| Alexandra Cooper, head of New York County's Sex Crimes Prosecution Unit, hadn't been involved in a major case since her actress friend was murdered six months previous so she was a little surprised when Detective Mike Chapman woke her at 5:30 am about a new case. Turns out Gemma Dogan, head of neurosurgery at Mid-Manhattan Medical Center, brain surgeon and professor for the prestigious hospital was found stabbed six times in her office. It also appeared as if she had been raped and then left for dead. Alexandra was a little uncomfortable with the comparisons to her own personal life, or lack thereof, and put all of her energy into finding out who hated Gemma enough to do this to her.
Unfortunately, Alexandra soon finds herself with a long list of suspects. There is John DuPre and Coleman Harper, both neurologists who claim to have evidence regarding the murder, but details of their interviews conflict and don't quite add up. There is William Dietrich, the director of the hospital, who is desperate to clean up the hospital's public image. Then there are the many applicants for Mid-Manhattan's neurology unit that Gemma denied. Failing those, there are the hundreds of homeless people who live in the tunnels and basements of the hospital and wander about at will, including one that is know simply as 'Pops' who was found wearing scrubs covered in human blood. As Alexandra sifts through one lead after another, she uncovers a lot more dirty secrets at Mid-Manhattan, secrets that someone will do anything to keep hidden... Likely to Die is the second book in the Alexandra Cooper series (after Final Jeopardy) and I enjoyed it just as much. I love the way Fairstein accurately portrays the ins and outs of the judiciary system and police methods. Alexandra doesn't just drop everything to take on this case, she has many other cases that she is supervising and advising and it is interesting to follow her throughout her day as she preps witnesses and aids her fellow prosecutors. I also enjoyed the banter between Alexandra and Mike, especially their bets on the Jeopardy games. I really felt like I was reading a book about what it is like to work in the Sex Crimes Prosecution Unit in New York. I loved the author's attention to detail and clear, crisp writing style. Definitely an author that I will keep reading. | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of story - very upbeat How difficult to spot villain? - Challenging Time/era of story: What % of story relates directly to the mystery, not the subplot? - 60% Murder of certain profession? Misc. Murder Plotlets - character killed during/after sexing - Big focus on forensic evidence Kind of investigator Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Any non-mystery subplot? descript. of violence and chases - 30 % Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 30 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20 % How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20 % Crime Thriller Yes Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes Main Character Gender - Female Profession/status: Age: - 20's-30's Ethnicity/Race Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 40's-50's Profession/status: How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting United States Yes The US: - Northeast Europe Yes European country: - England/UK City? Yes City: - New York Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - moderately detailed references to deaths Amount of dialog - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog |
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