Good puzzle with lots of surprises, keeps you guessing till the end. Some romance. Lots of humor. Easy writing style moves right along. One of Martini's fun ones.
Great book! Will keep you reading.
It got me going!!! Good book to read!
A choice of the Literary Guild and Doubleday Club. An exciting thriller!
Not his best, but okay
If you like murder, intrigue and courtroom drama this is a great book. I really enjoyed it.
Paul Madriani, the brilliant defense attorney, finds himself in a complex web of murder and deceit within his own family. Paul's wife, Nikki, has died of cancer, leaving him alone to bring up their young daughter, Sarah. On her deathbed, Nikki asked a favor of Paul: that he look after her younger sister, Laurel Vega, who is mired in a bitter child-custody battle with her former husband, a powerful state legislator. The two Vegas have brawled in open court for weeks, locking horns over who will be awarded custody of their two teenage children.
When Jack Vega's new, younger wife is found slain execution-style in their opulent home, Laurel Vega becomes prime suspect. And when physical evidence closes the loop, she is arrested and charged with first-degree murder. Paul, remembering his promise to his wife, has no choice but to take her case.
As he scrambles to mount a defense, Madriani investigates every angle of the murder, and uncovers more than a few skeletons in the Vega family closet. He unearths a dark and enigmatic side of Laurel, an aspect he never knew existed, and with this discovery comes the most chilling question of all: Did Laurel Vega commit murder?
When Jack Vega's new, younger wife is found slain execution-style in their opulent home, Laurel Vega becomes prime suspect. And when physical evidence closes the loop, she is arrested and charged with first-degree murder. Paul, remembering his promise to his wife, has no choice but to take her case.
As he scrambles to mount a defense, Madriani investigates every angle of the murder, and uncovers more than a few skeletons in the Vega family closet. He unearths a dark and enigmatic side of Laurel, an aspect he never knew existed, and with this discovery comes the most chilling question of all: Did Laurel Vega commit murder?
A vicious custody battle escalates into a murder trial in this gripping courtroom drama, Martini's third to be narrated by defense attorney Paul Madriani ( Compelling Evidence , Prime Witness ). Before Madriani's wife, Nikki, died of lung cancer, she asked that Madriani look after her sister, Laurel, who's now going through a bruising custody battle with her ex-husband, Jack Vega. When Jack's young new wife, Melanie, is murdered, all the evidence points to Laurel as the killer: not only was she was seen threatening Melanie and arguing with her just before the murder, but when she's captured by the police, she has the dead woman's compact in her purse. Madriani takes on Laurel's case, but it's an uphill battle. Potential witnesses for the defense have mysteriously disappeared; while searching for them and pursuing other leads, Madriani uncovers evidence that points to a very different motive for murder--and a very obvious suspect. The action builds to a rousing climax through a brilliant series of trial scenes with several surprises. The characters are sharply drawn, the facts of the case are presented simply and the courtroom psychology is laid out vividly. Martini, who knows how to tell a story, wastes little time setting up his premise; by the time the trial starts, readers will find their fingers glued to the pages. 175,000 first printing; $250,000 ad/promo
Never read it.
