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Ehrengraf for the Defense #1-12
Defender of the Innocent: The Casebook of Martin Ehrengraf
The criminal defense lawyer. Redefined.
Martin H. Ehrengraf, dapper and diabolical, may be Lawrence Block's darkest creation. He's the defense attorney who never sees the inside of a courtroom, because all his clients are innocent - no matter how guilty they may seem. Some even believe themselves to be guilty: They remember pulling the trigger, or wiring the dynamite to their spouse's car, or holding the bloody blade. But things have a way of working out when Martin Ehrengraf is on the case. Evidence turns up, incriminating someone else. More murders occur, with the same M.O. And the gate of the jail cell opens, and the accused walks free.
But be careful - hiring Martin Ehrengraf comes with a price. A high price, one that comes due even if he appears to have done nothing on your behalf. And you'd better be prepared to pay...
Here at last are the complete exploits of Martin Ehrengraf: a dozen delicious tales of vice and villainy including one - ''The Ehrengraf Fandango'' - that is appearing for the first time anywhere. It's a 12-course meal of sinister surprises, exquisitely prepared and served simmering hot by the greatest living master of mystery fiction.
Martin H. Ehrengraf, dapper and diabolical, may be Lawrence Block's darkest creation. He's the defense attorney who never sees the inside of a courtroom, because all his clients are innocent - no matter how guilty they may seem. Some even believe themselves to be guilty: They remember pulling the trigger, or wiring the dynamite to their spouse's car, or holding the bloody blade. But things have a way of working out when Martin Ehrengraf is on the case. Evidence turns up, incriminating someone else. More murders occur, with the same M.O. And the gate of the jail cell opens, and the accused walks free.
But be careful - hiring Martin Ehrengraf comes with a price. A high price, one that comes due even if he appears to have done nothing on your behalf. And you'd better be prepared to pay...
Here at last are the complete exploits of Martin Ehrengraf: a dozen delicious tales of vice and villainy including one - ''The Ehrengraf Fandango'' - that is appearing for the first time anywhere. It's a 12-course meal of sinister surprises, exquisitely prepared and served simmering hot by the greatest living master of mystery fiction.
210 pages, Hardcover
First published September 26, 2014
27 people are currently reading
110 people want to read
About the author
Lawrence Block
761 books2,998 followersLawrence Block has been writing crime, mystery, and suspense fiction for more than half a century. He has published in excess (oh, wretched excess!) of 100 books, and no end of short stories.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
May 23, 2015
This is an odd one. A linked series of short stories detailing the activities of the lawyer who never loses a case. Ok, so the cases never actually come to court, this due to the nefarious activities of the dapper Ehrengraf. Each stand alone tale is cleverly plotted and ably read by Don Sobczak, in the audiobook version I listened to.
The problem, for me, is that the stories are all set up the same (client consults lawyer who promises a successful outcome) and all dutifully end with the predicted result. This became a bit tiresome after a few tales as all that was left was to discover the 'trick' used to bring this about. That said, there's humour and imagination here plus, of course, LB's usual storytelling mastery.
Overall, it's an agreeable way to while away a few hours.
The problem, for me, is that the stories are all set up the same (client consults lawyer who promises a successful outcome) and all dutifully end with the predicted result. This became a bit tiresome after a few tales as all that was left was to discover the 'trick' used to bring this about. That said, there's humour and imagination here plus, of course, LB's usual storytelling mastery.
Overall, it's an agreeable way to while away a few hours.
December 11, 2023
All his clients are innocent. That is the only way he will accept his fee.
No matter that they have been accused of the most heinous crimes, he will get them off, because he won’t accept his fee unless they are innocent.
And sometimes as readers we wonder, what has he done, this well-dressed, little man criminal attorney, in order to earn his fee?
And then we also wonder, did we really believe these persons were innocent – and/or do we really want them running around the streets again?
There is an interesting eeriness to each short story as we “listen” to the characters describe the(ir) crime(s), and/or “who” actually committed it in the end.
Are they really innocent?
As readers, we have an opportunity to be discerning here.
There is one fact we actually are very clear about… Mr. Martin Ehrengraf is/continues to become a very, very rich man.
And I don’t think that is a spoiler. The title of the book already told you that.
This is probably one of the most clever mystery premises I have ever read.
Not the most perfect...but certainly, one of the most clever.
No matter that they have been accused of the most heinous crimes, he will get them off, because he won’t accept his fee unless they are innocent.
And sometimes as readers we wonder, what has he done, this well-dressed, little man criminal attorney, in order to earn his fee?
And then we also wonder, did we really believe these persons were innocent – and/or do we really want them running around the streets again?
There is an interesting eeriness to each short story as we “listen” to the characters describe the(ir) crime(s), and/or “who” actually committed it in the end.
Are they really innocent?
As readers, we have an opportunity to be discerning here.
There is one fact we actually are very clear about… Mr. Martin Ehrengraf is/continues to become a very, very rich man.
And I don’t think that is a spoiler. The title of the book already told you that.
This is probably one of the most clever mystery premises I have ever read.
Not the most perfect...but certainly, one of the most clever.
