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    Breach of Trust
    Breach of Trust
    Breach of Trust
    Audiobook12 hours

    Breach of Trust

    Written by David Ellis

    Narrated by Luke Daniels

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Former college football star and criminal defense attorney Jason Kolarich returns in this shocking thriller from the award-winning author of The Hidden Man.

    Jason Kolarich has spent the past year struggling to recover from the horrific deaths of his wife and baby daughter.

    On the night of their deaths, Kolarich was at the office, awaiting a call from a confidential informant named Ernesto Ramirez-a call that never came. Kolarich blames himself not only for the deaths of his wife and child, but for the informant's murder as well. He can't bring back his family, but he can find out who killed Ramirez and bring the killer to justice.

    Unfortunately, Kolarich's guns-blazing approach to justice lands him smack in the middle of an FBI probe of a deeply corrupt governor and his cronies. To avoid jail, Kolarich must enter a world of wiretaps, double-dealing, and kickbacks, where he soon discovers that the murder of his informant was only the tip of the iceberg.

    This breach of trust runs up to the highest levels of power, and exposing it may drag Kolarich into the fight of his life.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateFeb 3, 2011
    ISBN9781423379355
    Breach of Trust
    Author

    David Ellis

    David Ellis’s previous novels include In the Company of Liars, Jury of One, Life Sentence, and Line of Vision, for which he won an Edgar Award. An attorney from Chicago, he serves as Counsel to the Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives.

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    Reviews for Breach of Trust

