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A review by tony
The Mercy Rule by John Lescroart
3.0
Back in the 1980s, John Hughes, fresh off the success of The Breakfast Club, made Pretty In Pink, another popular high school comedy/drama. It had one major problem, however: the test audiences hated the ending. So the studio forced him to change it. Undeterred, Hughes turned straight around and made essentially the same movie again the next year (Some Kind of Wonderful), except this time with the ending he'd originally wanted for Pretty in Pink.
Having read [b:The 13th Juror|341587|The 13th Juror (Dismas Hardy, #4)|John Lescroart|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389785624s/341587.jpg|82560] just last week, I kept finding myself wondering if something similar had happened to Lescroart too, as The Mercy Rule is pretty much entirely the same book, except with some different legal argumentsand outcomes.
Lawyer: just admit you did it, and explain why, and nothing will happen to you. After all this is San Francisco. They're more likely to give you a medal than put you in prison.
Client: But I didn't do it!
Everyone: Oh yes you did!
Client: Oh no I didn't!
Lawyer: It's really obvious that you're guilty. Just let me explain why you did it, and I guarantee you'll be free.
Client: No, no, no. I don't care what happens — I can't say I did something that I didn't.
Big Court Battle happens.
Big Court Battle ends and judgment is delivered.
Time passes.
Oh, hey. Turns out someone else did do it after all.
I have to think that the author is simply trying to say "Here's the version of the book I really wanted to write last time, but couldn't", otherwise it just seems like very lazy writing.
Having read [b:The 13th Juror|341587|The 13th Juror (Dismas Hardy, #4)|John Lescroart|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389785624s/341587.jpg|82560] just last week, I kept finding myself wondering if something similar had happened to Lescroart too, as The Mercy Rule is pretty much entirely the same book, except with some different legal arguments
Lawyer: just admit you did it, and explain why, and nothing will happen to you. After all this is San Francisco. They're more likely to give you a medal than put you in prison.
Client: But I didn't do it!
Everyone: Oh yes you did!
Client: Oh no I didn't!
Lawyer: It's really obvious that you're guilty. Just let me explain why you did it, and I guarantee you'll be free.
Client: No, no, no. I don't care what happens — I can't say I did something that I didn't.
Big Court Battle happens.
Big Court Battle ends and judgment is delivered.
Time passes.
Oh, hey. Turns out someone else did do it after all.
I have to think that the author is simply trying to say "Here's the version of the book I really wanted to write last time, but couldn't", otherwise it just seems like very lazy writing.