Johnny Morel is accused of raping his twelve-year-old daughter, Michelle. The prosecution's case is weak and the chief prosecution witness is the girl's drug-addicted mother. Joseph wins the case but everything here is far from over. Several years later, Johnny is found murdered and his wife is the chief suspect. Antonelli does not defend her and she winds up serving a prison term. After she is released from serving her sentence she is found shot dead in the home of Judge Leopold Rifkin.
Buffa does a great job with character development and he keeps the story line moving. The Morels have a deep connection to the judge and unbeknownst to Antonelli, he also shares a connection with the victim. As Buffa's first novel it is a great start. One can see why he was nominated for his last paperback, THE JUDGMENT, an even better work.
It was surprisingly well written: a clear, uncomplicated and crisp style. It told the story in an economical way which but a little wooden. One reviewer compared it unfavourably to a John Grisham, but it was BETTER than that! This had a lot of interesting twists and turns which were too far fetched, but hey...it's only a story.
I did enjoy the cod philosophy and it set me thinking about the issues.
The characters were well rounded and beleivable.
The ending came too suddenly and because of this it lost its effect.
Overall...I would recomend the book.