    4/5

    106 ratings25 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Great story to which I could not stop listening. Thanks
    • 5/5
      The characters were vivid, the plot was great, and the monologues/dialogues were excellent
    • 5/5
      It took a while to get going. I almost stoped listening after the first few chapters. Then it kicked in and hooked me. It is a great story. The narrator is excellent, too. I highly recommend this audio book.
    • 3/5
      I know I read the book a couple of years ago and it was less impressive than the other titles in the suite of Jason Kolarich novels, yet still a good read. Of the legal court room drama novelists, David Ellis is my favorite author.
    • 3/5
      Solides Buch, mit Einblick in die düstere Seite amerikanischer Politik. Gut und flüssig geschrieben und man kann sich mit der Hauptfigut gut identifizieren.
    • 4/5
      Attorney Jason Kolarich is at his office waiting for a phone call from a confidential informant, but its never receives the call, because the informant is gunned down. Now feeling guilty that he had something to do with the events of this informants death, he is persuaded to go undercover to determine the extent of the political corruption within the governors office and its administration. Wearing a "F-Bird" which is a recording device that gathers evidence for the authorities to use to prosecute the guilty parties. The mission is one that keeps your nerves on end, never knowing what's around the next corner, will they ever catch Jason wearing the listening device.
    • 4/5
      Jason has lost his wife and baby daughter. He should have been in the car with them. He was more familiar with road. Instead he was waiting for a call that never came. He was waiting for an informant to call with vital information, but the informant was murdered before he could place the call. Jason carries the guilt of not only losing his family but the informant had a wife and kids too.Jason now has the opportunity to find the killer and bring him to justice. But the FBI is on to his plan as it collides with a probe of their own. He is forced into a game of wiretaps, listening devices, and danger, to help get the answers he needs and the information the FBI wants. The informant was just the tip of the iceberg. Corruption runs deep and wide, hopefully he can make it out alive.Dollycas’s ThoughtsA corrupt governor in Illinois, no way. Ellis writes this book after serving as House Prosecutor that convicted Governor Ron Blagojevich in the impeachment trial before the Illinois Senate. He writes what he knows. This is quite a political drama.We were introduced to Jason in Ellis’ The Hidden Man. I was really looking forward to this story after reading that one. Jason Kolarich is a guy trying to do the right thing so you are naturally rooting for the truth to prevail. My only reservation about this story is that while very entertaining the book was that it was written so that it could be read as a stand alone. A lot of pages were filled with things from the previous book with few real necessary additions. Coming in at 546 pages the repetition took away in places what could have been a tight page turning novel. It was wonderful that the truth was revealed and came together, but having read the first book it dragged in spots. The last third of the book was completely page turning and exciting. The suspense part came through a little more in this one. Truthfully these books could be read in any order. I would start with this one and if you want, check out The Hidden Man. I see The Wrong Man (Jason Kolarich) is coming out June 28, 2012. I will look forward to the next installment. David Ellis is also teaming up with James Patterson for the anxiously awaited Guilty Wives out on March 26.
    • 4/5
      This was the 2nd book in the Jason Kolarich series, but it was very confusing and felt like the first. This book went back to a time before book two and the two didn't mesh very well based on my recollection of the first book. It took some time to ease the confusion from my mind and focus on the book at hand. Once I was able to do this, Breach of Trust really started moving along - by the end I couldn't put it down. Ellis ia an excellent writer (if we can work out this timing issue) and Kolarich is a wonderfully deep character, but I still can't tell if I'd want to be his friend or not. I will be front and center for the next book by Ellis (fingers crossed that there is one) and hopefully we clear this period of time and move to a new era completely. I would recommend this series to anyone but I would recommend reading this book first.
    • 4/5
      Best Ellis book out. It moves with the pace of a Patterson book. Jason Kolorich is a well thought out character like Stone B is in the Woods books.
    • 4/5
      Jason Kolarich feels lucky when he's chosen to be the second chair in the defense of Senator Hector Almundo. The case deals with Almundo's alleged deal with the Canniblas street gang. They were shaking down businessmen for contributions to Almundo's campaign and splitting the proceeds. When a businessman refused to pay. He was murdered. One night, Kolarich is waiting for a call from a confidential informant, Ernesto Ramirez. The call is important so Kolarich tells his wife to take their baby and drive to her parent's home without him. Then, in a double tragedy, he learns that they had an accident on a slippery road and were killed. He also learns that the reason that the call didn't come in is because the informant was murdered.After a period of mourning, he returns to work. He's approached by Ramirez's widow, Essie. She wants him to find her husband's killer.Since he feels responsible for her husband's death and because he also feels that he's the cause of his wife and baby's death, he accepts. He feels that if he can find Ramirez's killer, he would, somehow, make up for his failure.Without a proper plan, he attempts to ingratiate himself to the politicians and behind the scenes friends of Almundo. However, his actions are caught by the FBI who are investigating political corruption. Since Kolarich can't prove that he was innocently pretending to work for these officials, he agrees to go undercover to help the FBI case.This is an intricate story on two levels. Kolarich is working for the FBI about the political corruption but never forgets that his first goal is to catch Ramirez's killer.Kolarich is a heroic character who is just a man, trying to do the right thing. He's not the invincible hero of some thrillers but he has the determination to finish his work and right a wrong. This is a well written novel that provides an interesting character portrayal as well as a fine and all too believable thriller.
    • 4/5
      I am enjoying David Ellis a lot. When I found out that I won this book and it was the second in a series I bought the first book. I am so glad I did! This is a great series. This book didn't let me down. Jason Kolorich is a lawyer trying to get back on his feet after the deaths of his wife and child in a traffic accident. He has always blamed himself because he should have been driving that night but instead he was in his office waiting for a phone call from a potential witness that never came.Jason takes a job with the state government and is tangled in a web of lies and corruption. Now he must be an informant for the FBI or face prosecution himself.Great book, great thriller! I will definately be on the look out for more of Ellis' books.
