Legal Thrillers

May 4, 2023

Barretto, James. MYSTIC WIND. Oceanview Publishing. September '22. $27.95. A Jack Marino Legal Thriller. Jack Marino, a prosecutor who turned to corporate law after a violent beating steaming from the work he did as the head of the District Attorney's Urban Gang Unit. His boss, running for governor, is afraid Jack lost confidence after he was hospitalized and fires him. Needing a job, Jack joins his father-in-law's posh law firm, but it just doesn't feel right until he has the chance to return to criminal law, but this time as defense counsel. In order to save his client from the death penalty he will have to face some very powerful criminals and take on the forces that want his client to take the fall instead of the actual killer.

Grisham, John. THE EXCHANGE: After The Firm. Doubleday. October '23. $29.95. The Firm Series. Grisham's new book brings back Mitch McDeere after he exposed the crimes of the Memphis law firm Bendini, Lambert & Locke in THE FIRM, he had to flee the U.S. In this sequel, set fifteen years later, Mitch and Abby are living in New York City. Mitch, now a partner at a large law firm, is asked for help by his mentor in Rome. "Mitch finds himself at the center of a sinister plot that has worldwide implications - and once again endangers his colleagues, friends, and family. Mitch has become a master at staying one step ahead of his adversaries, but this time there's nowhere to hide."

Hallett, Janice. THE APPEAL: A Novel. Atria Books. November '22. 18.99. When an entire community tries to help a very ill child things escalate into a murder and every citizen is a suspect. It all begins during the rehearsals of a local theatre group, The Fairway Players, when the director's grandchild is diagnosed with cancer. The experimental treatment is very expensive and everybody gets involved in raising money. But one of the actresses who used to work for NGO, isn't so sure about the possible cure and raises doubts. Things go from bad to worse on the night of a dress rehearsal when a body is found the following day. An arrest is made, but is the person that was arrested really the killer? Two young lawyers take on the case and try to solve the murder using emails, messages, and letters to prove the guilty party is still at large.

Levine, Paul. EARLY GRAVE. Herald Square. January '23. $16.95. Book 12 of 12: Jake Lassiter Legal Thrillers. From the author: "It's been a helluva run for the linebacker turned lawyer. Now, in EARLY GRAVE, he has one last case, and it has loser written all over it. Here's the setup: When his godson suffers a catastrophic injury in a high school football game, Lassiter sues to abolish the sport as a 'public nuisance' and becomes the most hated man in Florida. Suffering symptoms of the brain disease CTE from his own football days, and with his personal life in troubled waters, Lassiter reluctantly begins couples therapy with fiancee Dr. Melissa Gold. Through it all, our aging hero vows to live long enough to fix his relationship and achieve justice for his godson. It won't be easy. 'Mr. Lassiter, do you have any authority from any state or federal court that supports your claim?' Judge Duckworth demanded. 'I am pleased to say I do not.' 'Pleased? To have no case law, no precedent, no authority of any kind?' 'I'm pleased that Your Honor will have the privilege of blazing that trail,' Lassiter said. So, take a seat in the gallery. Court is now in session."