern accent. In fact, I rather recent that. When more that one woman was in a scene, I couldn't tell who was talking.

Bases for a great movie

Where does The Wrong Man rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Better than the Lincoln Lawyer. Powerful business men, FBI, ex-marine, sarcastic lawyer, mafia and controlling unforgiving judge

Who was your favorite character and why?

Jason was my favorite. Sarcastic, funny and never gives up. Works the angles. Great at cross examination.

What about Luke Daniels’s performance did you like?

When he landed Jason onto his back in the cell

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

When all odds are are against you

Any additional comments?

I really feel this would make an entertaining movie in it's entirety. But those making movies seem to cut out parts. Nice ending I didn't see coming.

Engaging, fun and an excellent reader

If you could sum up The Wrong Man in three words, what would they be?

Engaging, fun characters, and an excellent reader. The judge for the court case described in this book was a bit ridiculous and I found that the court case had some issues as a result. However, the book is enjoyable and I would recommend it.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

The plot really engaged me - except for the ruling made by the judge. I would have liked to see a bit more reality with this issue.

Have you listened to any of Luke Daniels’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I really like Luke Daniels as a reader. He did a great job with this book

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

This story is complex with lots of different characters. Don't try to listen to it all in one sitting.

Legal thriller with powerful suspense

The wrong man is an excellent legal thriller with lots of courtroom action, but with most of the suspense being outside the courtroom. Luke Daniels does a great job of narration.