    • 4/5
      Jason Kolarich is finally where he wants to be. He's just scored a job as an associate in a high-powered Chicago law firm. He and his wife are expecting their first child and his first case, as co-counsel in a high profile political corruption trial, has ended in acquittal.Then the phone rings and nothing matters anymore. In one terrible moment it's gone. With nothing left but his guilty conscious Kolarich is determined to uncover the truth but his reckless pursuit of it might not allow him to outlive the answer.When all the questions, and a trail of dirty money and bodies, leads back to the Governor's office the only way Kolarich can continue his hunt and protect himself is to become an undercover informant for the FBI. Not really the best plan as the lead investigator has his own score to settle with Kolarich. Can Kolarich survive and keep his integrity intact? The odds aren't high.Filled with slimy politicians, sketchy lawyers and plenty of back-room palm greasing this book is recommended for anyone looking for a forcible legal thriller.
    • 4/5
      Jason Kolarich is on a mission to find out what happened to Ernesto Ramirez. He's got a bit of guilt associated because Ernesto was killed while Jason was waiting for him at his office. And while Jason was waiting for Ernesto, his wife and daughter were killed in a car accident. And instead of being at the office waiting for the murdered Ernesto, he was supposed to be driving the car. Thus the car wouldn't have crashed. So yeah, there's some guilt there. The book takes you on political roller coaster ride where Jason becomes an FBI informat tasked to take down the possibly shady incumbent governer. Jason wants to find out if someone in the governor's circle is responsible for Ernesto's death.I have really enjoyed Jason in these first 2 books and I can't wait to read more of him.
    • 5/5
      Jason Kolarich was trying to do the right thing for his family. Having left the county attorney's office for a much better paying job at a high power law firm, he was in the middle of a very high profile case involving a state politician. The hours were long and exhausting, but he never suspected that waiting for a phone call from someone he thinks has some information about the case would have had such devastating results for his own personal life and result, he believes, in the death of his wife and infant daughter.It is a year later and Jason is, to put it kindly, drifting. He never returned to his old job, instead starting up a small, very small, private practice, so he was unaware that the informant he was waiting to hear from night was killed, murdered the same night Jason's own life was destroyed. And he can not help but believe there is some sort of a connection. He holds himself to blame for both incidents and while he knows that he can't bring back his family, he thinks he can find out who killed Ernesto Ramirez and find some sort of justice. Little does he know that he will soon find himself in the middle of an FBI probe of the corrupt Illinois state government, wire taps, secret meeting, kickbacks...and some people who will not stop even at murder to protect their positions.Let me say, I am not usually a big fan of political and legal thrillers. Often, they seem to get so bogged down in complicated details that I lose sight of the story. And it would certainly be possible in this book. There is a big cast of characters, any number of sub-plots, so many twists and turns, that this book could have been a confusing mess...except that Mr. Ellis is an excellent writer that turns it instead into a compelling, very entertaining book.First of all, in Jason Kolarich, he creates a very good lead character, someone the reader can really identify with. Jason is not perfect, and he knows it, and the book is better for it. He is a loose cannon who doesn't, in a way, really care what happens to himself, who feels he has nothing left to lose, and that makes for some great, believable action. Then throw in any number of well developed, very interesting minor characters and a nice little personal story for Jason, and the reader is hooked. The plot is complicated, with a lot of people who have a lot of different motivations, but in Ellis's skillful hands it never become confusing. Also, the plot moves along in such a nice steady pace that it always stays interesting, which for me and my short attention span is really saying something.David Ellis knows of what he writes, since he is a lawyer and was, in fact, the Impeachment Prosecutor in the trial of former Illinois Governor Blagojevich. But more than that, is he a quite good writer who is able to take his knowledge and experiences and turn it into a quite good book.For fans of legal thrillers, a must read, but a book that any reader looking for a well written and entertaining book will enjoy.
    • 4/5
      Jason Kolarich is an up and coming attorney. He is waiting for a call from a confidential informant. He feels this informant will help him to reveal some very damaging truths about local and top state government. On that same night his wife and baby are killed in a car accident. He quits his job and finds it difficult to get back into thing. When he finally does, things start happening and he eventually gets to the bottom of everything. At first, I felt this book was piece-meal. The story was too scattered. By the end of the book, I felt like I couldn't wait to read more of David Ellis's novels.
    • 5/5
      I just finished the book and I loved it...can not wait to read another of DAVID ELLIS books...the story has so many twists and turns and will keep you guessing until the end...If your a fan of James Patterson or Harlan Coben give this book a try...and if you are James Patterson or Harlan Coben,,,you have some sleepless nights ahead...David Ellis is just as good......One more thing...LIBRARY THING...just want to say THANK YOU so much for this program...I might never have discovered DAVID ELLIS...
    • 5/5
      I won an advance copy of this book on LibraryThing, and I was thrilled at yet another chance to be introduced to a previously unknown author (unknown to me, anyway). This book had a solid plot that was quite easy to follow, despite the multitude of characters involved and the intertwining levels of corruption going on. There were only a couple parts that had me shaking my head at the antics of the main character (it involved intimate encounters with someone the guy had just met moments before), but maybe it's because I'm a girl. At any rate, this legal/political thriller was so engaging that I'm looking forward to checking out the author's other books. Recommended.
    • 4/5
