Pur essendo scritto bene ed essere sostanzialmente un legal thriller condito da un po' di azione, la trama alla fine delude.
Siamo lontani dai capolavori di Connelly con Bosch protagonista.
Haller è meno accattivante, sembra più un personaggio televisivo, tanto è vero che ha ispirato film e serie tv...
Da consigliare solo ai fans incalliti (...come me). ( )

M Connelly of old. Bosch's half brother Mickey Haller a top notch defence lawyer becomes a prosecutor to try a convicted child killer who has been released for a retrial. Is Mickey being setup for failure by the DA. The more he digs the more he believes the accused guilty.
A good plot, executed conviencingly. ( )

Of the three novels I’ve read so far in this series this is my favorite, and considering that stories and characterizations have become increasingly better from book 1 to here, I’m certain that this trend is not going to cease any time soon.

The story for The Reversal focuses on the re-opening of the trial against Jason Jessup, who twenty-four years previously was convicted of the kidnapping and murder of a child, snatched from the lawn in front of her own house: DNA analysis of biological traces on the victim’s dress - which was not available at the time of the first investigation - seems to point toward a totally different perpetrator so that the California Supreme Court is asking for a retrial or the acquittal of Jessup. The District Attorney wants someone with no ties to his office for the prosecution, and therefore asks Mickey Haller to take up that role: the reversal in the title then does not refer only to the possible repeal of the previous sentence, but also to Haller having to take on a role that goes against what has been his life’s work so far.

Haller accepts on two conditions: that his second chair be filled by his ex wife Maggie McPherson (also known as Maggie McFierce in the DA office) and that the new investigation be led by none other than Detective Harry Bosch, who Haller knows will leave no stone unturned seeking for the truth. The trio is certain of Jessup’s guilt, DNA results notwithstanding, but they are fighting an uphill battle with evidence that is a quarter of a century old, with witnesses who are either dead or have forgotten a great deal, and with the dangerous political implications of a case that might make or break many careers.

One of the reasons I so enjoyed The Reversal comes from the interactions of these three very different people who manage to work together toward a common goal: with hindsight I realized that all three of them have to travel some uncharted and uncomfortable territory - Haller is tasked to confirm the man’s guilt and therefore the life sentence that was imposed 24 years before; McPherson must work with the man she divorced because, among other things, their views on justice were at polar opposites; and Bosch has to swim upriver, so to speak, because he needs to re-trace the evidence collected at the time of the first investigation. What really brings them together is the realization that they need to find justice for the innocent victim whose life was cut horribly short even before she truly started living it. This is very much a character driven story set in a solid narrative background in which police work and courtroom drama blend into a quite compelling narrative: it’s clear from the start that, despite some doubts to the contrary, Jessup is indeed guilty, but it’s the journey that takes the readers toward this inevitable conclusion that makes this book a proverbial page turner.

By having his two main characters working together, Michael Connelly creates an intriguing partnership between two men whose final goal is that of justice, although they usually move toward it on different paths, and the narrative choice employed here - Haller with first person POV and Bosch with third person - creates an interesting balance that works quite well despite the constant change in perspective. Another interesting angle comes from the fact that they are both fathers, each of them faced with the difficulties inherent in parenting: where Bosch is now raising his teenage daughter as a single parent, having to balance the needs of his work with those of young Maddie, Haller is something of an estranged father, both because of the divorce and of his recent past of addiction, so he’s trying to regain the lost ground and proceeding through trial and error.

These two halves of the story act as a mirror for the two narrative components, the courtroom sequences and the investigation, both of them influenced by the ever-present political pressures that here are further weighted down by those of the public opinion: Jessup’s defense team has launched a massive campaign to promote the man’s innocence, and of course the public is equally divided into two factions, with the media breathing fuel into the fire for its own advantage. Connelly inserts a few passing mentions to some real-life equally divisive trials of the time, imbuing the story with another layer of reality that makes it even more compelling.

If I have to find a flaw in this very engrossing story it’s in the end: to me it seemed somewhat abrupt if I consider the long, careful buildup that led to it, and I felt almost cheated of the conclusion that I had hoped for, but to be honest it’s a really small blemish in a totally engrossing canvas, and I’m once again certain that I will not be disappointed in any future reading choices from this author, who is now one of my go-to writers when I feel the need of an immersive story. ( )

A little predictable but I enjoyed the combo of his two main series. A good summer read. ( )

The story is good, as is the character of Harry Bosch; but the book was filled with a lot of nonsense supposedly happening in courtrooms. I practiced courtroom law for many years and never heard any nicknames or saw the "knowing" expressions that Connelly describes here. So it was hard to want to keep going in the courtroom scenes. Additionally, he had Haller saying, "I would need to check and see if a new movie was out" for something to do with his 13 year old daughter - who knows if new movies are out? Teenagers. Where is this story placed? Los Angeles. C'mon, man. ( )