| Both the defendants who come before him and the attorneys who represent them hate Judge Calvin Jeffries, an arrogant and cruel tyrant. So when he is murdered, many in the legal community assume it was a revenge killing. They are surprised when a homeless drifter is found with the knife that was used. The drifter confesses, then kills himself. Case closed.
Then Jeffries's replacement, Quincey Griswald, is murdered under very similar circumstances. Both were stabbed, both were killed in a parking garage near their cars and both were killed by homeless vagrants. The suspect in Griswald's murder has not confessed, and the Legal Aid attorney representing the suspect, known only as “John Smith,” expects to plead insanity and have him placed in a mental institution. Joseph Antonelli, considered one of the top defense lawyers in Portland, Oregon, agrees to take the case. He sees a possible connection between the murders – Elliott Winston, a brilliant lawyer who was first mentored and then betrayed by Jeffries. The judge who allowed him to be shut up in an insane asylum for an attempted murder was Griswald. The supposed intended victim was Antonelli. At the same time, Antonelli is reacquainted with his high school sweetheart, the only woman he ever loved. Because of his mother's opposition, they were parted when he went off to college. Jennifer married a man she didn't love, and the marriage fell apart when she lapsed into depression. She spent six months in a mental institution and now controls the depression with lithium. Antonelli marries Jennifer, despite warnings that her manic-depressive symptoms could recur at any time. Antonelli's investigator, Howard Flynn, a recovering alcoholic, has somehow broken through to “John Smith,” and discovers that his real name is Danny and that the knife was given to him by someone he knows only as “Billy.” With this sketchy information, Antonelli's challenge is to connect Winston with the murders, even though Winston was locked up in an asylum when they were committed. How he accomplishes this task and deals with Jennifer's increasingly bizarre behavior fills the final part of this book. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of story - depressing/sad How difficult to spot villain? - Moderately Challenging Time/era of story: What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 40% Special suspect? - chronically deranged person Murder of certain profession? Misc. Murder Plotlets - Proving innocence of very obvious suspect Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Any non-mystery subplot? Legal Thriller Yes Legal Plotlets descript. of violence and chases - 10 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 30 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Is Romance a MAJOR (25%+) part of story? Yes Main Character Gender - Male Profession/status: Age: - 40's-50's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: Motive of antagonist - revenge How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Pacific NW City? Yes City: - dangerous Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment Unusual forms of death - dropped from large heights Unusual form of death? Yes Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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