January 5, 2015
Review of Audible edition:
Martin H. Ehrengraf is a smooth motherf**ker. Cunning, too. Devious might be a better word. He's a lawyer after all. If you're in a real jam, he's the man you call. Martin's trick is that he hates going to court. He'd much rather get everything settled before he has to set foot in the halls of justice to defend his client. He's got a flawless record, though. And that comes at a fairly high price.
There are twelve stories in all, eleven of which previously appeared in the pages of Ellery Queen Mystery Magaine. From what little I've read of that mag, it highlights the more clever mysteries as opposed to the more hard-boiled, hard-bitten tales, and this bunch certainly falls into the realm of clever. There is, by virtue of the rather ominous deals struck between Ehrengraf and his clients, that I suspect stood out from the usual fare of that mag.
For many of his clients, it appears on the surface that he hasn't done much lawyering at all to ensure their exoneration. Extenuating circumstances and simple strokes of luck seem to be the order of the day, and that gives some pause in honoring the steep payments demanded of them. And there's one thing you do not do with Ehrengraf and that is renege on an agreement.
Don Sobczak's voice work for the audiobook is really good in capturing that casually sophisticated tone of Ehrengraf that holds an undercurrent of menace. It's just a hint really when he gives his subtle warnings to his clients about the costs of his services and the resoluteness of his approach to keeping them "innocent."
The stories may come off a bit repetitive when digested in one swoop, but bear in mind these were published weeks or months apart originally, and the setting is always the same, so there are some limits to how the story can progress and how multiple stories can be received all at once. But Block fans shouldn't be too troubled by that, and should find that same wry passion for crime fiction, as always.
Martin H. Ehrengraf is a smooth motherf**ker. Cunning, too. Devious might be a better word. He's a lawyer after all. If you're in a real jam, he's the man you call. Martin's trick is that he hates going to court. He'd much rather get everything settled before he has to set foot in the halls of justice to defend his client. He's got a flawless record, though. And that comes at a fairly high price.
There are twelve stories in all, eleven of which previously appeared in the pages of Ellery Queen Mystery Magaine. From what little I've read of that mag, it highlights the more clever mysteries as opposed to the more hard-boiled, hard-bitten tales, and this bunch certainly falls into the realm of clever. There is, by virtue of the rather ominous deals struck between Ehrengraf and his clients, that I suspect stood out from the usual fare of that mag.
For many of his clients, it appears on the surface that he hasn't done much lawyering at all to ensure their exoneration. Extenuating circumstances and simple strokes of luck seem to be the order of the day, and that gives some pause in honoring the steep payments demanded of them. And there's one thing you do not do with Ehrengraf and that is renege on an agreement.
Don Sobczak's voice work for the audiobook is really good in capturing that casually sophisticated tone of Ehrengraf that holds an undercurrent of menace. It's just a hint really when he gives his subtle warnings to his clients about the costs of his services and the resoluteness of his approach to keeping them "innocent."
The stories may come off a bit repetitive when digested in one swoop, but bear in mind these were published weeks or months apart originally, and the setting is always the same, so there are some limits to how the story can progress and how multiple stories can be received all at once. But Block fans shouldn't be too troubled by that, and should find that same wry passion for crime fiction, as always.
October 7, 2014
Lawrence Block is the winner of multiple awards as a mystery writer and has been writing since the 1950's and has written more than 50 books and Short Stories. Defender of the Innocent is a collection of short stories written about Martin H. Ehrengraf a dapper little lawyer whose clients all turn out to be innocent. I would love to see this made into a movie starring Danny DeVito.
These stories are fun and creative, although slightly unbelievable that no one would notice how many suspects get off in somewhat the same manner. Besides that one issue the stories are very enjoyable and the audiobook as a whole is a great investment of time and money.
Narrated by Don Sobczak, who brings this dark yet optimistic and sincere attorney to life. All of the different characters are uniquely represented and show the range of this performance artist. Sobczak takes the short stories and makes them seem fluid in space and time. Don increased the level of enjoyment from just reading to a listening experience. This audiobook is a must listen for any darker minded legal thriller fans.
I received this book as a gift for an honest review.
These stories are fun and creative, although slightly unbelievable that no one would notice how many suspects get off in somewhat the same manner. Besides that one issue the stories are very enjoyable and the audiobook as a whole is a great investment of time and money.
Narrated by Don Sobczak, who brings this dark yet optimistic and sincere attorney to life. All of the different characters are uniquely represented and show the range of this performance artist. Sobczak takes the short stories and makes them seem fluid in space and time. Don increased the level of enjoyment from just reading to a listening experience. This audiobook is a must listen for any darker minded legal thriller fans.
I received this book as a gift for an honest review.
August 30, 2021
I love this book.
It's a re-read, so I won't spend too much time analyzing it. Here's what you need to know about Martin Ehrengraf: he's a criminal lawyer who only takes a fee when his client is completely exonerated. His clients are almost always completely exonerated. The fees are almost astronomically high ... and you'd better pay them. Because the way Ehrengraf assures that his clients are innocent is by making sure someone else is guilty - by fair means or foul. Mostly foul.
