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A review by deearr
The Rule of Law by John Lescroart
4.0
The telling of this tale is decidedly different than most.
Most of the murders are many years in the past, and the only current events of note are the recent District Attorney election and the efforts of Dismas Hardy and his lawyer friends to rebuild their law business. All the players are known here, and the book becomes an elaborate chess game, with moves to block yet eventually aimed to checkmate and end the game. The option of simply killing someone and removing them from the board is not out of the question.
There are multiple murder cases here, and the most recent one is almost a distraction. The separate murders that could involve Dismas Hardy and new DA Ron Jameson are the focus of this story. Hardy and Jameson are in a race to find enough evidence to convict the other and both realize the outcome will be a winner-take-all scenario.
Author john Lescroart shines in what could easily have become a boring reconstruction of a couple of cold cases. Somehow, he makes the day-to-day efforts of detective work look fascinating, slowly increasing the tension as the book winds its way toward the climax. Rather than gunfights and brawls, this is a cerebral tale detailing the work necessary to dig through potential clues and find the ones necessary to the case.
The book is not overloaded with characters, and it is easy to follow their separate stories. The author provides enough information to allow us to identify with the good characters and dislike the bad ones. The plot works its way to an abrupt, though satisfying conclusion. This was my first Dismas Hardy book, and I was not disappointed. Crisp writing, interesting plot, and realistic characters make it easy to recommend this book. Four-and-a-half stars.
My thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advance electronic copy of this book.
Most of the murders are many years in the past, and the only current events of note are the recent District Attorney election and the efforts of Dismas Hardy and his lawyer friends to rebuild their law business. All the players are known here, and the book becomes an elaborate chess game, with moves to block yet eventually aimed to checkmate and end the game. The option of simply killing someone and removing them from the board is not out of the question.
There are multiple murder cases here, and the most recent one is almost a distraction. The separate murders that could involve Dismas Hardy and new DA Ron Jameson are the focus of this story. Hardy and Jameson are in a race to find enough evidence to convict the other and both realize the outcome will be a winner-take-all scenario.
Author john Lescroart shines in what could easily have become a boring reconstruction of a couple of cold cases. Somehow, he makes the day-to-day efforts of detective work look fascinating, slowly increasing the tension as the book winds its way toward the climax. Rather than gunfights and brawls, this is a cerebral tale detailing the work necessary to dig through potential clues and find the ones necessary to the case.
The book is not overloaded with characters, and it is easy to follow their separate stories. The author provides enough information to allow us to identify with the good characters and dislike the bad ones. The plot works its way to an abrupt, though satisfying conclusion. This was my first Dismas Hardy book, and I was not disappointed. Crisp writing, interesting plot, and realistic characters make it easy to recommend this book. Four-and-a-half stars.
My thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advance electronic copy of this book.