The Prosecution

Joseph Antonelli is coaxed out of retirement by a judge, an old friend, who has learned of a charge against the current chief deputy D.A. that he had had his wife killed. The confessed killer, offered the testimony that he had been hired to kill her in return for a reduced sentence.

We'll forget details of the plot, or should I say plots, since there are really two distinct story lines, tied together only by Antonelli's friendship with the judge. As is usual in books like this, each story has a little twist at the end that serves to expand our understanding of Antonelli's character as he plays both sides of the fence in this one.

Buffa really knows how to write courtroom dialog. Those sections are very hard to put down. Antonelli's show more ruminations might prove distracting for those who wish a more linear story that moves without pause, but I find it's always nice to stop a while and smell the roses. show less

Another great story told in another interesting manner. There are two separate cases that have intertwined and affected all the characters concluding both with a not-so predictable ending. I am curious to see which of these characters might appear again in the future and if friendships will recover. Again, I get that Antonelli and a couple of other characters are tall, but enough already with the repetitive descriptive of how they sit. I am capable of remembering it and visualizing it if need be. It does get distracting after while.

3698. The Prosecution A Legal Thriller, by D. W. Buffa (read 11 Feb 2003) This is Buffa's second book, a sort of sequel to his The Defense, with some of the same characters. The book is fast-paced, and easy to read, but the trial scenes are dumbed down and not very realistic. The coincidences are so frequent, the acts done by people so non-credible, that when I finished I had a low opinion of the book.