The cool thing about this collection is the thing that some of its detractors seem to hate. The stories follow a basic formula. A client comes to Ehrengraf needing to beat a murder rap. Cut to: the client meeting with Ehrengraf some time later, discussing how they beat that rap, with attendant exposition and often some gory details. We rarely see Ehrengraf kill or forge or break and enter up close; everything is inference, and viewing everything from something of a cold distance is even more unsettling.
For me, the best part of these stories isn't "How is Ehrengraf going to set his client free," but "How is Lawrence Block going to twist the formula to make THIS story fresh and exciting enough?" I love how he makes the absolutely guilty innocent. I love how sometimes he has to walk back someone's innocence and make them guilty again. I love it when his characters try to get out of paying Ehringraf, and what happens. All of it is sneakily exciting, and fun in a detached, yet thrilling way. It's like what American Psycho might have been if that book had been half as good. I'm looking forward until enough time goes by when I can be thrilled by this book again.
It's a re-read, so I won't spend too much time analyzing it. Here's what you need to know about Martin Ehrengraf: he's a criminal lawyer who only takes a fee when his client is completely exonerated. His clients are almost always completely exonerated. The fees are almost astronomically high ... and you'd better pay them. Because the way Ehrengraf assures that his clients are innocent is by making sure someone else is guilty - by fair means or foul. Mostly foul.
The cool thing about this collection is the thing that some of its detractors seem to hate. The stories follow a basic formula. A client comes to Ehrengraf needing to beat a murder rap. Cut to: the client meeting with Ehrengraf some time later, discussing how they beat that rap, with attendant exposition and often some gory details. We rarely see Ehrengraf kill or forge or break and enter up close; everything is inference, and viewing everything from something of a cold distance is even more unsettling.
For me, the best part of these stories isn't "How is Ehrengraf going to set his client free," but "How is Lawrence Block going to twist the formula to make THIS story fresh and exciting enough?" I love how he makes the absolutely guilty innocent. I love how sometimes he has to walk back someone's innocence and make them guilty again. I love it when his characters try to get out of paying Ehringraf, and what happens. All of it is sneakily exciting, and fun in a detached, yet thrilling way. It's like what American Psycho might have been if that book had been half as good. I'm looking forward until enough time goes by when I can be thrilled by this book again.
June 5, 2020
These twelve short stories feature a devious attorney whose clients are “always innocent” even when they remember committing the crime. And, the stories like the attorney are clever, dark, and twisted. They do become a tad repetitive when read in a batch.
June 13, 2020
As far as I know, Martin Ehrengraf is one of the few recurring Lawrence Block characters to appear only in short-story form – probably because the concept behind the series doesn’t really lend itself to a long format. Ehrengraf is a criminal lawyer who only represents the innocent (no matter how red-handed they were caught or how willing they are to admit to Ehrengraf that they did it) and only collects his ridiculously high fee if they’re exonerated. And they always are. It’s hard not to say much more without giving the game away, but suffice to say that while it may appear even to the clients that Ehrengraf did little to nothing to get them off, appearances can be deceiving. Put another way, they don’t call him a criminal lawyer for nothing.
In 1994 the eight existing Ehrengraf tales were compiled in one volume. Four more were written since then, and this book includes the complete set, with all except the final story having been published elsewhere. I remember reading a few of these in other Block anthologies, and enjoyed them. And because of this, I can see that the one problem with an Ehrengraf anthology is repetition. Which is not to say that Block rehashes the same details over and over again – he’s always been a genius at coming up with enough variations on a given theme to make it interesting. But there’s a definite template to these stories that Block sticks to, from set-up to conclusion – and it’s glaringly obvious when you binge-read them rather than when they’re published individually a year or more apart.
That only really matters in the sense that the reason the first Ehrengraf story you read (whichever one it is, but perhaps especially the first one, “The Ehrengraf Defense”) makes such an impact is that you don’t see the twist coming. Once you’ve established the MO, the twist doesn’t have the same shock value, especially when you read them all at once. That said, most of these stories are quite good on their own merits. Still, I was sort of hoping that the final story would open with Ehrengraf being the one charged with heinous crimes and in need of a lawyer as good as he is. Now that would be a plot twist. I hope Mr Block writes that one someday.
In 1994 the eight existing Ehrengraf tales were compiled in one volume. Four more were written since then, and this book includes the complete set, with all except the final story having been published elsewhere. I remember reading a few of these in other Block anthologies, and enjoyed them. And because of this, I can see that the one problem with an Ehrengraf anthology is repetition. Which is not to say that Block rehashes the same details over and over again – he’s always been a genius at coming up with enough variations on a given theme to make it interesting. But there’s a definite template to these stories that Block sticks to, from set-up to conclusion – and it’s glaringly obvious when you binge-read them rather than when they’re published individually a year or more apart.
That only really matters in the sense that the reason the first Ehrengraf story you read (whichever one it is, but perhaps especially the first one, “The Ehrengraf Defense”) makes such an impact is that you don’t see the twist coming. Once you’ve established the MO, the twist doesn’t have the same shock value, especially when you read them all at once. That said, most of these stories are quite good on their own merits. Still, I was sort of hoping that the final story would open with Ehrengraf being the one charged with heinous crimes and in need of a lawyer as good as he is. Now that would be a plot twist. I hope Mr Block writes that one someday.
