This was a great comeback with Dismas Hardy and Abe Glitsky. The basic premise is the Exoneration Initiative reviews old cases and weighs new evidence in order to determine if someone has been convicted wrongly.

There are so many characters, I recommend keeping a list, great book and many conclusions you will make prematurely.

I would never miss a book by this author. This one was crisp, clean and moved along like a turnpike with light traffic. Great read.

Another good one by John Lescroart! Abe Glitsky uses his expertise as a retired homicide detective to track down the killer (or killers?) of a man recently released from prison by the Exoneration Initiative, an organization that tries to free wrongly convicted prisoner. But was Paul Riley really wrongly convicted? And was he murdered by the father of the girl Riley alleged killed. Lescroart is great at coming up with interesting plots. And he uses his characters to illustrate (somewhat cynically) problems with the justice system.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The gang is back! If you’re not familiar with this author, or the background on this series, feel free to check out my author review post of #JohnLescroart.

In this latest installment of the Dismas Hardy/Abe Glitsky series, the author focuses the story around Abe and his investigation of a series of murders related to the “Exoneration Initiative”, which is an “Innocence Project” type fictional initiative that seeks justice for incarcerated humans.

And that’s where the rub lies. “Exonerated”, as Lescroart explores in this book, does not mean “innocent”, but rather incorrectly prosecuted - due to some fault in the handling of the evidence, trial, or case. This makes for a number of tricky ethical quandaries which Lescroart debates with us skillfully. Is “justice” served by freeing a criminal who did in fact commit a crime but ended up being “incorrectly” prosecuted? How does a legal defense team morally process their role in freeing defendants who are actually guilty?

These themes come to life with the release of Paul Riley, a convicted rapist and murderer who is freed after eleven years in prison due to the work of the Exoneration Initiative. This time, the story only peripherally includes the legal team of the series (Dismas, my favorite character has only a very brief appearance in this book) but rather focuses on the crime(s) that occur and the investigative ups and downs performed by Abe and his police contacts that lead us to the twisty and satisfying climax.

All in all, this book is a wonderful journey with old friends. I’ll be interested to see (no spoilers here), how the author resolves next steps for conflicted prosecutor-turned-defense-lawyer Wes Farrell in future books.

A big thank you to NetGalley; the publisher, Atria Books; and the author John Lescroart for an advance review copy of this book. All thoughts presented here are my own.

#bookreview #Netgalley #JohnLescroart #Atriabooks

Not sure how I’ve missed this author! I’ll definitely be reading more of his books. This one kept me wondering until the end. It had enough twists and turns that I didn’t figure out the killer. A murderer/rapist let out of prison on a technicality is murdered and the father of his victim is accused. It takes a surprising turn after that. It seemed to drag just a little in the middle but overall it was a good read.

After what seemed to be a long wait, John Lescroart is back with another Dismas Hardy tale. And it was worth the wait! Dismas and Abe are looking into murders around a generic prison exoneration project which have them baffled. There's the usual banter between two of my favorite characters but also something deeper. I love how Lescroart ages his characters appropriately and doesn't try to make them more than human. There's a richness to his story-telling that makes me come back for more after all these years. I read this in two nights but wished I'd savored it more. Already looking forward to the next book! Well done Mr. Lescroart!

I love a good thriller, and this did not disappoint.

I can usually guess what'll happen with a plot, but I literally could not even HINT at how the book would end but I was not expecting THAT.

John Lescroart has written a thriller that, once you finish, will have you trying to find the missing piece that it stole from your soul.

I generally enjoy thrillers, with legal and financial being my favorite subgenres. There are several authors that are consistently ones whose latest books are always on my TBR shelf as soon as I can get them, and John Lescroart has been on that list since I first came across his work in the late 1980s. I was working in public libraries, and I recommended him to friends, co-workers, and library patrons (although for the longest time I was totally unsure about the pronunciation of his last name!) Over the years, I have read the majority of the Dismas Hardy series and several others, and have continued to enjoy his work. Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley, I received a copy of The Missing Piece, the latest (#19) in the series featuring San Francisco attorney Dismas Hardy, in exchange for my honest review.

Familiar characters are all there: in addition to Dismas, there are Abe Glitsky (former cop, now a PI), Wes Farrell (former DA), and Wyatt Hunt, along with Franny and Treya (Dismas’s and Abe’s wives), Devin Juhle, as well as peripheral characters including a detective named Waverly, first seen in Poison, #17 in this series.

When Wes was San Francisco DA, he convicted a man named Paul Riley for rape and murder. After eleven years in prison, Riley was released due to the work of a group called “ The Exoneration Initiative,” a fact that REALLY annoyed Doug Rush, the murdered woman’s father. In short order, Riley is killed, and his father identifies Rush (father of the murdered woman) as the killer. The police think it’s all cut and dried, with the still-grieving father of Riley’s dead girlfriend as the obvious killer of the former prisoner.

Farrell, having had enough of politics, has returned to practicing law with Hardy and their firm agreed to represent Rush.When Rush goes missing, Farrell and Hardy ask Abe Glitsky to track him down. The investigation leads Abe down several paths, including encounters with Rush’s married girlfriend that cause him to question his own sense of morality and values.

Overall, I loved it. I think it is his best in years. The characters are all there, along with their snappy dialogue and self-reflection that I enjoy. I will recommend it to everyone who enjoys mysteries, police procedurals, or just an entertaining book with excellent characters, setting, and plot! Five stars.

