Book Review: "The President's Lawyer" by Lawrence Robbins

Wow, this was so good! I don’t read a lot of legal thrillers because I feel that they are often too slow or too melodramatic. But this—amazingly, a debut novel—kept me hooked every step of the way.

There is tremendous shock when former president Jack Cutler is accused of murdering his mistress, Amanda, who had worked in his administration’s office of legal counsel. Jack reaches out to his childhood best friend Robbie, a successful lawyer, to defend him.

Initially, Robbie is reluctant to take the case. He knows that Jack has always been a philanderer. But the bigger issue is that Robbie also had an affair with Amanda, and he was in love with her, even after she ended their relationship to be with Jack.

There are lots of salacious details that come out before the trial, one being that Jack had a penchant for rough sex—even light bondage and restraint. Robbie maintains his friend’s innocence but wonders if there are secrets Jack is hiding that might provide motive rather than reasonable doubt.

Like with most thrillers and mysteries, I suspected nearly everyone who popped up in the book. There even were a few times when I offered not-so-silent pleas that certain characters weren’t the killer. (I get attached.)

What a read this was!! It definitely kept me guessing and rapidly turning the pages. This could be adapted into a television movie and be as riveting as the book itself. I hope Lawrence Robbins had another book in him!!

Book Review: "The Lookback Window" by Kyle Dillon Hertz

“The longer time passes, the less evidence exists. The more my memories warp. I knew all this was true. I knew the effects of what happened to me grew with time, but my recollection faded.”

Dylan was 15 years old when he met Vincent on the internet. Vincent wasn’t significantly older than Dylan but he seemed more worldly, and Dylan felt so wonderful being wanted by someone. But for three years, Vincent held Dylan captive as a victim of sex trafficking, keeping him drugged, taking pictures of him that he distributed, and letting others have sex with him.

Now, he is an adult, still dealing with all that happened to him, but he’s trying to move on. He’s engaged, and he hopes to have a good life with his fiancé, Moans, although he isn’t sure he’s capable of truly being happy.

And then a new law is passed. The Child Victims Act extends the statute of limitations for child victims of sexual assault, which used to be only five years after the child turned 18. The Act provided Dylan with a “lookback window,” a one-year period in which Dylan can decide whether to bring a civil suit against his abusers. But what does he want? Money won’t help erase what happened, and can there even be an adequate figure?

Considering what to do reawakens a great deal of anxiety and trauma in Dylan, which he tries to assuage with drugs and sex. But again, he endures, only to realize he owes it to himself and others like him to face his accusers.

This was tremendously powerful and moving. As a victim of sexual assault, I was hesitant to read this, but I’m so glad I did. It is a difficult but important book which brings male sexual assault victims to light. While at times this is bleak, it also is a beacon of hope.

Book Review: "The Cage" by Bonnie Kistler

Looking for a thriller sure to get your heart racing in places? Look no further than The Cage.

It’s late one Sunday night, but two women are still working at the office of Claudine de Martineau International, a fashion conglomerate. Both women depart at the same time, and both get on the elevator at the 30th floor simultaneously.

By the time the elevator car reaches the lobby, one woman is dead. What happened in the course of 30 floors? Was it murder or suicide?

The ensuing investigation will leave no stone unturned. There’s not much more to say without giving anything away, so I’ll just say that The Cage is a thriller full of ups and downs. There are places where it really worked and places it dragged, and there are portions where the legalese used was so intense I couldn’t follow a thing. (This is kind of like the detailed science in The Martian and Project Hail Mary, but I didn't feel you could quite skim over this.)

I thought this was a really unique and fascinating story, with a bit of a feel like The Firm. I think without the technical stuff—even though I understand it was included to make the story more realistic—it might’ve been even more intense. Still, others have loved this, and I'm not a huge thriller fan, so you make the call!

Book Review: "The Holdout" by Graham Moore

Graham Moore's latest book, The Holdout, is a pretty great legal thriller, one which I could totally see becoming a movie.

Ten years ago the trial rocked the country. A black teacher was on trial for murdering his white teenage student, the daughter of a prominent real estate developer in LA. During the trial text messages hinted at an inappropriate relationship between the teacher and student.

