The Hidden Man

by David Ellis

Book Overview

A finalist for the LA Times Book Prize A little girl, snatched from her bed in the dead of night... They knew who killed her. They couldn't prove it. 26 years later, her brother Sammy doesn't care... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0399155791
• ISBN13: 9780399155796
• Release Date: September 2009
• Publisher: G. P. Putnam's Sons
• Length: 325 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.0"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Great Read!

Believeable characters, lots of action & amazingly complex plot twists & turns! What's not to like??

A Thoughtful and Surprising Thriller

After Audrey Cutler is snatched from her bedroom in the middle of the night, the lives of her seven-year-old brother, Sammy, and his best friend, Jason Kolarich, are forever scarred by the tragedy. Griffin Perlini, a known sex offender who lives nearby, is suspected of the crime, but the case is never solved and Perlini goes free. After Audrey's disappearance, Sammy's already dreadful home situation turns from bad to worse. Growing up in a grief-stricken family, Sammy seeks escape through drugs and becomes involved in crime. Jason briefly heads down the same path, but because of his success on the football field in high school and the loyalty of Sammy, Jason is spared from spending time in juvenile detention. Jason eventually escapes the neighborhood and his abusive father by way of an athletic scholarship, leading him to receive a college education and a law degree. Additionally, he marries the woman of his dreams, and they have a beautiful daughter together. Sammy, who continues to have run-ins with the law into adulthood, is not as lucky. And neither is Jason's younger brother, Pete. Slighter in stature than Jason, Pete is the unlucky target of their drunken father's physical and emotional abuse. Although Jason was fortunate enough to escape this deplorable family situation, he has never forgotten his roots. But despite being able to leave all the misery, the misery is able to find Jason. Thirty years after Audrey's abduction, Jason is a broken man. Once on a fast track to stardom in a high-powered criminal defense firm, he crashes and burns after his wife and daughter are killed in a freak car accident one night while he was working on a high-profile case. Blaming himself for their deaths, he trades his success and notoriety for isolation and despair and walks away from a promising future to begin a modest law practice. One day, a nattily dressed mysterious client known as "Mr. Smith" hires Jason to defend Sammy on the charges of murdering a man suspected of abducting young Audrey 30 years ago. The evidence against Sammy is overwhelming, and the trial is scheduled to begin shortly. In addition to paying Jason a huge retainer, Mr. Smith lays out Sammy's defense. He gives Jason his marching orders, including providing an eyewitness who can exonerate Sammy, and expects Jason to fall in line and conclude the trial quickly. But things don't add up for Jason, who is determined to find the truth and is not afraid to stand up to Mr. Smith or a prosecution out to convict Sammy of murder. When Jason refuses to buckle to Mr. Smith's threats, Pete is imprisoned on a federal drug and weapons charge. Jason realizes Pete has been set up and suspects there is more to the case than proving the innocence of Sammy. Fighting against the odds and against the clock, Jason must first discover the truth about the past in order to save his brother's life and prove his friend's innocence. In THE HIDDEN MAN, David Ellis has created a likable hero in Jason Kolaric

A great thriller,and a real surprise!

I had never heard of David Ellis until I saw this on a New Books shelf in the library where I work,but now I'm a big fan of his.This time he intorduces a great new character in Jason Kolarich,a young defense attorney still mourning the recent deaths of his wife and daughter.Jason is hired to defend a childhood friend on a charge of murdering the man who may have kidnapped and killed his younger sister years earlier.Jason finds that things are a lot more compicated than that, and he's soon embroiled in lies,betrayal,and violence.But Jason's enemies are dealing with a former football star who's as tough as a pitbull.The result is one of the year's best thrillers,well-written,with a solid,fast-paced,suspenseful story and well-drawn characters.I hope we will see more Jason Kolarich books.Men,action thriller fans,and mystery lovers will love this!Double PlayA Time to Kill: A NovelA Time to Kill [Blu-ray]A Time to KillThe Street LawyerThe PartnerThe King of Torts

Better Than Grisham

A legal thriller that reminds me of the best works of John Grisham, The Hidden Man is even better, simply because David Ellis is a superior writer. He has a great command of language, something that is not often seen in this genre. Ellis also knows how to create a protagonist that is deeply realized and complex. The plot is riveting and engrossing; there were ingenious plot twits at every turn. Every time I thought I had things figured out I was proven wrong! This is the first in a series featuring the fascinating main character, Jason Kolarich. I highly recommend it!

Excellent

I am an avid mystery reader and I have to say The Hidden Man is the absolutely best book I have read in a long while - in fact I lost several hours of sleep because I just could not stop reading. It was also a delight that not only was the story intriguing, with a lot of sub-plots, but David Ellis is also a gifted writer - very well written. Not matter how many times I thought I had the mystery solved, I was always wrong - David Ellis kept the reader going into the very end. It is not often that I find that I have not "figured" out the climax - Ellis really threw me a loop! The story was exciting, fast-paced with regular glimpses into the main character's past. While reading, I felt like I was one-on-one with the main character, racing to unravel the facts that would save himself, his brother and his childhood best friend. I highly recommend The Hidden Man - just a word of warning - do not start reading unless you have the time to finish - you literally cannot put this book down!

terrific legal thriller

In 1980, someone abducted two-year-old Audrey Cutler from her bedroom. Her stunned mother held her seven year old son Sammy tight as if she will never let him go. The police question sexual offender Perlini, but the evidence was not there. In 2006 Sammy runs into Perlini. Soon afterward the prime suspect in the kidnapping and murder of Audrey is dead. The police arrest Sammy. His high school crony defense attorney Jason Kolarich is hired to defend Sammy. However, the fee for his services comes from an unknown M. Smith who wants a speedy trial and the lawyer believes his defeat as he is told how his client is to plea. Still reeling from the deaths of his wife and daughter in a car accident, Jason tries his best. His inquiry leads to a mass grave of children, but instead of euphoria, his client's financial backers abduct Jason's brother threatening to kill him if the attorney uncovers any other revelations. This is a terrific legal thriller starring a dedicated attorney who wants to do his best by his client regardless of who is paying for the defense or his own issues. The story line is fast-paced from the onset as armchair lawyers will root for and read in one sitting Jason's efforts to mount a viable defense. Fans will enjoy Jason's idealistic attempts to defend Sammy especially after his sibling is kidnapped. David Ellis has a winner in Jason Kolarich. Harriet Klausner