I wasn't familiar with this author, and I was hesitant to get into an existing series, but I was immediately engrossed in his writing and never felt lost in what the characters and their world was about. The dialogues are fantastic and the pacing is just right, fast, but not so fast that it feels superficial. That may be what I appreciated the most: among all the action, mystery, unexpected twists and turns, I got a full cast of complex people and their motivations and dynamics are explored rather than glossed over. I will definitely check out his other (many!) books.

I don't know why this was my first book that I read by John Lescroart but I am now excited to go back and read earlier novels and certainly I look forward to future books.
The story of Paul Riley who was murdered after he was released from prison combines several genres in one story, thriller, mystery and legal. I highly recommend this book and thanks for letting me share my opinions on this excellent book.

Paul Rubespierre Riley is released from prison where he was serving a life sentence after an organization called the Exoneration Initiative found legal errors in his trial. He was in prison for the rape and murder of Dana Rush.

When Paul Riley ends up dead, shot in the head, the first suspect is Douglas Rush, Dana's father because Paul's father swears he saw Doug running away from the scene after he heard a gunshot.

Wes Farrell, former D.A. and now partner in the law firm Freeman, Farrell, Hardy and Roake, was the prosecutor in Paul Riley's murder trial and now he is defending Doug when he is arrested for the murder. The cops think it's an open and shut case but Wes and his partners think there is more to investigate when their client Doug also ends up dead.

It's great to have the gang altogether again solving this latest crime. As usual the author gives us a well written, well crafted storyline with familiar characters that compliment each other so well. It was wonderful reading this book, like slipping on your favorite pair of slippers, so familiar and comfortable. Highly recommend this book.

I was so excited to see that another John Lescroart/Dismas Hardy book was coming out and jumped at the chance to read it. Having read all of the prior books in the series, I couldn't put this down. Such a great read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. I cannot wait to recommend this book.

I received an ARC of John Lescroart's latest novel from NetGalley.

It is such a treat to sit down with one of John Lescroart's mysteries. For me, this is my 11th Lescoart book, which still leaves me with more than half his catalog to read.

The writing style is so appealing. There is the familiar cast of interesting characters, and they are characters in every sense of the word. This is considered part of the Dismas Hardy series, but the star of this one is Abe Glitsky. Dismas, who heads a law firm, plays a supporting role. Wes Farrell, former San Francisco district attorney, has now joined Hardy at the law firm. Lawyer Gina Roake makes a cameo appearance. While the reading experience is enhanced by reading prior works featuring these characters, all of Lescroart's books can be enjoyed as standalones.

Abe Glitsky, who formerly headed San Francisco PD's Homicide unit, is now a private investigator in The Missing Piece. He is trying to figure out who murdered a young man who was released from prison on a technicality, after having been convicted years before of a rape and murder. The father of the victim girl is suspected of the murder. Abe goes to work for the girl's father, helping his defense as well as tryin to find out who really killed the released prisoner.

This is very well-plotted. As usual, the banter between the characters is genuine and entertaining. While there is some violence is this book, the author does not dwell on it or glorify it the way many thriller writers do. Instead, the author focuses on what is going on in the minds of his characters.

Another successful piece of work by an accomplished author who has not lost his fastball.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Paul Riley was exonerated of a murder. While a free man he was murdered. With the suspect list growing, Wes Farrell to figure out who he can trust. This book kept me on edge from the beginning.

Given the long gap since his last book, I - like many others feared that we had finally seen the end of John Lescroart's masterly series of thrillers.

I cannot tell you how pleased I was to see and grab hold a copy of "The Missing Piece" and it was well worth the wait.

I know that it is good to be challenged by a book sometimes and to have to work hard to gert into it and extract the jewels within, but there is also much to be said for feeling familiar to be back in the company of characters whom you have lived with over the course of a series of books.

That is what you get with Lescroart who manages to breathe fresh life into the likes of Dismas Hardy, Wes Farrell and of course Abe Glitsky every time.

Glitsky and his perseverance is the undoubted hero of this book and he is determined to solve a series of seemingly connected - but maybe not - murders.

An enthralling plot is augmented by Farrell's concerns about defending rather than prosecuting and the whole subject of guilt and innocence.

An excellent and multilayered thriller that was well worth the long wait.

Thank you John Lescroart.

304 pages

5 stars

All the usual “suspects” are back in this, the latest, in John Lescroart's Dis Hardy/Abe Gliysky/Wes Farrell series. It was like greeting old and familiar friends.

Lescroart's characters have a talent for self-examination. Always questioning their actions and motives. I like that in a book. Thinking people.

This is a thoughtful telling of the story of a man falsely accused of a murder. The man is accused to murdering the man who raped and killed his daughter. Wes prosecuted him in his original trial and he was convicted. However, the Exoneration Initiative finds faukt with the trial and the man is released from prison.

Wes takes his case. Finally getting bail, the accused man is also murdered. Wes and his team hire Abe Glitsky to investigate the murders.

This is where the story gets sticky – and exciting.

The balance of the story is peopled with people who lie, who cheat, who have anger issues, along with crooked police, police who use excessive physical violence – and a murderous vigilante.

This is is very well written and plotted as are all of Mr. Lescroart's novels. The writing is smooth and even and the transitions are flawless. The characters are interesting and have continued to grow throughout the series. The level of involvement with their personal lives is just perfect. Enough to keep them interesting, but not so much that it intrudes on the story. Very well done, Mr. Lescroart! I have read his books for years and will continue to do so. He has always been among my favorite authors.

I want to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for forwarding to me a copy of this remarkably good book for me to read, enjoy and review. The opinions expressed here are my own.