The Proving Ground by Michael Connelly

THE PROVING GROUND by Michael Connelly is the latest Lincoln Lawyer novel although main character Mickey Haller is now representing clients in civil court cases instead of criminal ones. This mystery will feel as though it is literally ripped from the headlines as Haller’s client is a grieving Mom (Brenda Randolph) whose only child, a high school junior, was killed by a high school classmate, her former boyfriend. The key question is the extent to which an AI avatar (Clair/Wren) influenced the killer and whether the parent company, Tidalwaiv, is responsible. THE PROVING GROUND was full of suspense and a quick read, bolstered by my ability to readily picture the characters from the TV series. Often willing to take risks and push the envelope, Haller freely muses about his strategy and readers are subtly educated (or reminded) about related scholarship like Asimov’s three laws off robotics or Kurzweil’s The Singularity is Nearer. Connelly acknowledges the case Megan Garcia v. Character Technologies in his final notes and readers do not have to look far for other similar examples, such as this recent Wall Street Journal article on a suit filed against OpenAI. An excellent, highly relevant story, THE PROVING GROUND received a starred review from Booklist (“one of the best yet”) – and interested readers can join a Book Group discussion with the author on November 18.