Reviews with content warning for Violence - The Defense

The Defence is a fun, fast paced legal thriller with high stakes, and a hell of a lot of action.

Clearly a debut, it is not the best prose I have ever read, and I would say that the plot is very typical of this type of story.

HOWEVER, it is just so much fun. Eddie Flynn is a fun character to follow, with his witty lines and sleight of hand antics, and I think what really sets this book apart from the rest of it's ilk, is the accuracy of the scenes that take place in court, and the satisfaction you get from reading them.

Thank you for taking the time to read my review, I would definitely recommend The Defence if you like action-thrillers and you're in the market for one with a legal twist, and I will for sure be moving on to The Plea!

Content Warnings

lizaxwin's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

It was a nice, fast-paced thriller but nothing too memorable. Could totally image this as a movie starring Liam Neeson. Even though there were lots of clever turns in the story (which is impressive considering it is told within less than 48 hours) none of them were very shocking or unexpected. Maybe I‘ll read the next Eddie Flynn if I‘m in need of a quick read. We‘ll see!

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rose_88's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
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

4.0

The book was pretty good, I read ‘Thirteen’ first so i knew the kinda of plot twists to expect.

I will say the Aturus double-crossing his boss, Eddie double-crossing the Russians, multiple police, guards and FBI double-crossing for the Russians was hilarious, and I loved the whole explain for all the different plans and Eddie just figuring it all out.

I loved how many times Eddie lost his mind at what was happening, and how he has managed to get away with half the shit he did. I loved how quickly he adapted in the courtroom and how well he was able to ‘lawyer’ his way through the trial. I adored how much he was doing for his daughter.

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bookthief's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

This book follows Eddie Flynn getting back into court after coming out of a depressive episode. Unfortunately the circumstances are not what he imagined. This book was good but slow. The following books are more intense and better put together than the defence.

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charskindle's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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vjlp22_reader's review against another edition

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mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Content Warnings

asourceoffiction's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced

4.0

Having read Thirteen, I was keen to start the Eddie Flynn series from the beginning. But it felt strangely like The Defence wasn't the first in the series because Flynn has so much history already when the story begins. The real-time plot is not very long, and is interspersed with recollections that slowly flesh out Eddie's backstory as a hustler and lawyer. And it works quite well; it generates an emotional investment in the case while cementing Eddie as a likeable but complex series protagonist.

What I found really clever (if a little hard to believe) is how Eddie uses his con days to come up with interesting ways to manipulate his situation and plot his defence strategy. And as a reader you're rooting for him but it's hard to watch him try to win a case for a known murderer, which makes for compelling reading.

As I got further into the book, the many different gang characters and allegiances got a bit hard to follow. But it also becomes an absolute adrenaline rush of action that ramps up to insane proportions by the end, which was great fun if a little too full on. The character set up and cliffhanger ending make it an intriguing opener for the series.

Content Warnings

annikareads_'s review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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