Helpful Score: 2
I enjoyed every page of this book! Our "hero" is a reluctant public defender by day and the lead singer in a Barry Manilow cover band by night (that alone made me laugh). His cohorts are odd and interesting; his client is as well. It's fun - suspenseful - witty - unusual - charming - and very honest about the realities of finding yourself in the hands of the D.A.'s office...and at the mercy of the public defender.
A slacker public defender who moonlights as a Barry Manilow impersonator lands a flasher case that turns into a high-stakes,
shotgun-held-to-your-neck investigation. Author Schaffer--who works as a criminal appellate lawyer we are told--gives a fair attempt at plot twists to keep it moving and this is good because the Manilow stuff gets old (and I liked him in first grade) and there simply aren't enough gritty stories from the real-life criminal defense trade to catch interest. A good read--the cover proudly boasts winning "Mystery Ink Magazines" 'Gumshoe Award'--but I finished it wishing I had read either a Barry Manilow biography or a true account of work in a public defender's office.
shotgun-held-to-your-neck investigation. Author Schaffer--who works as a criminal appellate lawyer we are told--gives a fair attempt at plot twists to keep it moving and this is good because the Manilow stuff gets old (and I liked him in first grade) and there simply aren't enough gritty stories from the real-life criminal defense trade to catch interest. A good read--the cover proudly boasts winning "Mystery Ink Magazines" 'Gumshoe Award'--but I finished it wishing I had read either a Barry Manilow biography or a true account of work in a public defender's office.