June 22, 2021
A collection of twelve stories, that in a way, end up bleeding into one. A lot of things are repeated like the client not wanting to pay the fee because the case didn't go to court, or the way the criminal is talked into thinking they are innocent, but in saying that, it doesn't make this little collection any less enjoyable. It's how the stories are told. It's how they work themselves out. It's good fun.
It's a three stars from me, but a solid 3.
Would love to see one of Martin Ehrengraf's stories turn into a full novel. Would love to learn more about this character.
He reminds me of Saul Goodman.
It's a three stars from me, but a solid 3.
Would love to see one of Martin Ehrengraf's stories turn into a full novel. Would love to learn more about this character.
He reminds me of Saul Goodman.
August 29, 2024
they lost the plot at the end
July 24, 2016
The 1976 short story “The Ehrengraf Defense” introduced the sly, tidily-dressed lawyer Martin H. Ehrengraf who always believes his clients are innocent and will do anything—ANYTHING—to prove that innocence. These stories are favorites of mine. They are dark and funny. They are also clever mental puzzles. Instead of figuring out the identify of a guilty party, the puzzles here are to figure out how to prove a guilty person innocent in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
Make no mistake—Ehrengraf is every bit as evil as the worst of his clients. Part of the fun is finding out just how low he is willing to go to collect his fee. Most of the real dirty work happens off-the-page, which allows Martin to maintain his cultured and fastidious image, creating a sort of cognitive dissonance within the reader’s mind.
In addition to the original “Ehrengraf Defense,” I also highly enjoyed “The Ehrengraf Affirmation” which is a spirited send-up of Block’s own self-help seminar and book Write For Your Life. “The Ehrengraf Nostram” is the best of the tales wherein Ehrengraf frames someone for a crime, only to later have to exonerate that same person. “The Ehrengraf Settlement” reminds you to always pay Martin’s fee on time and in full. Otherwise, the consequences are striking.
In 1994, Lawrence Block collected the first 8 Ehrengraf short stories in Ehrengraf for the Defense. In 2012, this book was expanded and reissued as an e-book (with a print-on-demand option) which featured 3 new stories. This was the version I first read several years ago.
In 2015, Subterranean Press brought out Defender of the Innocent in hardcover, e-book, and audio formats. This version includes a new twelfth story “The Ehrengraf Fandango”. Fandango was nominated for a 2015 Shamus award, but it lost to “Clear Recent History” by Gon Ben Ari.
I read “Fandango” on my Kindle, then listened to the whole 12-story collection from the beginning on audiobook. The reading by Don Sobczak was spot-on: dry and matter-of-fact, no matter how outlandish the implications of the material.
These stories all follow a similar formula and can seem repetitive if you read them straight through. I recommend spreading them out over several days for maximum enjoyment. Highly recommended.
Make no mistake—Ehrengraf is every bit as evil as the worst of his clients. Part of the fun is finding out just how low he is willing to go to collect his fee. Most of the real dirty work happens off-the-page, which allows Martin to maintain his cultured and fastidious image, creating a sort of cognitive dissonance within the reader’s mind.
In addition to the original “Ehrengraf Defense,” I also highly enjoyed “The Ehrengraf Affirmation” which is a spirited send-up of Block’s own self-help seminar and book Write For Your Life. “The Ehrengraf Nostram” is the best of the tales wherein Ehrengraf frames someone for a crime, only to later have to exonerate that same person. “The Ehrengraf Settlement” reminds you to always pay Martin’s fee on time and in full. Otherwise, the consequences are striking.
In 1994, Lawrence Block collected the first 8 Ehrengraf short stories in Ehrengraf for the Defense. In 2012, this book was expanded and reissued as an e-book (with a print-on-demand option) which featured 3 new stories. This was the version I first read several years ago.
In 2015, Subterranean Press brought out Defender of the Innocent in hardcover, e-book, and audio formats. This version includes a new twelfth story “The Ehrengraf Fandango”. Fandango was nominated for a 2015 Shamus award, but it lost to “Clear Recent History” by Gon Ben Ari.
I read “Fandango” on my Kindle, then listened to the whole 12-story collection from the beginning on audiobook. The reading by Don Sobczak was spot-on: dry and matter-of-fact, no matter how outlandish the implications of the material.
These stories all follow a similar formula and can seem repetitive if you read them straight through. I recommend spreading them out over several days for maximum enjoyment. Highly recommended.
September 21, 2014
Audiobook Review
In this collection of short stories, Block features attorney Martin Ehrengraf, "a dandy of a little man," who will go to no end to resolve his client's criminal charges before they ever go to court. The first few stories are unique but become repetitious. They undoubtedly played better as stand-alone short stories. However, Block's inventive storytelling saves them from bland and mundane.
In this collection of short stories, Block features attorney Martin Ehrengraf, "a dandy of a little man," who will go to no end to resolve his client's criminal charges before they ever go to court. The first few stories are unique but become repetitious. They undoubtedly played better as stand-alone short stories. However, Block's inventive storytelling saves them from bland and mundane.
January 19, 2015
A compilation of stories about guilty people who make a deal with the devil in the form of a dapper attorney to be proven innocent. The initial stories in the collection are amusing. However, the later stories become tedious and repetitious as the concept wears thin.
