Crime Scene by Jonathan Kellerman and Jesse Kellerman

What do fiction crime writers do when their protagonist’s age?  In Jonathan Kellerman’s case, he team writes with his son, Jesse and introduces a new twenty something protagonist, Clay Edison.  Clay is a former UC Berkley basketball player whose sports career is cut short by a knee blowout.  But Clay has found a challenging career as deputy coroner in Alameda County, California.  In this role, Clay makes the call over each newly discovered body: death result of natural causes or foul play.  Sometimes circumstances are not clear cut and further investigation is warranted.

When Walter Rennert, a reclusive former psychology professor is found dead at the bottom of the stairs in his house, his drinking and bad heart appear to have caused his demise.  But Rennert’s attractive daughter, Tatiana thinks he was murdered and convinces Clay to dig deeper.  He learns that the good professor’s former grad assistant died in a similar manner.  Further, Rennert was ostracized for his role in some ethically questionable psychological research at UC Berkley.  Was there something to hide? Did Professor Rennert know too much? Who would benefit from his death?  Clay needs answers and the alluring Tatiana keeps him interested.

The elder Kellerman’s presence was clear with the familiar pacing and anticipation present throughout.  However, I have a major problem with the plot.  I didn’t realize that coroners had the responsibility of investigating suspicious deaths to the degree our hero does.  I thought the coroner reported evidence regarding cause of death and the police were responsible for finding the murderer.  Apparently our protagonist takes his job more serious than most but his tenacity triggered some thoughts of implausibility for me.  That’s never good. I’m still a devout Jonathan Kellerman fan but I’m not sold on Clay Edison as the featured character of a new series.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced look.

Law and Vengeance

Law and Vengeance is Mike Papantonio’s second legal thriller. He’s a plaintiff’s lawyer with a remarkably successful track record which has already landed him in the Trial Lawyer Hall of Fame. In addition to his prior book, Law and Disorder, he has written a number of books that seem to be primarily for lawyers. He’s also a host for the progressive TV syndicated show, Ring of Fire.

This is an action-packed, can’t-put-it-down story in which a progressive law firm takes on the gun lobby. The story has to do with a gun manufacturer which made a new but defective sight for handguns. The sight worked great at indoor air conditioned shooting ranges, but it had a different result when the conditions were hot and humid. Police officers and soldiers who were crack shots began missing and sometimes killing the wrong people. The author wrote, “Hiding behind the moral rectitude of the Second Amendment, the Gun Safety Institute did everything it could to promote the ‘rights’ of gun owners in America... The NRA and the Gun Control Institute have bought Congress lock, stock, and gun barrel… That has resulted in weapons manufacturers basically doing anything they want.” Very, very dirty tricks were being directed towards the plaintiffs including the murder of the lead lawyer on the case.

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This legal drama is as good as Grisham. The ending was suspenseful and gripping. This one gets my strong recommendation, and I’ve already downloaded his first book. This book will be released in September 2017. Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

All the King's Soldiers

Those who had already arrived felt palpable relief at having escaped, but they remained very anxious since most had yet to secure passage off the continent. Their journeys were not complete. Lisbon was also the center of espionage as all sides tried to learn what they could from those who were trying to get out. Where espionage is happening, spies work in abundance. And, the spies were plying their information-gathering trade on everyone.

Taylor Hartridge was a highly placed English spy, and the book opened when his dead body was discovered by Timothy Witherspoon, a long-time member of British Intelligence, and Pamela Davenport, who was also a member of British Intelligence, but her role was more murky. Due to manpower shortages as a result of the war, a new Intelligence employee, Simon Cole, the author’s protagonist, was brought from London to Portugal to investigate Hartridge’s death. Cole had been a lifelong academic, was a brilliant researcher, but had never done this type of investigation. Prior to his arrival in Portugal, Davenport and Cole had a love affair, and it was she who recruited him into Intelligence.

The British soon discovered that Hartridge had gotten a copy of the German’s plans for the invasion of England, but rather than immediately sending that to London through the usual and fastest channels, he put them in his safe based on the sense that the Lisbon embassy was tainted by a double agent. The plans disappeared from Hartridge’s safe. Complicating Cole’s investigation, was the work of “the Chameleon,” a master German spy. The Chameleon was a master of disguise and languages, and he used multiple identities to do his work and gather new information, especially about what was going on inside the British embassy. And then there were more murders, a prostitute and Witherspoon. Then there was the lovely Maria Carmen Santiago who began a love affair with Cole, but she was still a suspect in Hartridge’s murder.

