Product Description

Oklahoma attorney Ben Kincaid put his reputation on the line when he represented Ray Goldman. The seemingly mild-mannered man was charged with massacring an entire suburban Tulsa family. When the prosecution’s star witness—Erin Faulkner, the lone survivor of the slaughter—took the stand, Goldman’s fate was sealed. But just as his date with the death chamber is imminent, Erin abruptly recants her testimony; after seven years of silence, she is desperate to keep an innocent man from dying. Yet the next day, Erin is discovered dead, an apparent suicide. And Ben Kincaid is the only witness to her stunning confession. Now Ben must hunt down the killer who is determined to cover his tracks . . . with blood.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #62109 in Books
• Published on: 2004-02-03
• Released on: 2004-02-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• 416 pages

From Publishers Weekly
An arresting opening sequence gets this latest crime thriller by bestselling Bernhardt (Criminal Intent, etc.) off to a running start, with Oklahoma lawyer Ben Kincaid back for another high velocity courtroom adventure. Seven years before the central events of the novel, a gruesome family massacre puts food flavorist Ray Goldman on death row, despite Kincaid's vigorous defense, on the strength of the incriminating testimony of the 15-year-old sole survivor, Erin Faulkner. Seven years later, Goldman has been given a 30-day reprieve from lethal injection, but time is running out. Simultaneously, a regretful Erin reappears in Kincaid's office, confessing that she was coerced by assertive DA Jack Bullock into making a positive ID in court. This development is just what the defense needs to free Goldman from his sentence, but before she can testify, Erin is found dead, an apparent suicide victim. Foul play is immediately suspected, and Kincaid and his detective buddy Mike Morelli spring into action, the latter hoping to redeem himself after an initial botched investigation. Kincaid and co-counselor Christina McCall desperately buy more time in court from spiteful Judge Derek and are spurred on when Erin's friend Sheila Knight winds up dead in what looks like another suicide. Some readers will be disappointed by Kincaid's minor role in the solution of the crime, but he returns to center stage in the courtroom finale. Bernhardt slips too often into flabby writing ("She had been a bit pudgy as a teenager, but judging by appearances, that baby fat was long gone") and plodding dialogue ("Did you see Erin on the day she... passed?"), but lively plotting should keep fans satisfied.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
The veteran novelist follows up his fair-to-middling (mostly middling) Criminal Intent [BKL Jl 02] with this somewhat better Ben Kincaid thriller. Kincaid is a defense attorney whose clients tend to be underdogs who look guilty. His client this time certainly fits the mold: he's in jail, on death row, convicted of slaughtering almost an entire family, leaving alive only the 15-year-old girl whose testimony wound up putting him behind bars. Now, seven years later, the girl claims she perjured herself, but before her recantation can put the apparently innocent man back on the street, she's murdered. Ben must find her killer so he can spring his client from prison. If this premise sounds a mite shopworn, that's because it is. There's no denying that Bernhardt can write a tasty yarn, but his Kincaid novels have never been, well . . . haute cuisine. These are meat-and-potatoes mysteries: familiar characters, standard dialogue, and a sequence of fairly common twists and turns. Bernhardt sticks almost religiously to formula, but his formula is an agreeable one, offering easily digestible fare, and like so much comfort food, it has found a large and appreciative audience. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review
?A first-rate storyteller.??Tulsa World?[WILLIAM BERNHARDT IS A] MASTER OF THE LEGAL THRILLER.??Abilene Reporter-News?BERNHARDT JUST GETS BETTER AND BETTER.??The Daily Oklahoman ?Bernhardt is a master of the suspense novel and this promises to uphold his winning streak.??Wisconsin State Journal?An electrifying novel sure to stagger the imaginations of all readers. . . . Bernhardt?s characters are believable, interesting, and always intriguing. His dialogue is top notch?loaded with tension, sharp wit, and telltale foreshadowing that provides readers with a thrill a minute. Bernhardt?s balance of suspense and humor adds a delicious flavor to his story. . . . Death Row is a home run not only for its author, but also for its readers.??Tulsa World?If you?re a fan of legal mysteries, you?ll enjoy any by William Bernhardt.??Daily American?An arresting opening sequence gets this latest crime thriller by bestselling Bernhardt off to a running start, with Oklahoma lawyer Ben Kincaid back for another high velocity courtroom adventure.??Publishers Weekly -- Review

Customer Reviews

Ben Kincaid does it again!
Reading William Bernhardt is always a treat. Seeing the mix of characters in the office and Ben Kincaid's sometime low self-esteem make for a believable and engaging lawyer and his firm. (Didn't actually know they existed!) There is the usual tension between Ben and Christina. There is the goofiness of Loving that adds humor in just the right spots and, of course, there are the last minute heriocs that always come with a twist. This is a good book and I am already looking forward to seeing Ben in action again. Mr. Bernhardt: You don't write quickly enough!!!

A LEGAL PULSE POUNDER
As a former trial lawyer William Bernhardt bases his legal thrillers on hard earned data and experience, realities which make his tales all the more exciting. Suspense, masterful plotting, and an au courante subject are elements readers have come to expect from this popular author, and all are found in abundance in his latest novel.

Death Row, another in the Ben Kincaid series, tackles criminal appeals and the death penalty. Tulsa is shocked and saddened when a family is ruthlessly murdered in their comfortable suburban home. There is only one survivor to tell the story and identify the attacker - teen-aged Erin Faulkner.

As is his wont, attorney Kincaid champions an unpopular cause in his defense of Ray Goldman, a chemist who is accused of the heinous crime. Screaming media headlines and blood curdling details seem to seal the chemist's fate. But, the always perspicacious Kincaid mounts his defense on the dearth of damning evidence and police goof-ups during the investigation. It seems that Goldman will go free until young Erin testifies and points her finger at him.

True to his white knuckle writing reputation Bernhardt propels readers to moments before Goldman's walk to the death chamber when a sudden reprieve is announced. It seems that Erin has recanted her testimony to Kincaid, and wants desperately to save an innocent man.

Shockingly, Erin cannot even save herself as she is soon found dead; it is believed by her own hand. The cause of her death may be accepted by most, but certainly not by Kincaid. He speculates that the same merciless killer who murdered her family also took Erin's life. But, how can he prove it, how can he find the mysterious killer, and can he do it without losing his own life?

Jet propelled action and a topic from today's newspapers combine in this estimable legal pulse pounder.

- Gail Cooke

A Folksy Thriller
I am a long time fan of Bernhardt's books and was not disappointed in this one. Most of the subplots were eventually relevant, although some either needed more connective development or total elimination. The strength of the novel is in the development of the relationships and we can clearly see the complexity of each individual and their impact on the total picture. Stressing the human, softer side of the legal process, this was a very listenable book and one that translated well from reading to hearing.