The follow up to THIRTEEN and FIFTY FIFTY: The Devil's Advocate (Eddie Flynn Series)

Product Information

Alexandra Avellino has just found her father's mutilated body, and needs the police right away. She believes her sister killed him, and that she is still in the house with a knife. Taking Eddie out of the city adds a new dimension to the story. The setting of Alabama adds a level of tension that’s hard to explain – a god fearing, gun loving, historically, very racially divided state. I’m not sure there could have been a better place to set the story. That is not to say that all of the locals have been painted in a negative light and there are many who are willing to step up and be counted when they see corruption in pay, no matter which side of the racial divide they stand on. But it is a kind of tinderbox situation, that small town vibe, the suspicion of big city outsiders, and that undercurrent of extremism that feeds throughout the story which stems from a point of some very thorough research and total authenticity. Eddie Flynn used to be a con artist. Then he became a lawyer. Turned out the two weren't that different. Wow! Author Steve Cavanagh writes excellent legal/crime thrillers and has surpassed himself with this terrific, edge-of-your-seat, powerful, pulse-pounding novel. The fast-paced plot kept me riveted, but it was necessary to take short breaks to catch my breath and find that my heart was pounding. The suspense and tension kept rising at a rapid pace within a malevolent setting.

Eddie has to take on a case that seems impossible to win, with DNA evidence, a witness, jury tampering and even his and his teams lives threatened. As always, the pace is fast, but this time the book reads more like an ACTION-THRILLER than it does a courtroom drama. We don’t even enter the courtroom till almost the 3/4 mark in the book-and even then, we don’t remain in it for the duration.He arrived in town along with his consultant, retired judge, Harry Ford, his new partner, Kate Brooks, and their investigator, Bloch. They were Hollywood's hottest power couple. They had the world at their feet. Now one of them is dead and Hollywood star Robert Solomon is charged with the brutal murder of his beautiful wife.

Honestly, I found this guy very interesting. His obsession with death penalties, his aura, the way he didn’t get off by physically killing people but by killing with his legal power really made me wonder and want to know more about him. He has had a tragic past which makes sense but I’m glad what happened to him later cause he had it coming. DO READ the author’s note at the end of the book which talks about “The Fair Punishment Project” and America’s top Five deadliest prosecutors and the personalities that drive the death penalty. I kid you not, I literally jumped for joy when I was chosen as one of the hundred to receive a netgalley arc for this book! So thank you so much to netgalley, the publisher and Steve Cavanagh! Eddie and his small team take a case away from their home turf in Alabama. The case looks bleak as their defendant is charged with murdering a young woman. The sentence being sought by the District Attorney is death by electric chair. The odds of securing a not guilty verdict look very difficult indeed given the evidence in play.Randall Korn , also called as “ King of Death Row” is Eddie’s biggest challenge till now in his whole career. The guy has a weird fascination with death penalties and the fact that he has never lost a case and has sent more people to death row than any other district attorney in history (115 convictions in 17 years) is really insane and intimidating. I enjoyed getting to know more of Eddie's team in this one, Kate and Bloch, and of course I love Judge Harry. I did want more court room time and more of Eddie's legal maneuvering. It was on this basis that I researched the real extent of capital punishment, the profile of the killers and their victims, and the states most likely to pass a death sentence. Blimey I was enlightened. Skylar Edwards is found murdered and Andy Dubois is arrested for her murder. The DA for the County has the highest death penalty convictions in America.....because he gets a thrill from watching people be executed. He doesn't care if they are innocent, infact he will bribe everyone and anyone to lie and tamper with evidence to make sure he gets a guilty verdict!! Can Eddie and his team save Andy Dubois? Korn knew it. And he didn’t care. He didn’t become a prosecutor in a death-penalty state to concern himself with guilt or innocence. It was the system that appealed to him. Justice was simply a cloak he wore to disguise his true nature.”

Now the difficulty in writing this review is, I am scared I give anything away but what I will say is, this book is a bloody rollercoaster! There was a point when I literally cried out 'noooo', i had my head in my hands thinking it was all over then there was a twist and a turn. I have no nails left!! I am actually exhausted after reading this!! Overall, the plotline and story develops well. Eddie and the team, of course get into scrapes but these help push the events along and allows the ever inventive, and frankly clever, Steve Cavanagh to create a number of surprises. But one of these women is lying. One of them is a murderer. Sitting in a jail cell, about to go on trial with her sister for murder, you might think that this is the last place she expected to be.

Featured Reviews

I will drop any (and every) book for a new Steve Cavanagh. I will read until my eyes are hanging out of my head and I will love every minute of it! So you can imagine my reaction on being chosen as one of the first 100 reviewers to be granted access to the new Eddie Flynn via NetGalley. It went a bit like this 😲😁👏🏻🙌🏻💃🏻🎉 ive never been so furious with a story before. and i understand that thats the point - books should make you feel something, especially when racism, white supremacy, and police corruption are still such on-going problems to this day. but when a story puts me in an incurable bad mood for hours after finishing the book, is that really a good reading experience?