Suspect by Scott Turow

Clarice Granum known as Pinky is a thirty something free spirit who currently works for attorney Rik Dudek as a private investigator.  Pinky has made her share of misteps in life, from illegal drugs, to tattoos and facial piercings to failed relationships with members of both genders, to washing out of the police academy.  The only person who seems to understand her is her grandfather the renowned, Sandy Stern.  For Scott Turow fans, you will remember the now retired Sandy Stern as the attorney representing Rusty Savage in Presumed Innocent.

Rik’s latest defendant is Lucia Gomez, the female police chief of Highland Isle, near Kindle County.  The chief is accused by three male police officers of soliciting sex in exchange for promotions within the police department.  Gomez insists the accusations against her are part of an ugly smear campaign intent on destroying her career.  She suspects ‘The Ritz,’ a local drug dealer, real estate tycoon, underworld criminal and Gomez’ former patrol partner as the instigator of her problems.  But Pinky has to prove it.

Meanwhile an interesting man, Koob moves into the apartment next to Pinky and her natural investigator instincts can’t leave him alone.  He keeps to himself and has an odd schedule.  Pinky begins following him in her spare time and ultimately builds a relationship with him.  She finds he has a connection to The Ritz. 

Of the three witnesses against the chief, two are proven unreliable by Rik and the third is murdered.  Pinky is allowed in on the police investigation of the murder because of her work on the chief’s case and because she knows the lead detective from when they were in the academy together.  But her tenacity puts her in grave danger as they close in on the truth.

 I remember reading Presumed Innocent while on vacation in 1990.  I was so entranced I ignored family and friends until I finished the book.  I thought it ranked right up there with Grishams’s A Time to Kill.  While Suspect is no Presumed Innocent, it does hold your interest.  The Pinky character is not someone you’d expect from Scott Turow, but through in depth introspect written from Pinky's perspective, you grow to enjoy her quirks and eccentricities making her a great protagonist in a mystery novel.  

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance look.

 

The Last Trial by Scott Turow

Sandy Stern, a Kindle County, Illinois defense attorney, has appeared in Scott Turow’s novels since 1987 in the renowned Presumed Innocent.  Now at age eighty five and contemplating retirement, Sandy is asked to defend his friend and fellow Argentine immigrant, Dr. Kiril Pafko of insider trading, fraud, and murder charges.  Pafko and his company Pafko Therapeutics have developed a cancer treatment drug that has saved many lives, including Sandy’s life five years earlier.  However, during the clinical trials to gain FDA approval, Dr. Pafko is accused of altering the data to remove from the study patients who have died, then selling stock in his company when his missteps are about to be publicly exposed.

Pafko’s missteps during the drug approval process are revealed to the jury as the prosecutors draw the story out of the witnesses.  But Pafko’s life long character flaws are revealed as Sandy investigates and interrogates Pafko’s family and known associates in addition to the witnesses… many with some grudge against the doctor.  Sandy can’t help but compare his own life with that of his friend’s and finds himself late in life pondering his own life choices and how they have impacted his relationships with family.  But even distracted by his reflective thoughts and at age eighty five, Sandy uncovers the motives of his client and of those around the doctor who are intent on revenge.

Most readers will see this book as a legal lesson because apparently the legal points are rare and well developed.  But I see this more of a reflection of a man on his life… his exile from Argentina, his marriages and his children, his choice of clients and the time he spent representing criminals instead of nurturing his family… how his choice to practice law molded his relationships with each of his children and grand-children and how they feel about him today… what he should do about it now… all in all a lesson in humanity.  This is the author’s true theme and a lesson well worth learning at any age. 

Testimony by Scott Turow

Fifty year old Bill ten Boom decides he needs a fresh start in life.  He leaves his wife and family and forfeits his partnership in a prestigious law firm.  He has no plans other than to enjoy life in a different setting.  Then an old law school buddy recommends him to be a prosecutor for the International Criminal Court in The Hague where war crimes and other international crimes against humanity are prosecuted.  Boom reluctantly takes the job and is assigned to a ten year old case in Bosnia where 400 Gypsy refugees vanished at the end of the Bosnian war.

Boom finds one witness, Ferko Rincic, the sole survivor of the massacre.  Ferko testifies about his friends and family being herded in the night to a nearby cave and being buried alive inside as explosives are used to seal the cave entrance closed.  Ferko’s sketchy description leads to several possible suspects for the crime.  They include a disgraced U.S. major general, a former soldier reporting to the general now turned military contractor in Bosnia, a former brutal Serbian leader, and a possible conspiracy.  Boom hires bull dozers and back hoes to dig up the cave in search of physical remains of the massacre.  But physical evidence doesn’t match Ferko’s testimony and Boom is forced to investigate Ferko and his lawyer as well as the other possible suspects.

While this is an interesting tale, I didn’t find it thrilling or all that intriguing… in fact, a little slow at times.  I’ve read most of Scott Turow’s books because Presumed Innocent is one of the best legal thrillers I’ve ever read.  I even remember exactly where and when I read it, on vacation at Nags Head, NC in June 1990.  Nothing Turow has written since measures up… and yet I hope.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance look at this one.

Identical by Scott Turow

Scott Turow gained notoriety in the early 1990's for his first work of fiction, Presumed Innocent which was later made into a movie starring Harrison Ford.  Turow has attempted to repeat that success several times since but has never quite written the novel that could measure up to that first mega hit. Identical is his latest attempt.

Paul and Cass Gianis are twins who grew up in a Greek neighborhood in Turow’s favorite mythical setting, Kindle County. The twins are identical in appearance but very different in character and personality.  Paul is the dutiful and ambitious son headed for law school whereas Cass is the carefree prodigal son.  In his early 20’s Cass falls in love with Dita, the beautiful but spoiled daughter of Zeus Kronon, a millionaire bad-boy with Greek mob connections.  Dita is murdered in her bedroom and Cass ends up pleading guilty to the crime.  He serves a 25 year sentence in a nearby minimum security correctional facility.  Paul faithfully visits his brother throughout his incarceration while finishing law school, becoming a Kindle County prosecutor and entering a life of politics.  At the time of Cass’s release, Paul is running for mayor.  Dita’s brother, Hal Kronon has never forgiven Cass and runs negative ads accusing candidate Paul of being involved in the murder of Dita.  Hal is now the CEO of the conglomerate his father founded.  With his company’s resources behind him, Hal assigns his chief security officer and ex-FBI agent, Evon Miller along with a retired cop, Tim Brodie to resume investigation of the 25 year old case.  Together they uncover new evidence that points the finger of guilt in a direction Hal never intended.

On the surface, Identical has all the ingredients of great fiction but the plot never seems to find traction.  The premise of identical twins and their relationship has promise of interest and intrigue but instead comes off as creepy.  The twists and turns of the plot were predictable and uninspiring in comparison to what we know is within the bounds of this author’s capability.  His first work, Presumed Innocent set the standard for bait and switch legal thrillers.  His latest work is in no way “identical” to that first effort… not even close.