by David Ellis. (Get the Book)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 flaw Ellis 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. --Booklist
