Cathy C. (cathyskye) - , reviewed on 12/13/2016 + 2275 more book reviews

Marcia Clark's first Samantha Brinkman mystery uses the author's prior experience as a criminal defense attorney. Blood Defense is a fast-paced story with a plot that kept me guessing, and it certainly doesn't lack in verisimilitude. However, there was "too much middle" which did slow down the action a bit until the explosive ending.

The secondary characters all seemed rather one-dimensional, too. This is definitely Sam's show. She is a nuanced, fascinating character, but unfortunately, I could never warm up to her. Sam always has one eye on the percentages and keeps close tabs on what she can reap from every sentence she speaks, every smile she bestows. Useful for a lawyer who's trying to get her practice off the ground, but not the sort of person I enjoy being around. There's also another reason why I didn't warm up to Sam. I can't go into this reason in any depth because I would reveal too much of the story, so I'll just say that she makes several morally ambiguous choices that I don't agree with.

With the exception of a slightly sagging middle, this is a good legal thriller; however, its main character will keep me from reading further in the series. (Perhaps I'm more prosecutor than defense attorney.)

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