Michael Connelly > Quotes

“A murder case is like a tree. A tall tree. An oak tree. It has been carefully planted and cared for by the state. Watered and trimmed when needed, examined for disease and parasites of any kind. Its root system is constantly monitored as it flourishes underground and clings tightly to the earth. No money is spared in guarding the tree. Its caretakers are granted immense powers to protect and serve it.

The tree’s branches eventually grow and spread wide in splendor. They provide deep shade for those who seek true justice.

The branches spring from a thick and sturdy trunk. Direct evidence, circumstantial evidence, forensic science, motive and opportunity. The tree must stand strong against the winds that challenge it.

And that’s where I come in. I’m the man with the ax. My job is to cut the tree down to the ground and burn its wood to ashes.”
― Michael Connelly

“Does this bother you?" he asked.

She turned around and looked at him.

"Does what bother me?" she asked.

"I don't know," he said. "I guess that she chose her own penance. She came here and went on missions and took care of children and all of that. Vow of poverty, paid off the mortgage, whatever. But she didn't turn herself in and say, 'I'm responsible.' She didn't tell all those parents how come their kids died."

He gestured to the box.

"She talks about redemption. But she chose all of this. Nothing was taken from her. You know what I mean?”
― Michael Connelly

“Bosch nodded. He liked that she had referred to the Officer In-volved Shooting team instead of what the unit was called now-FID, as in Force Investigation Division. It showed her old-school allegiance.

"Good," he said. "You shouldn't have any trouble with the OIS. They just take forever because of the paperwork."

"I don't know," Soto said. "Two incidents in less than a year...they might think there's some kind of pattern."

Bosch frowned.

"Twenty-five years ago they would have given you a medal and a raise for a pattern like that," he said.”
― Michael Connelly

“Nobody bats a thousand. Nobody wins every case. The law is fickle. You're the prince of the city one day, a street sweeper the next. The skill is being able to get back in the Lincoln, buckle up, and drive on.”
― Michael Connelly, The Proving Ground: The Brand New Blockbuster Lincoln Lawyer Thriller

“To some its a stage. A place where carefully choreographed drama takes place. To others, a chess match with moves designed and practiced weeks and sometimes months in advance. Where nothing is left to chance. Where the wrong moves have grave consequences and finality. Where the recruited audience sits in silent judgment with their hidden biases and contempt.

I have never thought of it that way. To me it's the Octagon, where mixed martial arts are deployed in brutal combat. Two go in; one comes out the victor. No one is left unbloodied. No one is left unscarred. This is what the courtroom is to me.”
― Michael Connelly, The Proving Ground: The Brand New Blockbuster Lincoln Lawyer Thriller

“We all stood when Judge Ruhlin entered the courtroom, her robe flowing behind her, and took the bench. She told us to be seated and convened court, calling the case...I knew I would be the first one up and tried to control the butterflies. It didn't matter how many times I did this; there was always much at stake, and I would think that something was wrong if the nervousness ever went away.”
― Michael Connelly, The Proving Ground: The Brand New Blockbuster Lincoln Lawyer Thriller

“Well, that's the thing about trials. You're never really sure about anything.”
― Michael Connelly, The Proving Ground: The Brand New Blockbuster Lincoln Lawyer Thriller

“They sat with it in silence for a while. Bosch ran it all through once more and couldn't knock it down. It was only case theory but it held together. It worked, but it didn't mean that it was the way it had happened. Every case had unanswered questions and loose ends when it came to motives and actions. Bosch always thought that if you started with the assumption that murder is an unrea-sonable action, then how could there ever be a fully reasonable explanation for it? It was that understanding that kept him from watching and being able to enjoy films and television shows about detectives. He found them unrealistic in their delivery of what the general audience wanted: all of the answers.”
― Michael Connelly

“He had a deep hollow that he somehow filled by standing as a David against the Goliaths of the world, whether in the form of the power and might of the state or a billion-dollar corporation.”
― Michael Connelly