Tag: legal thriller

2 star

Review: The Good Sister by Gillian McAllister

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

An electrifying novel about the unyielding bond between two sisters, which is severely tested when one of them is accused of the worst imaginable crime.

Martha and Becky Blackwater are more than sisters–they’re each other’s lifelines. When Martha finds herself struggling to balance early motherhood and her growing business, Becky steps in to babysit her niece, Layla, without a second thought, bringing the two women closer than ever. But when Layla is found dead one morning, at only eight weeks old, Becky is charged with the unthinkable: the murder of her sister’s child.

Nine months later, Becky is on trial and maintains her innocence–and so does Martha. Unable to shake the feeling that her sister couldn’t possibly be guilty, Martha sets out to uncover exactly what happened that night, and how things could have gone so wrong. As the trial progresses, fault lines between the sisters begin to show–revealing cracks deep in their relationship and threatening the family each has worked so hard to build. With incredible empathy and resounding emotional heft, The Good Sister is a powerhouse of a novel that will lead readers to question everything they know about motherhood, family, and the price of forgiveness.

This is one of the ones I just picked up the library since it was free to read and I had the time. The premise was super interesting and engaging, and reading back, it still was. Unfortunately, this book didn’t execute in the way I thought it would. I still made it through, and I wouldn’t call it terrible, but I certainly call it good—at least for my standards. Read on to maybe see if I was being too harsh.

The Good Sister is a courtroom mystery thriller that revolves around a tragic family incident, the death of Martha’s child, Layla. Worst of all, Martha’s sister, Becky, is on trial for the murder, and the odds are not looking good. Once each other’s closest lifelines, inevitably the family is literally and emotionally split apart as the trial threatens to reveal all the deep secrets of the family’s past, and air out every time detail of one’s personal life for all to see. Needless to say there cannot be a winner in this court game.

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4.5 star

Review: Denial by Beverley McLachlin

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

When everyone is in denial, how do you find the truth?

Jilly Truitt has made a name for herself as one of the top criminal defense lawyers in the city. Where once she had to take just about any case to keep her firm afloat, now she has her pick—and she picks winners.

So when Joseph Quentin asks her to defend his wife, who has been charged with murdering her own mother in what the media are calling a mercy killing, every instinct tells Jilly to say no. Word on the street is that Vera Quentin is in denial, refusing to admit to the crime and take a lenient plea deal. Quentin is a lawyer’s lawyer, known as the Fixer in legal circles, and if he can’t help his wife, who can?

Against her better judgment, Jilly meets with Vera and reluctantly agrees to take on her case. Call it intuition, call it sympathy, but something about Vera makes Jilly believe she’s telling the truth. Now, she has to prove that in the courtroom against her former mentor turned opponent, prosecutor Cy Kenge—a man who has no qualms about bending the rules.

As the trial approaches, Jilly scrambles to find a crack in the case and stumbles across a dark truth hanging over the Quentin family. But is it enough to prove Vera’s innocence? Or is Jilly in denial herself?

Thrumming with tension, Denial is a riveting thriller about the lengths we will go to for the ones we love and the truths we hold dear.

After reading the first novel in this series, Full Disclosure, I didn’t have the highest of high expectations. Yes, I was still interested in reading the second book in the series by the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, but I definitely readied myself for more of the same from the first book. However, I was actually completely blown away by this book. Since when has the second book in the series ever been better than the first?! Overall this was just dramatically better for me, and I do wonder if it was due to the feedback from the first book.

Denial follows our defence lawyer extraordinaire, Jilly Truit, in another set of proceedings once again. As usual, Jilly is fighting the uphill battle, as the case once again seems locked and done. In a locked house, with no alarms tripped, frail and old Olivia Stanton passed away in her sleep from a morphine overdose. The only person in the house at the time? Her daughter, Vera, sleeping soundly upstairs. Vera soundly maintains her innocence, even as the flames of the trial licks at her heels. Just how will Jilly be able to defend her client in such a tough situation?

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3.5 star

Review: Full Disclosure by Beverley McLachlin

Fives @ Down The Rabbit Hole

From the former Chief Justice of Canada comes a riveting thriller starring Jilly Truitt, a rising, young defense attorney faced with a case that hits close to home. A searing look at what justice means in the courts and on the streets, Full Disclosure is perfect for fans of Kathy Reichs, Louise Penny, and Lisa Scottoline.

When everyone has something to hide, the truth is the only defense.

There’s nothing Jilly Truitt likes more than winning a case, especially against her former mentor, prosecutor Cy Kenge. Jilly has baggage, the residue of a dark time in a series of foster homes, but that’s in the past. Now she’s building her own criminal defense firm and making a name for herself as a tough-as-nails lawyer willing to take risks in the courtroom.

When the affluent and enigmatic Vincent Trussardi is accused of his wife Laura’s murder, Jilly agrees to defend him, despite predictions that the case is a sure loser and warnings from those close to her to stay away from the Trussardi family. Determined to prove everyone wrong, Jilly investigates Laura’s death, hoping to discover a shred of evidence that might give the jury a reasonable doubt. Instead, she is confronted by damning evidence and uncooperative witnesses at every turn. Someone isn’t telling the truth, but who?

With her reputation and Vincent’s life on the line, Jilly tries to unravel the web of secrets surrounding Laura’s murder. As she digs deeper, she uncovers a startling revelation that will change not only the case, but her life forever.

From the gritty streets of Vancouver to the fateful halls of justice, Full Disclosure is a razor-sharp thriller that pulses with authenticity and intrigue.

I mean, a book written by the former Chief Justice of Canada, I just had to—right? Yes, I did. Anyway, this novel classifies as that very very specific trope of “legal thriller.” It really is such a niche area of thrillers, but I’ve come to at least enjoy dabbling in them over the years, and one written by the former Chief Justice certainly couldn’t escape me.

Full Disclosure follows our protagonist, Jilly Truit, who despite a difficult past has come up to be a prominent and successful defence lawyer. Of course, she will often face her former mentor, the Crown prosecutor in criminal trials. This book revolves around the case of Vincent Trussardi, a seemingly open-and-shut case of homicidal rage by a jealous husband. Or is it? As Jilly digs deeper and deeper in the case, there seems to be something that the family is hiding, and she won’t stop at anything to win her case.

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