When the jury got together, all but one juror, Maya, were ready to convict. Little by little, after weeks of deliberation and argument, she wore them down with her assessments and they voted to acquit the defendant. The verdict—and their participation in the jury—changes their lives immeasurably.

"You ever think about all the fucked-up shit we end up doing because we tell ourselves we're helping?"

Now, 10 years later, a true-crime documentary is focused on the trial and brings the jury together, in the same hotel where they were once sequestered. One juror is purported to have “explosive” new evidence. And then another murder occurs, which sets off a high-stakes race to find the truth, before someone else dies.

I really enjoyed this book. It switches between past and present, and looks at each of the jurors and how they came to their decision to acquit, as well as whatever secrets they might have been hiding. There were lots of twists and turns in the plot, and while I had some suspicions about how things might resolve themselves, I was definitely surprised by some of what happened.

While I didn’t feel the book read like a movie, it certainly could be adapted into one, and that’s not surprising considering the author is an Oscar-winning screenwriter. (He wrote The Imitation Game.) But I felt Moore did a good job giving his characters depth as much as he crafted suspense.

No objections to this legal thriller! (Dad joke.)

Book Review: "The Association" by Sharon Ann Ziegler

This one will make you think twice the next time you pay your homeowners’ association dues!!

A young lawyer, disillusioned with her profession, decides to try a fresh start when she and her husband move to Georgia. Her first clients are an elderly couple who moved into a lakeside community on the promise of an idyllic retirement in a beautiful home, surrounded by beautiful landscaping and high-end amenities.

The truth is, of the three neighborhoods in this community called Covington Commons, only one, Eagle’s Nest, has been maintained well and offers its residents access to top-notch services and benefits. The other two, including the one where her clients live, have fallen into disarray and disrepair, residents have to pay exorbitant fees to access the amenities, and their property values have declined drastically since no one will want to move into such a dilapidated community. It's tragic because in many cases, these individuals have invested their retirement savings into these homes.

The more digging she does, the more she finds that all is not right at Covington Commons, and it’s all at the hands of the Association, the group in charge of the community, which treats the neighborhood like their own personal slush fund and resort. The Association’s misdeeds have gone unchecked forever—and there are a lot of scandals that go far beyond the usual complaints. Can one young, female lawyer take on a system that has been awash in corruption and cronyism (on the legal and judicial levels, too) and get justice?

She doesn’t realize what she’s stumbled into, but she won’t stop, even as she puts herself further and further into danger.

I love a good underdog story. The Association is well-paced and suspenseful, and Sharon Ann Ziegler’s storytelling leaves you feeling like you can’t put the book down until you’re done. I devoured the book in just a few hours.

Thanks to Sharon Ann Ziegler for providing me with a complimentary (and beautiful) copy of the book in exchange for an unbiased review!!

Book Review: "One to Go" by Mike Pace

The crime/thriller genre is full of a lot of books that seem rather similar, to the point where at times you can't easily distinguish books you've read from those you haven't. Mike Pace's One to Go is not one of those books. Sure, it's utterly implausible (at least I hope so) and it goes off the rails toward the end, but it takes you on one hell of a ride, and is unlike any other book I've read, mashing together the crime/thriller genre with a bit of the paranormal.

Tom Booker is a new attorney at one of the more powerful law firms in Washington, DC. He's rotating through the firm's different specialties, hoping to find his niche and make an impression on those in charge. Deciding to be a lawyer at a later age than many, he wants to succeed yet still wants to be a good father to his young daughter, especially now that he and his wife are divorced.

Rushing to meet his daughter and her friends at a museum one Saturday, he stops to text his wife that he's on his way (although running late), and he inadvertently winds up drifting into oncoming traffic, causing an accident on the Memorial Bridge. An accident with a truck as well as a minivan driven by his sister-in-law, carrying his daughter and her friends. The minivan tips on its side, starts leaking gasoline, and is on the verge of plummeting into the Potomac River below.

Can Tom shake off his own injuries fast enough to save his daughter? Suddenly time inexplicably freezes, and he encounters a perky couple, Britney and Chad. They give Tom the option to reverse time and save everyone involved in the crash. But this offer is not without its cost—to repay for the four lives he will save, he must kill a person every other week. It doesn't matter who he kills, he just has to kill someone. And if he doesn't, one of the minivan's passengers will be killed instead, which again puts his daughter at risk.

