Product Description

When a lawyer friend, Nick Rush, is killed along with a client in a hail of gunfire outside the federal courthouse, attorney Paul Madriani is determined to find out the reasons for this double murder. Tortured by the possibility that he himself had been marked for death, only to have a friend die in his place, Madriani casts a suspicious eye in all directions – at Rush's business associates, his clients, even the beautiful widow and her mysterious new companion. As he investigates, Madriani rides the crest of a dangerous wave of international drug deals and people who murder for money. In a quest that takes him from California to Mexico, he discovers that, while the motive to kill may be driven by events taking place thousands of miles away, the killer lies much closer at hand...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #403073 in Books
• Published on: 2003-07-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
In The Arraignment Paul Madriani's old friend, flamboyant criminal-defense lawyer Nick Rush, is gunned down on the streets of San Diego along with a client. Madriani sets out to find the killer. He follows the trail through shady real-estate dealings, cross-border smuggling, political corruption, and a nasty fight between Rush's ex- and his young trophy wife over a hefty life-insurance policy. Eventually the case leads Madriani to the Yucatan Peninsula near Cancun, where the last third of the book takes place--a dandy locale for skullduggery, even if it does make you suspect that the author thought up the plot while vacationing there.

The Arraignment is marred by some sloppy, foggy-headed writing ("The neighbourhood exudes the kind of aura picked up by a sixth sense that lingers and lifts the hair on the back of my neck"), and the plot, after its initial bang, sags for a while before it gets moving again. However, the sheer vigor of Martini's prose, his densely inventive plotting, and his sharply drawn characters carry you happily, tensely along. The book's action scenes--including a hand-to-hand fight in a shabby apartment and an unforgettable poolside shooting at a Cancun resort--are told in fresh, vivid prose that unfolds with hypnotic clarity. And the denouement is great fun, although the complex plot takes a lot of explaining at the end. Martini's not perfect, but he's still one of the best legal/adventure thriller writers going. --Nicholas H Allison, Amazon.com

About the Author
Steve Martini, a former trial attorney, has been engaged in both public and private practice of law. He lives on the US West Coast with his wife and daughter.

Customer Reviews

Not one of his best
The book follows the legal Practice of Paul Madriani and Harry Hinds. Paul chases two Mexican hoodlums who he believes are involved in the Murder of a friend.

I was slightly disappointed as there were few legal confrontations and for the majority of the book Paul doesn't even have a client to represent. By the end of the book you get the impression that Martini wants to turn Madriani into some Private eye - action hero mix.

Still a good read though.