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amcurban's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
mrsbear's review against another edition
4.0
I have to admit, I almost passed on reading this book because Marcia Clark is not my favorite person. Then I thought if the old saying "write what you know" is true, she should be able to write a damn good book. I tried it and I was very surprised at just how good it was.
Ms. Clark does write what she knows and writes it in such a way that keeps up glued to the pages. The 'big' story is that of DA Rachel Knight finding out that her partner and friend Jake has been found dead and possibly was involved in some horrible things. She does not believe it and decides to poke around and find out the truth.
While doing that she also must take over his biggest case which involves the rape of a young girl. Again, things are not as clear cut as they seem.
I really enjoyed the characters. The friendship between Rachel, Tori another lawyer and Baily a policewoman was fun. Outside of work they are just girls hanging out and having a good time. They really clicked with me. It's great to have a bunch a girlfriends to be yourself with.
I don't want to give away any of the book so you just need to read it. I was floored by the ending. I had in my mind who I thought it was and things seems to point there but that was Ms. Clark's way of messing with our minds. I never would have guessed.
If you enjoy legal thrillers give this one a read. I actually hope there is more to come from Marcia Clark and that maybe I will be able to visit my new friends in another book.
Ms. Clark does write what she knows and writes it in such a way that keeps up glued to the pages. The 'big' story is that of DA Rachel Knight finding out that her partner and friend Jake has been found dead and possibly was involved in some horrible things. She does not believe it and decides to poke around and find out the truth.
While doing that she also must take over his biggest case which involves the rape of a young girl. Again, things are not as clear cut as they seem.
I really enjoyed the characters. The friendship between Rachel, Tori another lawyer and Baily a policewoman was fun. Outside of work they are just girls hanging out and having a good time. They really clicked with me. It's great to have a bunch a girlfriends to be yourself with.
I don't want to give away any of the book so you just need to read it. I was floored by the ending. I had in my mind who I thought it was and things seems to point there but that was Ms. Clark's way of messing with our minds. I never would have guessed.
If you enjoy legal thrillers give this one a read. I actually hope there is more to come from Marcia Clark and that maybe I will be able to visit my new friends in another book.
judithdcollins's review against another edition
3.0
A special thank you to Mulholland Books and NetGalley for a complimentary reading copy in exchange for an honest review.
Famous as lead prosecutor in the murder trial of O.J. Simpson, Marcia Clark still works as a lawyer, but she's also an author. First came 1997's "Without a Doubt," a memoir of the case, and more recently, a series of legal thrillers.
Clark's first four novels starred the same main character, Rachel Knight. Like Clark, Knight was a prosecutor in the Los Angeles district attorney's office, an ambitious, hard-charging lawyer who took her job very seriously.
Having read Marcia Clark’s The Competition (Rachel Knight #4) when it came out in 2014, Killer Ambition (Rachel Knight #3), and some of her newer books, the publisher sent me copies of the earlier books in the series to read at that time. They kind of got pushed further down the pile, and failed to write my review at the time, since they were older books, and my blog features only, new and upcoming books.
I do love legal thrillers, so wanted to revisit. When I picked up the audiobooks, read by January LaVoy, the first two books in the series, GUILT BY ASSOCIATION and GUILT BY DEGREES, wanted to write a quick review.
BTW, Congrats Marcia! Marcia Clark Finally Has a Moment to Savor at the Emmys (2016).
If you have read Blood Defense (#1 May 2016) it centers on defense attorney Samantha Brinkman. Unlike Rachel Knight, she's more than willing to bend the rules to get what she wants. Moral Defense (Nov 2016) will follow up with Samantha Brinkman #2.
In a recent online interview from Clark: “I was a defense attorney before I was a prosecutor, and I'm doing defense work again now. So I wanted to write a character who was a little more wild and woolly than Rachel." LA Times (2016)
Rachel lives at the Biltmore Hotel (not too shabby), due to prosecuting a case involving a wealthy client for a great room rate. She is living life and working with a hand -picked group of prosecutors and elite among the LA cops.
The first in the series, readers get to know Rachel. She is witty and tenacious. She is working on two crimes. When her colleague, Jake, is found dead at a grisly crime scene, Rachel cannot believe he was involved.
She has to take over his toughest case: the assault of a young woman from a prominent family, a rape. The father is politically connected and quite the bully. He wants to control and manipulate the investigation. An affluent family.
At the same time, she has to dig into Jake’s death which puts her reputation and life in danger. They were best friends and worked in the same office. It appeared it was a murder suicide and another victim which was supposedly Jake’s lover.
Rachel is determined to solve the case with the help of her homicide friend Detective Bailey Keller and clear Jake’s name, even though she has been warned to stay clear. With some supporting characters, the series takes off with a lively start!
Fans of Lis Wiehl will enjoy Clark’s style, and this riveting thriller. With Clark’s background--a former LA, California deputy district attorney, who was the lead prosecutor in the O.J. Simpson murder case and a frequent media commentator and columnist on legal issues—she knows her stuff and is reflective throughout her books.
Her fans and new readers who enjoy crime thrillers, cop procedures, and legal thrillers will relate to the series.
Famous as lead prosecutor in the murder trial of O.J. Simpson, Marcia Clark still works as a lawyer, but she's also an author. First came 1997's "Without a Doubt," a memoir of the case, and more recently, a series of legal thrillers.
Clark's first four novels starred the same main character, Rachel Knight. Like Clark, Knight was a prosecutor in the Los Angeles district attorney's office, an ambitious, hard-charging lawyer who took her job very seriously.