There were multiple other characters, and like any classic spy novel, it was sometimes difficult to track who had allegiances to whom. Miller made plot changes happening to the very end which I did not anticipate. If this is your genre, then this is a good read.

The Trial of Prisoner 043

The plot of The Trial of Prisoner 043 by Terry Jastrow grabbed me from the start. Former President George Bush was on a golf outing at St. Andrews when commandoes kidnapped him off the 17^th green. He was smuggled to The Haig where, in reality, the International Criminal Court (ICC) is located, a court that has the jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. The U.S. is one of few western countries that do not participate in the court, but most of its allies do. The court agreed that they had jurisdiction and agreed to hear the prosecution’s case. Of course, the U.S. and Bush’s lawyers challenged the jurisdiction of the court to try this past President of the U.S. When those legal maneuvers failed, a commando assault on the ICC Detention Centre where Bush was being held was beaten back. Then the case of The Prosecutor v. George W. Bush proceeded. There was no jury and the case was heard in front of a panel of three judges.

Essentially, this book replayed all the evidence for and against the Iraq War. The author was able to use real quotes from all of the principals who were involved in the war effort, as well as those who opposed it. He even included Hans Blix, head of the UN Iraq weapons inspection team, who conducted 731 inspections between 11/02 and 3/03 when the war began. No doubt, this book was very well researched. I’ve actually heard this scenario debated and wished for by my leftist friends while the righties I know seem to automatically dismiss the idea, much like Bush’s attorneys tried to do.

Jastrow created believable figures in the respective teams of attorneys and the panel of judges. Jastrow wrote that his characters understood that the very legitimacy of the court was going to be on trial, along with the attorneys and Bush. As a political junkie, I thought his portrayal of Bush was spot on. The prosecution hammered away at Bush’s allegedly nonsensical pivot from seeking to find and kill bin Laden for 9/11 to pursuing the war in Iraq. Lead prosecuting attorney Michael McBride said, “This is the story of how George Bush is personally responsible for creating the pretext for, and then waging, the Iraq War – and the devastating results of his war.” Certainly, the author does a pretty good job of presenting Bush’s side of the argument.

You get the idea, and I won’t reveal the conclusion. Jastrow has done a remarkable job, and if the topic interests you, this is a must read.

Sapphire Pavillion

I’ve plagiarized this review from Amazon, so I apologize for not writing something in my own words. But, this is a good book that touches on the Vietnam War as well as current day corruption matters. I thought it coincidentally dovetailed very nicely with The Big Buddha Bicycle Race which I reviewed two months ago. It's the well-conceived plot that carries the reader along. My only criticism is that the dialogue is not exciting enough, too simplistic. Somehow, the richness of the characters comes through anyhow.

"Steve Stilwell’s former Navy JAG Corps buddy Ric Stokes has been jailed for possession of heroin in Vietnam. He was found in the same room with his traveling companion Ryan Eversall, dead of an overdose and in the company of a prostitute. Steve knows his friend is a straight arrow. Was he set up? If so, for what reason? Steve travels to Ho Chi Minh City in search of the truth. In no time Steve is targeted by the people who framed his friend. A beautiful young American businesswoman insinuates her way into the case. Can she really help, or is she just a dangerous distraction? Ric and Ryan came to Vietnam in search of an Air Force transport plane that disappeared in 1968. The pilot was Ryan’s father. Before the heroin bust, they had located the wreckage. Ryan’s notebook, which Steve manages to obtain, spells out the exact location. Ryan’s widow has given Steve’s associate Casey another piece of valuable evidence, a file labeled “Sapphire Pavilion.” Someone is willing to go to any lengths to steal both the notebook and the file. From Virginia and Texas to DC and Vietnam, powerful, all-seeing forces with unlimited resources are determined to bury the truth about Sapphire Pavilion. But they have grossly underestimated Steve Stilwell and his associate Casey, a former Army pilot who lost her leg in a helo accident. And the ability to inspire loyalty wherever you go can come in handy when danger lurks behind every corner."