June 23, 2017
Really, the title of this book should have quotation marks around the word "innocent" because nearly everyone defended by the diabolically clever lawyer Martin Erhengraf is guilty as sin. Yet the ever-dapper Ehrengraf always finds a way to get them cleared of all charges before they ever go to trial, often without his own participation ever being evident to anyone except the reader.
Lawrence Block is a master of writing about morally repugnant people who you end up rooting for. He's got a series about a killer named Keller that's one of my faves of the hitman genre. He's got another about a burglar named Bernie who solves crimes. But the poetry-spouting Ehrengraf may be his greatest and most disturbing creation, someone to almost rival C.S. Lewis' Screwtape.
Ehrengraf always tells his clients that they're innocent, no matter what they or witnesses or the evidence might say otherwise. And if he can't get the charges dropped, he waives his otherwise enormous fee. Somehow Ehrengraf always pulls off this feat -- someone else winds up arrested for the crime, with a cache of convincing evidence discovered in his or her own home, and the "innocent" party walks free. We're never told exactly what Ehrengraf did, but it's strongly implied that he's cleverly framed someone else. What makes the stories fun are seeing how Ehrengraf deals with the clients once their charges are dropped, because sometimes they don't grasp what he's done and are reluctant to pay his fee. The best example of that one is the next-to-final story, "The Ehrengraf Settlement," in which the attorney not only winds up collecting his fee but also bedding his client's soon-to-be-ex.
The dozen stories are like potato chips -- I had a hard time reading just one at a sitting and rushed through the whole thing in less than a week. Block constructs each tale in a clever way that avoids rubbing your nose in the blood and gore that goes on behind the scenes. Even in the first story, which lays out in somewhat more detail than the others what Ehrengraf has done, he implies rather than shows.
But be careful not to think too hard about the implications of what Ehrengraf has done to collect his fee -- the lives destroyed, the innocent people who were killed, the justice system perverted. He's as successful as Perry Mason and yet he may also be literature's most prolific serial killer. Unless, of course, he's hiring someone else to do it -- Keller, perhaps?
Lawrence Block is a master of writing about morally repugnant people who you end up rooting for. He's got a series about a killer named Keller that's one of my faves of the hitman genre. He's got another about a burglar named Bernie who solves crimes. But the poetry-spouting Ehrengraf may be his greatest and most disturbing creation, someone to almost rival C.S. Lewis' Screwtape.
Ehrengraf always tells his clients that they're innocent, no matter what they or witnesses or the evidence might say otherwise. And if he can't get the charges dropped, he waives his otherwise enormous fee. Somehow Ehrengraf always pulls off this feat -- someone else winds up arrested for the crime, with a cache of convincing evidence discovered in his or her own home, and the "innocent" party walks free. We're never told exactly what Ehrengraf did, but it's strongly implied that he's cleverly framed someone else. What makes the stories fun are seeing how Ehrengraf deals with the clients once their charges are dropped, because sometimes they don't grasp what he's done and are reluctant to pay his fee. The best example of that one is the next-to-final story, "The Ehrengraf Settlement," in which the attorney not only winds up collecting his fee but also bedding his client's soon-to-be-ex.
The dozen stories are like potato chips -- I had a hard time reading just one at a sitting and rushed through the whole thing in less than a week. Block constructs each tale in a clever way that avoids rubbing your nose in the blood and gore that goes on behind the scenes. Even in the first story, which lays out in somewhat more detail than the others what Ehrengraf has done, he implies rather than shows.
But be careful not to think too hard about the implications of what Ehrengraf has done to collect his fee -- the lives destroyed, the innocent people who were killed, the justice system perverted. He's as successful as Perry Mason and yet he may also be literature's most prolific serial killer. Unless, of course, he's hiring someone else to do it -- Keller, perhaps?
February 16, 2020
As someone with Asperger’s, the great appeal of crime fiction is the endless permutations the genre can find to tell stories around the simplest of plots: a crime was done and someone must have done it. Of course there are endless repetitions of the same kind of crime out there, but that makes the discovery of a writer who isn’t so much unafraid to take risks but leap at the chance of messing with a formula even more enjoyable
The formula of the Martin H Ehrengraf stories is ridiculously simple: whatever the crime and whatever involvement you think you may have had in said crime, up to and including holding the smoking gun in front of the very dead victim, if Ehrengraf represents you then you are obviously innocent. Because Ehrengraf only represents innocent people. It’s just how he makes sure those people appear innocent that’s... somewhat ethically questionable
Block says in his afterword that’s his inspiration for his antihero was a very literal reading of the phrase “criminal lawyer” and most certainly the small, dapper, exacting and - by the end of the stories - surprisingly lusty Ehrengraf has been responsible for an incredible amount of crimes, including several dozen murders. He just ensures that he and his clients always get off... well unless the client won’t pay the very large fee that is
These are acidic, bitter, wickedly funny short stories of amorality. Our antihero always wins (and personally I’m very grateful Block avoids any stories where the lawyer loses or comes a cropper or is found out) and it’s necessary for there only to be a handful of stories, because there are only so many variations of a theme that a man can write. So here are twelve enjoyably black and dastardly stories of triumph against justice. Hugely enjoyable
The formula of the Martin H Ehrengraf stories is ridiculously simple: whatever the crime and whatever involvement you think you may have had in said crime, up to and including holding the smoking gun in front of the very dead victim, if Ehrengraf represents you then you are obviously innocent. Because Ehrengraf only represents innocent people. It’s just how he makes sure those people appear innocent that’s... somewhat ethically questionable
Block says in his afterword that’s his inspiration for his antihero was a very literal reading of the phrase “criminal lawyer” and most certainly the small, dapper, exacting and - by the end of the stories - surprisingly lusty Ehrengraf has been responsible for an incredible amount of crimes, including several dozen murders. He just ensures that he and his clients always get off... well unless the client won’t pay the very large fee that is
These are acidic, bitter, wickedly funny short stories of amorality. Our antihero always wins (and personally I’m very grateful Block avoids any stories where the lawyer loses or comes a cropper or is found out) and it’s necessary for there only to be a handful of stories, because there are only so many variations of a theme that a man can write. So here are twelve enjoyably black and dastardly stories of triumph against justice. Hugely enjoyable
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 3, 2019
I read Lawrence Block's books on writing, which I loved, so I wanted to read some of his fiction. I started with this collection of short stories, and have mixed feelings.