He has to be hallucinating, right? Tom quickly sees that this utterly unbelievable situation is all too real, and he must take Britney and Chad's bargain seriously. But how will he find people who deserve to die? And how will he work up the courage to kill them when he's never really even fired a gun? He must turn himself from an upstanding lawyer into a serial killer in just a matter of days, and he can't caught, or he'll put his daughter in danger. And then he finds himself in the middle of another situation that threatens his freedom and his daughter's life.

One to Go jolts you from the start, and keeps your adrenaline pumping throughout. Tom is not your average everyday murderer—he thinks he can go about killing like he's seen it done on television and in the movies, but he finds it much more difficult than he'd even imagine, and as he finds, the devil is definitely in the details. I liked the fact that Pace didn't change Tom's character too much as the story unfolded. Pace does a great job ratcheting up the tension throughout, and there are some good action scenes.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, but I found part of the story's resolution tremendously predictable (I figured it would go one of two ways) and then the outrageous elements of the plot were just a little too outrageous. But if you can completely suspend your disbelief (and I mean completely), you'll probably agree this is a book unlike many you've seen in this genre.

I look forward to seeing what Pace thinks of next!

Book Review: "The Children Act" by Ian McEwan

I told a friend on Goodreads recently that I find myself running hot and cold on Ian McEwan's books. I really enjoyed Enduring Love but couldn't tolerate Atonement (and I know I'm in the minority on that one). Yet something about his newest book, The Children Act intrigued me—perhaps I wondered what a McEwan-esque take on what sounded like a plot from a Jodi Picoult novel would be like.

Fiona Maye is a well-respected High Court judge presiding over family court cases. Yet while she comes across as sensible, practical, unflappable, her professional demeanor belies the turmoil of her personal life. Her marriage is in trouble, and she's not sure how she feels about that fact. Is she angry? Hurt? Depressed? The one thing she knows for certain is she's starting to feel betrayed by her growing older, and wondering if pursuing her career so doggedly was the right decision.

"To be caught out enacting her part in a cliché showed poor taste rather than a moral lapse. Restless husband in one last throw, brave wife maintaining her dignity, younger woman remote and blameless."

As the judge on call one night she is summoned regarding an urgent case. Adam, a highly intelligent, 17-year-old boy, is gravely ill, yet because of religious reasons he refuses the necessary blood transfusion and treatments his doctors dictate. To refuse these treatments will most likely mean death, if not paralysis or other life-altering disability. The hospital and the court-appointed social worker believe Adam is too young to make his own decisions, and has been brainwashed by his parents and other religious elders. Yet Adam maintains he knows his own mind, but would rather face death or permanent disability than go against his religion.

Needing to make a decision very quickly, Fiona takes the unorthodox route of visiting Adam in the hospital. She is drawn in by his fierce intelligence and his devotion to his religion, as well as his creativity and sensitivity. She is utterly unprepared for the way this encounter makes her feel, as unprepared as she is for the chain of events her visit sets into motion. And she must make a difficult decision—should she overrule Adam's wishes (and determine that he, three months' shy of the age of consent, is not mature enough to understand the gravity of his situation) or should she doom him to possible death?

"Religions, moral systems, her own included, were like peaks in a dense mountain range seen from a great distance, non obviously higher, more important, truer than another. What was to judge?"

I found this book tremendously intriguing. I wondered, given the way many of McEwan's books unfold, exactly what would happen, and I was reasonably happy with the choices he made. I enjoyed the characters and actually wished the book was a little longer so that the reader was able to spend more time with them. In lesser hands this could have turned into utter hystrionics, but I thought McEwan's restraint was true to the plot. I haven't stopped thinking about this one, nearly a week after I finished it, so that's definitely the sign of a book worth reading.

Book Review: "Apple Tree Yard" by Louise Doughty

"When you are a rational human being, with free will and agency, is there any such thing as a point of no return?"