      Another excellent book by David Ellis. In Breach of Trust we are once again introduced to Jason Kolarich. I believe the storyline for this book actually takes place before that of The Hidden Man his previous book (which I read and absolutely loved). In this book Jason has recently joined a private firm and is working to defend a politician of questionable integrity when the investigation leads to the murder of a potential witness and on the same night an accident in which Jason's wife and baby daughter are killed. Jason leaves the firm and goes on his own with a focus to find out what happened. This leads to a discovery of political corruption where Jason becomes a confidential informant. David Ellis is uniquely qualified to write this type of novel given his experience in the corruption trial of Illinois (my home state) Gov. Rod Blagovich. This is an extremely fast paced book with an excellent plot. If you like legal and political thrillers, do not miss this book. I look forward to the next book in the Jason Kolarich series.
    • 4/5
      I don’t know about you guys (and I don’t want to offend any attorneys that might read these comments), but when it comes to legal thrillers, I sometimes find myself having to search hard for the “good guys” in the story. There is just so much grey area and cliquish favoritism in the legal world that every attorney seems to get splattered with mud at some point in these stories. Even the hero of this new David Ellis novel, Breach of Trust, strong an advocate for doing the right thing as he is, does not come across as being lily white clean. But he might be as close as it comes.Jason Kolarich (pronounced Cola Rich, as he so often points out to those he dislikes) is beating himself up because of the accident that claimed the lives of his wife and new daughter. He blames himself for not being with them the night they died in a winter automobile accident. Jason, after hitting rock bottom emotionally, knows that he can do nothing to bring his wife and daughter back – but, when he gets an unexpected opportunity to learn what really happened on the night they died, he is willing to do whatever it takes to get those answers.Jason Kolarich is a man with nothing left to lose. As such, he errs on the side of impetuousness to such a degree that soon the only way he can keep himself out of prison is by becoming an FBI informer. Even then, unless things break exactly right for him, Kolarich could easily find himself sharing a jail cell with one of the same people whose conversations he has agreed to record for the government.Breach of Trust is very much a legal thriller, with heavy emphasis on the word thriller. Jason Kolarich infiltrates the organization of a corrupt state Governor, an organization populated by powerful, and paranoid, individuals that worry about Jason’s loyalty to the governor. He is a newcomer and that alone makes him a potential threat to some people who would gladly have him killed if he is once caught wearing a recording device. Interestingly, author David Ellis is somewhat of an expert on “breach of trust” in state government; he was, after all, the Impeachment Prosecutor in the trial of the disgraced Rod Blagojevich. So Ellis knows of what he writes in Breach of Trust, and here he shares much of that hard-gained knowledge with the rest of us.Fans of the genre are sure to enjoy this one.Rated at: 4.0
    • 4/5
      Breach of Trust by David Ellis is a fast-paced and suspenseful story. The main character is a rather complex individual. Although he is motivated by vengeance for the deaths of his wife and daughter, he also reveals integrity and compassion. A book well worth reading!
    • 5/5
      There are a few things that David Ellis knows well. He knows Illinois Politics, and he knows the law. Oh yes, he also knows how to write one blockbuster of a novel. Ellis was the prosecutor in the Blago impeachment trial, and I am sure you'll be thinking about all of the parallels in that case, as you read this work of fiction.Jason Kolarich is an attorney who unfortunately loses his wife and daughter early on in the book. On that very same day, one of his informers in a corruption trial is killed, and so starts a fantastic voyage into the heart and soul of Illinois politics. Kolarich said that he needed to take a long hot shower to scrub the crud of politics from his body. You'll feel the same way after reading this.Jason Kolarich has joined my short list of great fictional attorneys, with Harry Bosch and Butch Karp
    • 4/5
      Jason Kolarich loses his wife and daughter in an automobile accident while waiting for a reluctant witness for a very important case. He should have been with them and driving but his work seemed more important at the time. After mourning, quitting his job and going to work for himself, Jason learns that his witness was murdered on the same night his family died. Determined to help the wife of the witness and find the truth behind it all, Jason is thrown into the world of corrupt politicians and payoffs that may go all the way to the governor. But Jason with the help of the FBI isn’t got to stop even if it means his own demise. David Ellis’ new book is a legal thriller that is expertly written. His plot and characters are believable and the novel enjoyable.
    • 4/5
      This is my first book by this author but will not be my last. Breach of Trust is certainly a well developed thriller. The main character struggles with unspeakable tragedy and will stop at nothing to catch those guilty of murder. We see his flaws but root for his success. Exciting suspense novel to sink your teeth into.
    • 4/5
      I won this book from librarything early reviewers. This book goes on sale Feb. 3rd. Attorney Jason Kolarich lost his wife and child while waiting at the office for a call from an informant that never came. After struggling to recover from his loss he decides to investigate what really happened to his informant. This is a great legal thriller and I will look for more books by this author.
    • 5/5
      The inner workings of a political group have never come to life for me as vividly as in "Breach of Trust". David Ellis' familiarity with the law and politics shines throughout this tale of lies, corruption, deceit and death. Jason Kolarich is an attorney who defends his client with all of his talents, even if he doubts his innocence, because it's the right thing to do. Following his tragic loss of wife & daughter, adrift and just getting through the day seemed to be his future. Then he finds himself being drawn into a political investigation that would give him the opportunity to do the right thing at a whole new level along with the possibility of finding vengeance for his loved ones. As Jason works with the targeted corrupt politicians' campaign he finds a twisted trail of bribery, lies, false leads and personal danger. Wearing a recording device for the prosecution's benefit could cost him much more than his personal reputation and law license. This is the first David Ellis book that I've read but it certainly will not be the last. His writing style is great - the story flows quickly and smoothly, the characters are truly believable and I had a hard time putting the book down.