The book is a collection of 12 stories about Martin Ehrengraf, a "diminutive" lawyer and impeccable dresser whose clients, according to him, are innocent. Even if the client has admitted that they pulled the trigger, wired the dynamite, plunged the blade, Martin Ehrengraf convinces said client that he, or she, is innocent, because, after all, he only defends innocent people. And he does so on a contingency basis. The client only pays if Ehrengraf succeeds in setting them free.
And he always succeeds. Why? Because off he goes, this diminutive dandy, murdering innocent people, planting letters of confession, tapering with pharmaceutical drugs, all off stage, so the evidence piles up on some poor unsuspecting innocent who is then accused of the crime. And who knows, maybe Ehrengraf will represent that slob, too. When all is inferred and done, the lawyer then collects an exorbitant fee from his client.
Great premise. But after five, six, seven of these stories, the premise wore thin. For me.
Initially, Block wrote the first Ehrengraf story for Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. Then a small press published eight of the stories. Later, Block wrote four more, and Subterranean Press published all 12 in one volume. If the stories had rolled out in a magazine, one a month, I suspect I would have looked forward to seeing each installment. All 12 in one volume seems like overkill.
I'll try one of Block's novels next. I do enjoy his writing.
The book is a collection of 12 stories about Martin Ehrengraf, a "diminutive" lawyer and impeccable dresser whose clients, according to him, are innocent. Even if the client has admitted that they pulled the trigger, wired the dynamite, plunged the blade, Martin Ehrengraf convinces said client that he, or she, is innocent, because, after all, he only defends innocent people. And he does so on a contingency basis. The client only pays if Ehrengraf succeeds in setting them free.
And he always succeeds. Why? Because off he goes, this diminutive dandy, murdering innocent people, planting letters of confession, tapering with pharmaceutical drugs, all off stage, so the evidence piles up on some poor unsuspecting innocent who is then accused of the crime. And who knows, maybe Ehrengraf will represent that slob, too. When all is inferred and done, the lawyer then collects an exorbitant fee from his client.
Great premise. But after five, six, seven of these stories, the premise wore thin. For me.
Initially, Block wrote the first Ehrengraf story for Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. Then a small press published eight of the stories. Later, Block wrote four more, and Subterranean Press published all 12 in one volume. If the stories had rolled out in a magazine, one a month, I suspect I would have looked forward to seeing each installment. All 12 in one volume seems like overkill.
I'll try one of Block's novels next. I do enjoy his writing.
January 12, 2018
I think these end up being short stories that would be better served by NOT reading them together. The premise seems largely the same between them, the only question is where he will stop, and exactly how it happens. But we never really get to see the detail of how it happened, just a recap. The things that are covered in detail seem to be repeated between the stories, which if you were reading them separately wouldn't be an issue probably, but you have a sense of "OK, enough already I get it", when reading them back to back to back.
September 30, 2020
Martin H. Ehrengraf is no John Keller, but he is an interesting study in criminality nonetheless. I do not recommend reading all the stories in this book in one sitting or even several in a row, as they are all quite similar in plot and style. I believe they would be more enjoyable taken one or two at a time, spaced out over a week or three, or maybe even just one per week like an episodic serial (at least the first eight stories were originally published in periodicals). Still worth it if you enjoy Block's dark humor.
July 8, 2022
Imagine if a non-people-eating Hannibal Lecter was a defense attorney who got people off from murder using...less than savory means. Some hilarious stories from the fertile mind of Lawrence Block. Ehrengraf was the last great creation of his that I put off reading and now I'm glad I finished it. Such a fun, entertaining group of stories.
