Criminal Intent (Paperback)

The book brings a whole new meaning to the term "family law." Legal partners Mike Daley (an ex-priest, ex-public defender and ex-corporate lawyer) and his ex-wife, Rosie Fernandez, run a small criminal defense firm. Rosie's niece, Angelina (Angel), is accused of murdering her husband after she is found passed out on the Golden Gate bridge in his car with lots of incriminating evidence. Mike and Rosie run the defense. Mike's brother, Pete, does the detective work. Rosie's other niece, Rolanda, practices law them them, as well. Rosie's brother is having some problems that they help with. This list doesn't exhaust the family connections in the center of the case.

Against the main plot line of defending Angel, Mike and Rosie also deal with their own troubled relationship, their daughter, other family members, Mike's girl friend, and various defendants. It's enough to keep your head spinning. To make the book even more dense, the time frame is very brief. Mike is working night and day to keep the balls in the air. It made me tired to think about it.

I found the book to be compelling reading, however. I stayed up past midnight to finish it.

I would happily have graded the book as five stars, but many aspects are exaggerated . . . unrealistically so in my view. Would the DA really be so beautiful and competent? Would one person really be followed by four detectives at the same time? Would so many witnesses tell so many lies, when their stories could easily be checked? Would the attorneys be so willing to bend ethical bars (for which they could easily be caught) here and there to help their clients? Cumulatively, it was all just a little bit too much. I also thought that the ending was totally telegraphed much too early in the book.

I admired the legal accuracy of the presentation. That was well grounded, and made the book more interesting and compelling.

After you finish this book, think about what your responsibilities are to family members in trouble. How can you help them avoid trouble in the first place?

The plot unravels like a ball of string, one which contains a number of troublesome knots that the team have to overcome. There are twists and turns throughout the book but the biggest surprise is left for the end!!

I can recommend this and the previous two novels to any crime fan. In fact I would recommend that they are read in chronological order as I can honestly say that after reading Special Circumstances you will go on and read everything else that Sheldon Siegel writes....he really is that good and in my opinion (for what it is worth) is better than Grisham and Turow, which lets face it is quite a claim.

I really can't wait for the next story...