My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I love a good courtroom thriller so when Charles Rosenberg’s Write to Die (Thomas & Mercer 2016) showed up on NetGalley, I grabbed it. It tells the story of an entertainment lawyer (Rory Calburton) whose slam-dunk copyright infringement case unexpectedly goes sideways when he finds out his client has been lying to him. As he struggles to save the case, or at least minimize the damage to the studio who is one of his firm’s largest clients, he is asked (ordered?) to defend the firm’s owner from murder charges. Assisting him is new associate, Sarah Gold, an enigmatic character who’s clever, sharp, unorthodox, as unpredictable as she is beautiful–and drives Rory nuts with her outside-the-box thinking that not only endangers her but the firm’s reputation.Since Rory is much more the button-down, traditional lawyer, their interplay and inevitable conflicts are fascinating to experience.
As with two of my favorite legal thriller writers (Scott Turow and Philip Margolin), Rosenberg imbue’s his tale with the courtroom detail that only insider’s know and we readers salivate for.
“Rory did have some other things he wanted to know but, satisfied with Chen’s last answer, decided that they could wait to be asked at trial. Which would be after their own experts had gotten their hands on the receipt and used DNA testing to see if there was any third-party DNA on the receipt...”
Rosenberg has a bright voice with just enough humor to keep readers subconsciously giggling rather than hyperventilating.
“It had surprised him that the entry door into the stairwell was unlocked and annoyed him that he was out of breath by the time he got to the top.”
“…was a no-nonsense judge (had any judicial profile, Rory wondered, ever described one of their honors as a nonsense judge?) who ran a tight ship but had a wry sense of humor when it pleased her to display it.”
I love discovering a new author who can fold me into his/her story of a different world for at least a few hours. By Chapter Two, I knew this was that sort of experience. I’m crossing my fingers that this is the start of a series.
More lawyer thrillers:
My Summer with David Rosenfelt
Jacqui Murray is the author of the popular Building a Midshipman, the story of her daughter’s journey from high school to United States Naval Academy and To Hunt a Sub, her debut fiction. She is the author/editor of over a hundred books on integrating tech into education, adjunct professor of technology in education, webmaster for four blogs, an Amazon Vine Voice book reviewer, a columnist for TeachHUB, Editorial Review Board member for Journal for Computing Teachers, monthly contributor to Today’s Author and a freelance journalist on tech ed topics. You can find her nonfiction books at her publisher’s website, Structured Learning.
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This expertly written review has me salivating to read Rosenberg. Thank you, Jacqui!
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He’s a wonderful storyteller. I’m so glad I found him.
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Sounds like some good thriller reading. Thanks for sharing Jacqui. 🙂
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It is good. It reminds me why I like legal thrillers.
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Sounds like a great courtroom drama and when you are eager for a series a sure sign of success. Hope he writes more but as seems to be the way these days,probably has another one raring to publish!
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I hope so, too. I haven’t read enough legal thrillers lately. This would do nicely.
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Sounds like an interesting one! I think the title is my life story–I’m just going to write until I die!
Stephanie
http://stephie5741.blogspot.com
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I like that. And true, innit?
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I too love legal thrillers. Can’t wait to read them. Thanks for giving us a the chance to know what’s good or not.
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And–as a bonus–it’s about a writer!
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I haven’t read a legal thriller in a while, but I’m pretty sure my Kindle has some several titles. This looks like a great one.
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I had not read this author before–I’m glad I gave him a chance.
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I love becoming immersed in the world of a good book. Great review, Jacqui.
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And what better than one about a writer, eh?
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You’re filling up my reading list – I’ll never get through it all. 😉
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You need a good trip with airline delays. That’ll clean out at least your Kindle list.
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Great review, Jacqui. I’ll have to recommend this one to my father…he’s addicted to legal thrillers.
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I do too. And most of my favourites haven’t posted in a while.
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