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Andy Carpenter is a skilled and clever lawyer, based in Paterson, New Jersey. Having already won numerous cases where it appeared defeat was staring him in the face, Carpenter is never afraid of a challenge. However, this time, when faced with a football star accused of murdering another football star, plus a dangerous drug lord, it looks as though he may finally have met his match. David Rosenfelt's humorous and conversational style again makes for great reading in this, the fourth novel to feature the lovable Andy Carpenter, girlfriend Laurie, and dog Tara. As usual, the story is told in a first person, present tense narrative, through the eyes of Carpenter. Although dealing with serious subject matter, such as serial murder, drugs and other major crimes, Carpenter's wisecracks and asides never allow the full gravity of the situation to weigh the reader down. A little bit of humour goes a long way to alleviating the seriousness of events. The plot is, as ever, well-crafted. Rosenfelt moves from what looks like a simple, open and shut murder case to crimes involving serial killers, drugs, the Mafia and much, much more. He includes enough surprises to keep the plot moving and it is also interesting to see Carpenter having problems on the domestic front. We are shown that although he may be a skilled lawyer, he is nowhere near as capable of dealing with problems on a relationship level. Some authors fall into the trap of failing to develop characters in a series, but as this series continues, we learn more and more about Carpenter and Laurie. Personally, I would like to find out a little bit more about their elusive protector, Marcus -- one of the traditional hard men who appear in this genre. SUDDEN DEATH is another great novel from Rosenfelt, and he mixes scenes and characters and plots the tale well. It looks as though there is more in store for Carpenter and his team and I look forward to reading about them. With Andy Carpenter and the situations that he manages to get into, you are never entirely sure what is going to happen next. Another success for David Rosenfelt.
Reviewed by Luke Croll, May 2005
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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