Amazon.com (ISBN 0399145362, Hardcover)

Sleuthing California defense counsel Paul Madriani lands one of his twistiest cases to date. His client, sport fisherman Jonah Hale, won $87 million in a lottery but lost his heart. Jonah's got custody of his eight-year-old grandkid Mandy, because his daughter Jessica is a cokehead party animal. Sprung from jail, Jessica demands cash. Jonah says no. So Jessica and Mandy disappear, with help from marital-rape-victim-turned-fanatical-activist Zolanda Suade. Suade's group, Vanishing Victims, specializes in thwarting courts and bashing rich males.

Madriani tries to reason with Suade, who almost pulls a gun on him, then taunts him with a press release: Suade's going public with Jessica's charge that Jonah molested Mandy. Madriani's girlfriend works in Child Protective Services, so he gets a tidbit or two of inside info--the charge is phony, but because CPS can't comment on cases, the smear will suffice to ignite a media firestorm. When Suade turns up dead, media interest does not subside. In court, circumstantial evidence forms a tightening noose around Jonah's neck, and Madriani starts wondering whether Jonah did kill Suade. Also, underworld types who may know Jessica and/or a Mexican drug lord start stalking Madriani, and more corpses pop up.

Martini, who covered the Manson trial, then became a lawyer and a bestselling novelist, is great at realistic, ingenious courtroom suspense, media-circus scenes, and dramatizing the impact of office politics on legal proceedings. His characters and prose are workmanlike but sturdy. Always grouped with lawyers-turned-writers Scott Turow and John Grisham, Martini thinks Turow's a better writer (in terms of character and dialogue), and Grisham's a natural-born storyteller who towers over all, but that he, Martini, is a better storyteller than Turow and a better writer than Grisham. The Attorney is evidence that he may be right. --Tim Appelo

Amazon.com Book Description (ISBN 0515130044, Paperback)

Paul Madriani is back!

Having moved to San Diego to be closer to the woman in his life, Madriani takes on the case of Jonah Hale, an elderly man in dire straits. Because of the longtime drug addiction of their only child, Jessica, Jonah and his wife have been raising their eight-year-old granddaughter, Amanda. After Jonah wins a multi-million dollar state lottery, Jessica revives her interest in mothering. When Jonah won't deal-maternal rights for a megabucks payoff-Jessica pulls out all the stops.

Enter Zolonda Suade, a flamboyant feminist activist with a talent for making children and their "victimized" mothers disappear. When the next move turns deadly, Madriani finds himself drawn into a web of deceit and high-stakes action, in and out of the courtroom.

Rich with characters drawn from today's headlines, driven by motives both obvious and subtle, The Attorney marks the much-anticipated return of Paul Madriani.

Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0743543173, Audio CD)

Paul Madriani is back!

Having moved to San Diego to be closer to the woman in his life, Madriani takes on the case of Jonah Hale, an elderly man in dire straits. Because of the longtime drug addiction of their only child, Jessica, Jonah and his wife have been raising their eight-year-old granddaughter, Amanda. After Jonah wins a multi-million dollar state lottery, Jessica revives her interest in mothering. When Jonah won't deal-maternal rights for a megabucks payoff-Jessica pulls out all the stops.

Enter Zolonda Suade, a flamboyant feminist activist with a talent for making children and their "victimized" mothers disappear. When the next move turns deadly, Madriani finds himself drawn into a web of deceit and high-stakes action, in and out of the courtroom.

Rich with characters drawn from today's headlines, driven by motives both obvious and subtle, The Attorney marks the much-anticipated return of Paul Madriani.

Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0739406493, Paperback)

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