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A review by serendipitysbooks
While Justice Sleeps by Stacey Abrams
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
While Justice Sleeps is a legal and political thriller, written by Stacey Abrams who is obviously very knowledgeable about the operations and machinations of both arenas. Avery Keene is a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Howard Wynn, who is frequently the swing vote on important high profile cases. When he falls into a coma Avery is stunned to learn that she, not his wife or son, has been named as his legal guardian and power of attorney. With no legal precedent for what to do in this situation and some important cases, including one relating to a merger between an American biotech business and an Indian genetics company, awaiting verdicts much handwringing and wrangling results. Avery uncovers information suggesting a chilling conspiracy as well as chess-like clues left by Wynn which put her in danger.
Avery is an intelligent and principled character trying to manage a uniquely stressful situation as well as dealing with her mother’s addiction issues. She’s certainly a character you can root for. But like all thrillers it’s the plot that keeps you reading and this is multi-layered and detailed with plenty of twists and turns. It is frightening how plausible so much of this book is. Not being a chess player nor having much chess knowledge (nor a deep knowledge of the American political and legal landscape come to that) undoubtedly meant I missed some of the finer points. But that mattered not a bit. Thing kept moving and the intrigue intensified so I had no time to dwell on my deficiencies. Besides there were enough ethical issues for me to mull over. Not to mention lots of morally reprehensible behaviour to rail against.
Possibly a bit too detailed and intricate for me as a reader, but it kept me engrossed from beginning to end and left me with plenty to think about.
Avery is an intelligent and principled character trying to manage a uniquely stressful situation as well as dealing with her mother’s addiction issues. She’s certainly a character you can root for. But like all thrillers it’s the plot that keeps you reading and this is multi-layered and detailed with plenty of twists and turns. It is frightening how plausible so much of this book is. Not being a chess player nor having much chess knowledge (nor a deep knowledge of the American political and legal landscape come to that) undoubtedly meant I missed some of the finer points. But that mattered not a bit. Thing kept moving and the intrigue intensified so I had no time to dwell on my deficiencies. Besides there were enough ethical issues for me to mull over. Not to mention lots of morally reprehensible behaviour to rail against.
Possibly a bit too detailed and intricate for me as a reader, but it kept me engrossed from beginning to end and left me with plenty to think about.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Genocide, Murder, and Islamophobia
Moderate: Addiction