Author: Steve Cavanagh
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication Date: March 23, 2027
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
If I were facing a murder charge, Eddie Flynn is the defense lawyer I'd want in my corner. He might not look the part and he might not prepare like the other lawyers, but he knows how to put on a defense, and how and when to pull a con, even on the judge or the DA. He's a con man first and a lawyer second.
In this new Flynn thriller, Vanessa Vanderpool waits outside her husband's secret apartment and watches him walk in to meet his mistress. Inside, Patrick Vanderpool, the son of a wealthy businessman and a reluctant political candidate, finds a diary in his lover's apartment that threatens everything. Both husband and wife have motive and opportunity. One of them is a killer, but which one? I didn't know. It could have been Vanessa, acting out of jealousy. It could have been Patrick, after finding out who his lover really was. Even at the 95% mark I couldn't say who was guilty, only that someone was. And the final reveal is a huge twist I never saw coming. It also leaves Eddie's conscience no worse off, which is no small thing for this series.
All the main characters are back. Eddie Flynn, the former con man turned defense attorney, working out of his office above the tattoo parlour. Harry Ford is the retired judge and heavy drinker with the mutt dog. Bloch is the investigator who knows her stuff but barely knows how to hold a conversation. Lake is the ex-FBI man who is a killer of serial killers.
Eddie is to lawyers what Reacher is to investigators. Both live by their own moral code and won't let rules or laws stand between them and the right thing. That righteousness is also their Achilles heel. And of course, like Reacher there's the moment when his death looks imminent and inescapable, and Flynn uses a little muscle but mostly his quick thinking and sharp tongue to save him.
The book also reminds us why Eddie fights the way he does: "I would only take cases where I believed my client was innocent, and I would fight for them with everything I had." And as he knows too well, "An innocent person has a better chance of cleaning out the casino at a roulette table than getting a fair trial."
This is the 10th book in the series and it might be the best Eddie Flynn book yet. Most of the books work as stand-alone stories, so you can jump in here. It does help to know the backstory of the previous nine, though.
A big thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
#NetGalley #Atria
