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Summary
Summary
Tired of the corrosive politics of Capital City, hot-shot lawyer Paul Madriani has reached a watershed in his life. A new practice in San Diego, the mellow swells of the Pacific, and if things work out, a future with Susan McKay - that's the plan.
But when Paul meets an old client, whose eight-year-old granddaughter has been abducted, he is drawn into a case which destroys everything he believes in.
Author Notes
Bestselling author Steve Martini was born on February 28, 1946 in San Francisco, California. He graduated from the University of California at Santa Cruz and received a law degree from the University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law.
Martini worked as a newspaper reporter and political correspondent. As a lawyer, he represented clients in civil and criminal cases, was the Deputy Director of the State Office of Administrative Hearings, worked as an administrative judge, and worked with the California Victims of Violent Crimes program.
Martini mined his past experiences to produce such legal thrillers as "Compelling Evidence," "Prime Witness" and "Undue Influence." He is the author of the Paul Madriani series of books. His title, The Enemy Inside made The New York Times Best Seller List in 2015.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews 3
Publisher's Weekly Review
The tireless Paul Madriani, Martini's popular lawyer/sleuth (The Judge; Compelling Evidence), barely has a chance to hang a shingle in San Diego--where he has moved to be closer to his lover, child advocate Susan McKay--before he is sucked into another engrossing court battle. When Madriani takes on elderly Jonah Hale's case, it seems at first he is dealing with a simple kidnapping. Hale's granddaughter, eight-year-old Amanda, under Hale's custody, has been whisked away by Zolanda Suade, who runs Vanishing Victims, an organization that purports to rescue kids from abusive situations. Now Suade is falsely accusing Hale of molestation to justify returning the girl to her mother--Hale's drug-addled, ex-con daughter, Jessica, who's never shown any interest in raising her child. Suade apparently has an ulterior motive: keeping Amanda in hiding until she can extort a hefty ransom from Hale, who recently won $87 million in the state lottery. Before Madriani, with Susan's expert assistance, can get far in his investigations, Suade is found shot to death, and Hale, who had plenty of motive to kill him, is arrested. Madriani is increasingly overmatched by a dogged prosecutor. Worse, those assisting Madriani in Hale's defense keep getting murdered, and Madriani may be next in line. Except for the occasional cliche (bodies lined up "like cordwood," minds "like steel traps"), Martini's prose shows marked improvement. Crisp dialogue and tart observations about legal maneuvering distinguish his courtroom scenes, and the new setting, San Diego, is colorfully rendered. It's a shame that the otherwise cleverly conceived plot falters in the homestretch with a poorly concealed twist that most readers will see coming well ahead of time. Mystery Guild main selection, Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selections. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Booklist Review
Although Martini's not as well known as Turow and Grisham, his string of best-selling legal thrillers has him poised to join the A list. (John Lescroart, see review above, is similarly placed.) Martini's latest brings back California lawyer Paul Madriani, who's moved to San Diego to be near his lady love, Susan McKay, director of the city's Children's Protective Services. Helping abused kids is her passion, and Paul's latest case is right down her alley. Jonah Hale won $87 million in the state lottery, but his golden life turns sour when his drug-dealing, ex-convict daughter, Jessica, arrives on Jonah's doorstep with activist Zolanda Suade, threatening to reclaim her eight-year-old daughter from Jonah's custody if Jonah doesn't cough up some dough. Jonah refuses, and next thing he knows, Jessica has disappeared with the kid. Jonah hires Paul to find his granddaughter, but before Paul even begins the investigation, Suade is murdered, and Jonah has become the prime suspect. The evidence is damning, and even Paul begins to wonder if Jonah is guilty. But when Paul and Susan stumble on a tenuous clue that a Mexican drug lord may have been involved in Suade's murder, the case takes a surprising new turn and hurtles to a stunning climax. Tense courtroom drama, plenty of action, and a deviously twisted plot. Martini's hot streak continues. --Emily Melton
Library Journal Review
Lottery winner Jonah Hale's drug-addicted daughter demands a big payoff when he won't relinquish the granddaughter she left in his care, then accuses him of sexual abuse when he refuses to deliver. A famed feminist activist helps spirit away mother and daughter and then gets bumped off. Sounds like another complicated case for Paul Madriani. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
