Product Description

Tackling her first assignment, an investigation into the murder of Oregon Supreme Court Justice Robert Griffen, Tracy Cavanaugh is plunged into a web of betrayal and revenge that points to the victim's estranged wife. Reprint. PW.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #70254 in Books
• Published on: 1996-05-02
• Released on: 1996-05-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780553569087
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From Publishers Weekly
Margolin's legal thriller, in which a killer claims that a local female prosecutor hired him to murder her husband, spent two weeks on PW's bestseller list.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
If Margolin's new novel of legal intrigue isn't hot stuff, a lot of readers will be disappointed; his Gone, but Not Forgotten (LJ 6/15/91) sold over a million copies. Here, a high-profile prosecutor is accused of murder.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Margolin's latest is part courtroom drama, part psychological thriller, part murder mystery, and part love story. But most of all, it's a whopping good read. Young lawyer Tracy Cavanaugh has just spent a year clerking for an Oregon Supreme Court justice and is ready for the big time. She has her pick of prestigious jobs, but she chooses to work for Matthew Reynolds, an eccentric, Abe Lincoln^-type lawyer whose reputation is built on the fact that not one of his clients has ever received the death penalty. The first case Tracy works on with Matthew is a tragic one--Abbie Griffen, a brilliant prosecutor, is accused of killing her husband with a car bomb. Matthew, who has admired Abbie's skill in the courtroom for years, is convinced she's innocent. In fact, he thinks she's been framed by psycho Charlie Deems, a murderer Abbie put on death row years ago. Tracy is awed by Matthew's superb handling of the complex case, and she just knows he'll get Abbie off. But in the course of her background research, Tracy stumbles across information that could have shocking, maybe even lethal, consequences, and suddenly all that was right is horribly wrong as the case moves inexorably to an explosive climax that will leave readers breathless. Margolin hit the best-seller lists with Gone but Not Forgotten (1993), and he's sure to be back with this one. Emily Melton

Customer Reviews

Hard to improve on
This one combines the best elements of the "cozy" and "suspense" styles of mystery-writing. The protagonist is Tracy Cavanaugh, a recent law school graduate who clerks for a justice of the Oregon Supreme Court.

During her last days at the Oregon Supreme Court, one of Tracy's clerk colleagues is murdered. That murder is followed shortly by the murder of the justice who employed the murdered clerk. The murdered justice's estranged wife, herself a brilliant prosecutor, soon becomes the prime suspect. At the same time, Tracy's year of clerking is up, and she goes to work for renowned defense attorney Matthew Reynolds, who is defending the accused wife.

This is definitely a better novel than "Undertaker's Widow", which was the first Phillip Margolin mystery I read. Most of the primary characters are well-drawn and memorable. The plot is unpredictable but doesn't stretch credulity. The last 75 pages give the plot several twists before the ultimate solution is revealed. The book is captivating and well-written throughout.

This book provides one more example of the foolishness... several years ago, to change the rating system from a 10-star maximum to a 5-star maximum. This book is a cut above Hazel Holt's "Mrs. Malory, Detective in Residence", to which I gave 4 stars. It is also a definite cut below Elizabeth George's novels, all of which deserve 5 stars. I will stick with my contention that only real literature deserves 5 stars, and this isn't real literature. But it's about as good as genre mysteries ever get.

Good, but...
Now, don't get me wrong - this book has more good things going for it than bad, but the whole thing just seems a bit off to me. There is a lack of focus, for one thing. Whose story is it? Tracy's? Abigail's? Matthews? Charlie's? I also figured it out about 1/3 of the way through the book but I was written well enough that I gladly stuck it out to see if I was right. (I was, but my theory about the motive was a tad bit off). This is not Margolin's best work ('The Burning Man' gets that honor) but it is a good enough read for a long holiday weekend.

HARD FOR ME TO RATE!!!
"After Dark" is about Tracy Cavanough finding her best friend dead and then Justice Robert Griffen being killed with a car bomb. Are the two killings related? Abbie Griffen, wife of Robert is charged with the murder of her husband. Tracy has just been hired by Matthew Reynolds, the best defence attorney there is. Together they set out to prove Abbie is not guilty. But, is she? Has she snowed Matthew Reynolds? You think it is all figured out then, Bang, you are off again with a new twist. It was hard for me to rate, I nearly gave it a three, but is a little better than that, I guess. I got lost during the first several pages because so many names were thrown at me. I also thought the description of some things went into to much detail. Such as what makes up a piece of metal, or how a picture can me made one time and looks like another time. All in all it was fair.