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katieinca's review
5.0
Whew. Nava had only kind of gestured towards Henry's background in the first two books, and now that feels intentional - Henry works really hard to dwell on his childhood. But now we get his sister, his high school best friend/crush whose mom kicked him out of their pool for being a brown kid, memories of his brutal alcoholic father... all of it.
And then on TOP of that his client is a pedophile he's totally skeeved out by who's been wrongly arrested for murder. And who's also the little brother of the aforementioned old friend. And he's taking the case as a favor to that sister he never talks to. Oh and his partner Josh isn't in this one much, except to remind you they're both pretty freaked out about Josh's AIDS symptoms and how that's going to progress.
Great mystery plot, characters, and central California scene-setting.
And then on TOP of that his client is a pedophile he's totally skeeved out by who's been wrongly arrested for murder. And who's also the little brother of the aforementioned old friend. And he's taking the case as a favor to that sister he never talks to. Oh and his partner Josh isn't in this one much, except to remind you they're both pretty freaked out about Josh's AIDS symptoms and how that's going to progress.
Great mystery plot, characters, and central California scene-setting.
swmppsm's review
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
beecycling's review
4.0
This was a tough story to listen to. But a series about a lawyer isn't going to be complete without tackling the subject of defending a client the lawyer finds personally repulsive.
It's a good dilemma. The guy's undoubtedly guilty of all kinds of awful stuff, but what if he's not guilty of this particular crime? When the murder victim is possibly even more appalling, then the temptation has to be to just let the defendant take the rap, guilty or not and decide the real killer did the world a favour. But a man of principle like Henry can't do that. The truth is more important to him.
The outcome is tough to take. The real killers are more sympathetic than the defendant and the victim. It's easy to understand why they did it and to come close to wishing they'd got away with it.
A story that made me think, however tough it was to listen to.
It's a good dilemma. The guy's undoubtedly guilty of all kinds of awful stuff, but what if he's not guilty of this particular crime? When the murder victim is possibly even more appalling, then the temptation has to be to just let the defendant take the rap, guilty or not and decide the real killer did the world a favour. But a man of principle like Henry can't do that. The truth is more important to him.
The outcome is tough to take. The real killers are more sympathetic than the defendant and the victim. It's easy to understand why they did it and to come close to wishing they'd got away with it.
A story that made me think, however tough it was to listen to.
writerlibrarian's review
3.0
The best part of this Henry Rios novel is the ethical, moral and justice dilemma Henry is facing. Rios has made peace with all three of these with pain and time. But the call for help from his estranged sister to defend his childhood best friend brother makes Henry face those issues again. Defending the almost indefensible, a child molester accused of murder, Henry untangles dark secrets and hangs on to the notion that justice is important even if the person is morally and ethically no worth it.
Nearly 4 stars.
Nearly 4 stars.
claudia_is_reading's review
5.0
Henry Rios, lawyer.
In this story, we see Henry as a lawyer, having to go back to his hometown to defend the brother of his teen years crush. Nor the case or the circumstances make this an easy task.
The story is great, showing us Henry acting on behalf of someone who despises, and whose crime is mostly to be a very sick man: Henry's client is a paedophile. But that's not the official reason for his imprisonment, he has been charged with murder. This makes for a very interesting read, beyond the mystery of who really killed McKay, who wasn't a nice man, either. It touches a lot of themes that are. at least, controversial: the right to a thorough defence; paedophilia, particularly in regards to its status as incurable; vigilante's justice, corruption...
It's a book that is really hard to get through; there were moments, particularly during Paul and Henry's conversation when Paul was trying to explain that his was a sexual preference, not a sickness, that made me utterly upset. And the rest of the characters are mostly unlikeable, too. But it is really, really good. The way in which law, ethics and moral are constantly addressed is fascinating, Henry's investigation, flawless. The resultant book is, at least until now, the best one in this series.
And yes, Thom Rivera's narration is perfect.
In this story, we see Henry as a lawyer, having to go back to his hometown to defend the brother of his teen years crush. Nor the case or the circumstances make this an easy task.
The story is great, showing us Henry acting on behalf of someone who despises, and whose crime is mostly to be a very sick man: Henry's client is a paedophile. But that's not the official reason for his imprisonment, he has been charged with murder. This makes for a very interesting read, beyond the mystery of who really killed McKay, who wasn't a nice man, either. It touches a lot of themes that are. at least, controversial: the right to a thorough defence; paedophilia, particularly in regards to its status as incurable; vigilante's justice, corruption...
It's a book that is really hard to get through; there were moments, particularly during Paul and Henry's conversation when Paul was trying to explain that his was a sexual preference, not a sickness, that made me utterly upset. And the rest of the characters are mostly unlikeable, too. But it is really, really good. The way in which law, ethics and moral are constantly addressed is fascinating, Henry's investigation, flawless. The resultant book is, at least until now, the best one in this series.
And yes, Thom Rivera's narration is perfect.
beasley's review
3.0
Michael Nava is a solid mystery writer who doesn't shrink from difficult topics. This one grappled with how a defendant's prior history accused of pedophilia caused him to be the lead suspect in a later murder. His Henry Cisneros books are great for anyone looking for a well-written mystery series, and of special interest for anyone looking for LGBTQI-friendly mysteries. Recommended.
evila_elf's review
3.0
I read this...last month? Oops, forgot to update when I read.
Book was...okay. I thought I had picked up the first in the series, and I goofed on that. Reading others might have helped me actually care about these characters more.
The writing...the writing was awesome. Some great descriptions of characters and such that I really enjoyed. But either the plot was lacking tension or...it was me loosing my enjoyment to read. I dunno. It took me a long time to get through this book, and I pretty much read it on my work breaks.
Book was...okay. I thought I had picked up the first in the series, and I goofed on that. Reading others might have helped me actually care about these characters more.
The writing...the writing was awesome. Some great descriptions of characters and such that I really enjoyed. But either the plot was lacking tension or...it was me loosing my enjoyment to read. I dunno. It took me a long time to get through this book, and I pretty much read it on my work breaks.
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