3 Stars
Robin Lockwood is a
lawyer in Portland, Oregon. She is
representing Randi Stark, a rape victim who is bringing a lawsuit against her rapist,
Blaine Hastings. Blaine maintains he is
innocent but DNA evidence leads to his conviction. He threatens a number of people when his guilty
verdict is announced. Things get muddled
when Blaine’s DNA is also found in another woman raped while he is in jail and
when his attorney, Doug Armstrong, disappears and his law partner is
murdered. Are all these events
connected?
The plot can best be
described as cluttered. At least 8
lawyers and 2 district attorneys make an appearance, and there are at least 5
cases and multiple crimes (murders, rapes, physical and verbal threats, corruption,
prosecutorial misconduct, obstruction of justice). And then there are the infidelity and everyday
deceptions.
Robin is the strong
female protagonist. She is intelligent,
confident and tough. Her mixed martial
arts experience is an asset since she does put herself in potentially dangerous
situations. She is a principled person
who gives careful consideration to ethical dilemmas and tries to see that
justice is done. The problem is that
she is often absent in the narrative because some of the many short chapters
focus on the viewpoints of secondary characters.
And these secondary
characters are not fully developed.
Because of the numerous characters, it is not surprising that most of
them lack depth. There are also
stereotypes such as the arrogant rich family and the unscrupulous prosecutor
who will do anything to win a case. The inevitable
physical descriptions that accompany the introduction of each character become
annoying. Mark Berman, Robin’s law
partner, is described even though he plays no role whatsoever in the novel: “Mark was thirty-two with long brown hair,
brown eyes, and the rock-hard body he had developed while competing on the
University of Washington’s nationally ranked crew.” One inconsistency stands out: two different people describe a man as an “unspectacular
litigator” and “second-rate” yet his work helps his firm “gain recognition as
one of the best small firms in the state”?
The book is described
as a legal thriller but there are few thrills.
It is more of a legal procedural.
There is not a great deal of suspense, certainly none of the “gripping the
edge of your seat” suspense. Any scenes
in which Robin might be in danger are quickly resolved because there is always
a knight conveniently nearby to rescue her.
Because multiple points of view are given, there is a lack of cohesion
which also contributes to the lack of suspense.
I understand that this
is the second book featuring Robin Lockwood; the first is entitled The Third Victim. It might be best to read this latter book
first because the relationship between Robin and Jeff Hodges, the firm’s
in-house investigator, lacks background which I assume is explained in the
first novel in the series. Out of
nowhere, one of them admits to being in love with the other.
It is occasionally
difficult to keep track of the many characters and the various plot threads but,
otherwise, this is an easy read. It
often feels scattered and disjointed but is fast-paced with a few twists. It is sufficiently interesting but certainly
not memorable.
Note: I received a digital galley from the
publisher via NetGalley.
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