December 23, 2023
Another enjoyable read by one of the best mystery writers around. This Novel was written in 2014 and contains 12 stories from the casebook of Martin Ehrengraf. "Martin is a little Attorney with a neat mustache and a liking for Poetry whose cases never come to trial as he actually commits murder himself to aid a client and collect his enormous fee." How clever can one get? Read for yourself!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 27, 2021
A lawyer who never goes to trial, they maybe innocent or guilty. After contacting him, the price he wants may make them guilty. A different twists and his writing flows. Given audio for my voluntary review
December 29, 2019
wonderful collection of stories, highly recommend.
March 22, 2020
Love Block's writing. These were fun stories with a great main character, but they all tended to be sort of similar
January 8, 2017
First book of 2017, finished!
January 1, 2016
Lawrence Block has created some of the best characters in fiction, chief among them Matt Scudder. His short stories about attorney Martin H. Ehrengraf have been entertaining me for decades, back to the days when Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine used to arrive every month, filled with the best crime stories being published.
This volume from 2014 contains reprints of twelve Ehrengraf stories plus a previously unpublished one. Due to the humor, complexity, variety and originality of the stories, even the first few from EQMM remain as fresh and refreshing as they did decades ago. Given the convolutions of Martin's approach to the law, one needs to pay close attention. As with his rules of payment---his clients go free or they do not pay, but they pay no matter the reason they go free---Ehrengraf can slip a loophole by the reader with ease, as Block can a joke:
"Poor Mrs. Protter, she said. "Death is so final".
"Given the present state of medical science".
Block remains one of my favorites as he writes well, and here he has Ehrengraf correct a character on the use of nauseous vs. nauseated, a difference I wish more writers and journalists would recognize. Block's characters sound quite natural saying, "...he had more money than I", and other things many writers muff.
Martin H. Ehrengraf speaks well, dresses in finely wrought well chosen bespoke clothes, quotes poetry and understands wine and music. Block gives us no overtly salacious material, no on-screen violence, no coarse language. Make no mistake, however: these stories are noir, and our protagonist is as tough and diabolical as anyone in literature.
Highly Recommended.
This volume from 2014 contains reprints of twelve Ehrengraf stories plus a previously unpublished one. Due to the humor, complexity, variety and originality of the stories, even the first few from EQMM remain as fresh and refreshing as they did decades ago. Given the convolutions of Martin's approach to the law, one needs to pay close attention. As with his rules of payment---his clients go free or they do not pay, but they pay no matter the reason they go free---Ehrengraf can slip a loophole by the reader with ease, as Block can a joke:
"Poor Mrs. Protter, she said. "Death is so final".
"Given the present state of medical science".
Block remains one of my favorites as he writes well, and here he has Ehrengraf correct a character on the use of nauseous vs. nauseated, a difference I wish more writers and journalists would recognize. Block's characters sound quite natural saying, "...he had more money than I", and other things many writers muff.
Martin H. Ehrengraf speaks well, dresses in finely wrought well chosen bespoke clothes, quotes poetry and understands wine and music. Block gives us no overtly salacious material, no on-screen violence, no coarse language. Make no mistake, however: these stories are noir, and our protagonist is as tough and diabolical as anyone in literature.
Highly Recommended.
December 31, 2014
Defender of the Innocent (Unabridged)
Author: Lawrence Block
Date:
03-SEP-2014
Narrator:
Don Sobczak
Provider:
Lawrence Block
Running Time:
6 h 44 min
The criminal defense lawyer. Redefined. Martin H. Ehrengraf, dapper and diabolical, may be Lawrence Block's darkest creation. He's the defense attorney who never sees the inside of a courtroom, because all his clients are innocent - no matter how guilty they may seem. Some even believe themselves to be guilty: They remember pulling the trigger, or wiring the dynamite to their spouse's car, or holding the bloody blade. But things have a way of working out when Martin Ehrengraf is on the case. Evidence turns up, incriminating someone else. More murders occur, with the same M.O. And the gate of the jail cell opens, and the accused walks free. But be careful - hiring Martin Ehrengraf comes with a price. A high price, one that comes due even if he appears to have done nothing on your behalf. And you'd better be prepared to pay... Here at last are the complete exploits of Martin Ehrengraf: a dozen delicious tales of vice and villainy including one - ''The Ehrengraf Fandango'' - that is appearing for the first time anywhere. It's a 12-course meal of sinister surprises, exquisitely prepared and served simmering hot by the greatest living master of mystery fiction.
Author: Lawrence Block
Date:
03-SEP-2014
Narrator:
Don Sobczak
Provider:
Lawrence Block
Running Time:
6 h 44 min
The criminal defense lawyer. Redefined. Martin H. Ehrengraf, dapper and diabolical, may be Lawrence Block's darkest creation. He's the defense attorney who never sees the inside of a courtroom, because all his clients are innocent - no matter how guilty they may seem. Some even believe themselves to be guilty: They remember pulling the trigger, or wiring the dynamite to their spouse's car, or holding the bloody blade. But things have a way of working out when Martin Ehrengraf is on the case. Evidence turns up, incriminating someone else. More murders occur, with the same M.O. And the gate of the jail cell opens, and the accused walks free. But be careful - hiring Martin Ehrengraf comes with a price. A high price, one that comes due even if he appears to have done nothing on your behalf. And you'd better be prepared to pay... Here at last are the complete exploits of Martin Ehrengraf: a dozen delicious tales of vice and villainy including one - ''The Ehrengraf Fandango'' - that is appearing for the first time anywhere. It's a 12-course meal of sinister surprises, exquisitely prepared and served simmering hot by the greatest living master of mystery fiction.
