Tuesday, December 4, 2012

#43: The Motive by John Lescroat

A fire rips through one of San Francisco's legendary "painted lady" homes, and when the smoke clears a murdered couple is found inside in John Lescroat's courtroom thriller The Motive.

I have enjoyed reading Lescroat's series, which alternates between a lawyer and a policeman as main characters, but never really seek out the latest one like I would Walter Mosley or Michael Connelly.  This one was loaned to me on audiobook by a friend, and I enjoyed the solidly plotted outing.

Here the lawyer, Dismas Hardy, agrees to defend a former girlfriend in the arson/murder, which he begins to regret as the case goes from largely circumstantial to squeezing the accused tighter and tighter as more of the story unfolds.  Another cop with a grudge against Hardy complicates matters before all is wrapped up in a somewhat surprising denouement.

Good overall, with additional backstory for fans of the series; others can enjoy it as a standalone legal thriller.

No comments:

Post a Comment