Having read Marcia Clark’s The Competition (Rachel Knight #4) when it came out in 2014, Killer Ambition (Rachel Knight #3), and some of her newer books, the publisher sent me copies of the earlier books in the series to read at that time. They kind of got pushed further down the pile, and failed to write my review at the time, since they were older books, and my blog features only, new and upcoming books.
I do love legal thrillers, so wanted to revisit. When I picked up the audiobooks, read by January LaVoy, the first two books in the series, GUILT BY ASSOCIATION and GUILT BY DEGREES, wanted to write a quick review.
BTW, Congrats Marcia! Marcia Clark Finally Has a Moment to Savor at the Emmys (2016).
If you have read Blood Defense (#1 May 2016) it centers on defense attorney Samantha Brinkman. Unlike Rachel Knight, she's more than willing to bend the rules to get what she wants. Moral Defense (Nov 2016) will follow up with Samantha Brinkman #2.
In a recent online interview from Clark: “I was a defense attorney before I was a prosecutor, and I'm doing defense work again now. So I wanted to write a character who was a little more wild and woolly than Rachel." LA Times (2016)
Rachel lives at the Biltmore Hotel (not too shabby), due to prosecuting a case involving a wealthy client for a great room rate. She is living life and working with a hand -picked group of prosecutors and elite among the LA cops.
The first in the series, readers get to know Rachel. She is witty and tenacious. She is working on two crimes. When her colleague, Jake, is found dead at a grisly crime scene, Rachel cannot believe he was involved.
She has to take over his toughest case: the assault of a young woman from a prominent family, a rape. The father is politically connected and quite the bully. He wants to control and manipulate the investigation. An affluent family.
At the same time, she has to dig into Jake’s death which puts her reputation and life in danger. They were best friends and worked in the same office. It appeared it was a murder suicide and another victim which was supposedly Jake’s lover.
Rachel is determined to solve the case with the help of her homicide friend Detective Bailey Keller and clear Jake’s name, even though she has been warned to stay clear. With some supporting characters, the series takes off with a lively start!
Fans of Lis Wiehl will enjoy Clark’s style, and this riveting thriller. With Clark’s background--a former LA, California deputy district attorney, who was the lead prosecutor in the O.J. Simpson murder case and a frequent media commentator and columnist on legal issues—she knows her stuff and is reflective throughout her books.
Her fans and new readers who enjoy crime thrillers, cop procedures, and legal thrillers will relate to the series.
crimyami's review against another edition
3.0
Only giving this 3 stars because it was HARD for me to finish this book. While it is interesting for some of it, it just didn't hold me to it. I like mystery with flare, and I just didn't sense any of the flare for me. Their was too much focusing on the food, and clothing and alcohol. While I know some law enforcement do drink, it is not a daily thing, and it's not high expensive things either. So this was a little aggravating to see and how the main character talks down about the defense and others.
The main character is trying to figure out who killed her coworker, rather than what the FBI think is a simple blackmail situation. Again it sounds like it would be a solid and interesting case but there's just too much focusing on food and clothing and alcohol to even make the plot stand out. Even though it's a decent plot, it's also some what predictable. We do get to see what involvement the DA has in cases which is sort of interesting.
The main character is trying to figure out who killed her coworker, rather than what the FBI think is a simple blackmail situation. Again it sounds like it would be a solid and interesting case but there's just too much focusing on food and clothing and alcohol to even make the plot stand out. Even though it's a decent plot, it's also some what predictable. We do get to see what involvement the DA has in cases which is sort of interesting.
emilyisreading2024's review against another edition
4.0
As some others have mentioned, I don't think the writing is top-notch but this was better than I expected and definitely an entertaining story.
melissadelongcox's review against another edition
4.0
I loved Marcia Clark's Blood Defense, so I've anxiously been waiting on the Rachel Knight series to be available through my library. This type of book - crime and investigative fiction with a side of law - is right up my alley, so I wasn't surprised at all to love these.
jesslroy's review against another edition
4.0
Please bry surprised with the read as a solid crime thriller. Much better written than the Evanovich novels. Overly descriptive on inconsequential items like food, outfits etc but a minor annoyance to overall enjoyable story.
hmonkeyreads's review against another edition
3.0
I wish they had half stars! I'd give this a solid 3.5.
Fairly intricate plot, interesting characters, and real feeling pace. I liked how Clark walked the reader through the crime solving process and included the boring, repetitive stuff as well as the critical "ah-ha!" scenes.
This is a totally plot driven book but if that's what you're looking for it's a decent one. She does do some set up of background storylines with minor characters and the romantic angles that I suspect will carry through future books.
I'll read the next one.
Fairly intricate plot, interesting characters, and real feeling pace. I liked how Clark walked the reader through the crime solving process and included the boring, repetitive stuff as well as the critical "ah-ha!" scenes.
This is a totally plot driven book but if that's what you're looking for it's a decent one. She does do some set up of background storylines with minor characters and the romantic angles that I suspect will carry through future books.
I'll read the next one.
veronica87's review against another edition
2.0
Marcia Clark's first foray into fiction writing (yes, THAT Marcia Clark) sees her keeping to a subject she knows well, the legal system. This is her story of Rachel Knight, a District Attorney in Los Angeles, who uses all her legal - and sometimes not so legal - resources to get to the bottom of cases. The writing was a little simplistic and sometimes it felt like Clark was trying too hard to be cool with the dialogue but overall it wasn't a bad start. It might make a better impression in audiobook format so I'll keep that in mind if I get to the second book.