February 13, 2016
This is the complete collection of Lawrence Block's short stories featuring Martin Ehrengraf, criminal lawyer par excellence. Now matter how guilty his clients may seem, Ehrengraf will see to it that they are not only not convicted of the crime, but that their actual innocence will be a matter of public knowledge. He does this, of course, by committing a variety of heinous crimes on his clients' behalf. He's got two basic methods- commit more murders while his client is in prison awaiting trail, and outright framing some poor sod. Sometimes he'll do both.
The problem with this book is that the stories were written between 1978 and 2014. When read all collected together, the theme becomes repetitive. I will grant that after the first two or three, Block only wrote one if a new twist had come to mind; but even so, they are murder mysteries where the murderer is obviously the protagonist. I recommend reading this book slowly- read a story, take a week or a month off, then read the next story. That way each story will seem fresher.
The problem with this book is that the stories were written between 1978 and 2014. When read all collected together, the theme becomes repetitive. I will grant that after the first two or three, Block only wrote one if a new twist had come to mind; but even so, they are murder mysteries where the murderer is obviously the protagonist. I recommend reading this book slowly- read a story, take a week or a month off, then read the next story. That way each story will seem fresher.
November 4, 2014
Martin H. Ehrengraf never defends a guilty client. The dapperly dressed little kawyer is always positive of their innocence even if they recall committing the murder. And somehow things always work out in their favor.
Ehrengraf works hard behind the scenes to make it so.
These dark little tales, a dozen to date, finds a lawyer that makes his clients innocent by whatever means necessary. He doesn't like courtrooms and leaving the decision to twelve people. As a result, he rarely appears in court, commanding large fees payable only if his client is absolved of all guilt. One fee, no billable expenses or charges for anything else.
And don't even think of deciding not to pay when it's over. Ehrengraf makes it clear from the beginning he gets paid whether he seems to have done anything or not. He doesn't like client who pull that one.
One new tale in this collection, eleven previously published stories.
A lot of fun.
Ehrengraf works hard behind the scenes to make it so.
These dark little tales, a dozen to date, finds a lawyer that makes his clients innocent by whatever means necessary. He doesn't like courtrooms and leaving the decision to twelve people. As a result, he rarely appears in court, commanding large fees payable only if his client is absolved of all guilt. One fee, no billable expenses or charges for anything else.
And don't even think of deciding not to pay when it's over. Ehrengraf makes it clear from the beginning he gets paid whether he seems to have done anything or not. He doesn't like client who pull that one.
One new tale in this collection, eleven previously published stories.
A lot of fun.
February 27, 2015
This is a diabolically fun (and slightly horrifying) collection of short stories by Lawrence Block, author of "The Burglar Who..." books. Martine Ehrengraf is an entirely different kettle of fish from amiable burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr. Despite the title and Mr. Ehrengraf's conviction that all of his clients are innocent, a more unbiased observer may think that they are anything but, by and large. However, the lawyer finds many ingenious ways to substantiate their innocence, never allowing a case to come to trial.
I'm sure this was quite a challenge to the author to avoid repeating himself; and, indeed, I did feel that perhaps a collection containing a story or two less would have been sufficient for my taste. However, they are a nice light entertainment if you don't let any little minor moral qualms (such as, for example, an aversion to murder) get the better of you.
I'm sure this was quite a challenge to the author to avoid repeating himself; and, indeed, I did feel that perhaps a collection containing a story or two less would have been sufficient for my taste. However, they are a nice light entertainment if you don't let any little minor moral qualms (such as, for example, an aversion to murder) get the better of you.
February 2, 2015
A handful of tales about a dapper but devious lawyer who has a simple motto, "My clients are always innocent." They're solid enough stories--someone is accused of a crime, our dashing Mr. Ehrengraf shows up, explains that he believes they're innocent (even when they don't), and agrees to help them... for a fee. The catch: he only collects if they walk free. And they always walk free.
Each of the stories is a fun diversion, although some are clearly much stronger than others (one particular standout involves the malicious pranks of a man stuck in his home by a medical condition, and how Ehrengraf deals with his situation).
It's a nice collection, but I think the stories are probably more effective in smaller doses.
Each of the stories is a fun diversion, although some are clearly much stronger than others (one particular standout involves the malicious pranks of a man stuck in his home by a medical condition, and how Ehrengraf deals with his situation).
It's a nice collection, but I think the stories are probably more effective in smaller doses.
May 30, 2015
Interesting. The premise is interesting. The structure of the stories is interesting, especially when read one after another in this connected format. Exact phrases and descriptions are repeated in different stories. In a pleasant, familiar sort of way, I think. The attention given to the main character's (and other characters') choice of dress is also interesting. The strange sexual aspect that developed in later stories felt a little..well, strange. I was more "creeped out" by that than by any of the violent, decidedly non-consensual activities acted out by our..hero? Anyway, it was interesting. I wanted to know how he would fix each case, and each story progressed at a nice clip, so that my curiosity was not long unsatisfied.
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