Publication Date January 14, 2025

Over the past several years, I have read and reviewed several of Thomas Perry’s books, and although my husband is the REAL Perry fan in our household, I have enjoyed most of them a LOT – with only 2019’s A Small Town getting a 3-star “meh” from me – but, to be fair, that was the year my health took a dive so it was more likely my mood rather than Perry’s writing…

I noted in one of the reviews that Perry’s protagonists “are complex characters who sometimes stumble into things but (no matter how they get there) they always seem to figure out how to prevail, regardless of the obstacles.” And that is TOTALLY true for Charles Warren, the hero of Perry’s latest, Pro Bono. 

TBH I had a hard time getting into the book, as I was getting lost in the various threads. It starts out with a con man who steals a woman’s life savings, then jumps to a bus that is taking incarcerated firefighters back to the prison after a day of work, and comes upon an auto accident where the victim happens to be carrying cash and valuable papers. I figured the various stories would HAVE TO come together, and they did, with a great series of events and a wild ride involving fraud, betrayal, and revenge. 

Once the story settled on L.A. attorney Charlie Warren, things became more straightforward. The action was easy to follow, as Charlie worked to help his client, a young woman who comes for help as she has apparently been bamboozled out of money by a con man, just as Charlie’s mother was many years ago. That event was the impetus for him to become an attorney and to focus on helping people who have been the victims of financial crimes. But despite the white collar nature of his work untangling financial situations, it isn’t a white collar adventure, as Charlie is followed, shot at, and robbed as he works on the case. It’s a fun ride, and I would not be surprised to see a series of books featuring Charlie’s exploits (or hopefully at least a sequel!)

I am super glad I stuck with it, despite being confused by the time shifts and plot changes at the beginning. Five stars, and thanks to Penzler Publishers/Mysterious Press and NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for my honest review.