Yvonne Carmichael is a renowned geneticist, well-established in her career. She and her husband Guy, a fellow scientist she met while in college, is loving and comfortable, and they have two adult children. One day, after testifying before a committee of Parliament on a scientific issue, she meets a man. They talk, they walk, her takes her by the arm, and leads her to a little-used chapel in the basement. And Yvonne begins to undress.

The two begin an affair, despite the fact that she doesn't know her lover's name at first, and he has kept most of his life a mystery from her. He is constantly paranoid, worried that Yvonne might say something to someone, or that their relationship might be discovered. Because of his need to control the situation, Yvonne believes her lover must be a spy for the British government, a fact that excites her almost as much as their relationship has. She knows that they can only see each other at certain times, yet she longs for more, longs for the passion he has ignited in her.

As the pair's relationship wanes and intensifies, one night Yvonne finds herself confronting an utterly unexpected danger from another direction. And it is there the course of her life changes, as she suddenly finds herself, along with her lover, on trial for murder. She is prepared to do just as he has always told her, disclose as little about their relationship as possible so the truth will not be discovered. Or will it?

"Relationships are about stories, not truth. Alone, as individuals, we each have our own personal mythologies, the stories we tell in order to make sense of ourselves to ourselves. That generally works fine as long as we stay sane and single, but the minute you enter an intimate relationship with another person there is an automatic dissonance between your story about yourself and his or her story about you."

Apple Tree Yard tells a familiar story, one of love, longing, secrets, and betrayal. Yet in Louise Doughty's hands, the story seems fresh and tremendously interesting, even though you're fairly certain where the plot will go. Yvonne's character is so well drawn, so complex (if not entirely sympathetic), you can truly see how she found herself in the middle of a relationship she never expected, as well as trouble she never imagined. Yvonne never really makes any excuses for her actions, but you understand them, and as the story unfolds you realize that even the most intelligent people have blind spots they're unaware of.

I really enjoyed this book and thought Doughty was an excellent storyteller. It takes a talented writer to make you want to continue reading a story you've seen before, but there are still a good number of twists and turns to keep you thinking. There aren't many books I've read lately with this type of protagonist, and it really worked for me. And it certainly makes you consider your own life, your own relationships, and how a seemingly rational person could be so overtaken by desire and fear.

"Is heartbreak even possible now, I wonder? I'm fifty-two. Anyone my age knows that all things pass. If the transitory nature of our feelings means that true heartbreak is impossible, then where does that leave happiness?"

Give this one a read.

It's not okay...

I've debated quite a bit whether to write a post about the ridiculous government-sanctioned homophobia occurring in Russia since the enactment of anti-gay propaganda laws that make it a crime to spread "homosexual propaganda" to minors. These laws, which have already led to arrests of Dutch tourists promoting equality, are causing many to urge the United States to boycott the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, and has led gay activists to call for a boycott of Russian-made Stolichnaya vodka.

The U.S. Olympic Committee—and NBC, which has broadcast rights to the 2014 games—have tried to have their cake and eat it, too, saying they'd monitor the situation to ensure the safety of U.S. athletes, particularly LGBT athletes, as well as decide how to report on these human rights violations. But today, Russia upped the ante a bit.

Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko warned today that athletes and visitors will not be given any special exemptions around the anti-gay laws. Mutko's statement comes a day after the U.S. Olympic Committee released a letter recalling the Olympic Charter's prohibition on discrimination of any kind. The letter also promised that the U.S. Olympic Committee would work closely with the IOC and U.S. State Department to ensure the safety of "every American in Sochi." Additionally, Russian politician Vitaly Milonov said that openly gay athletes and supporters at the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games may face arrest under these laws.

The IOC previously secured assurances from "the highest level" of Russian government that LGBT athletes and vistors would be able to attend the Sochi games unmolested, but they've yet to comment on Mutko's statement, which said:

"The law talks not about banning a non-traditional orientation but about other things, about propaganda and implicating minors...

"No one is banning a sportsman with a non-traditional sexual orientation from going to Sochi. But if he goes out onto the street and starts to make propaganda, then of course he will be brought to responsibility.

"As a sportsman, he should respect the law of a country. Come (to Sochi), but don't get young people involved, don't make propaganda. This is what we are talking about."

Competing in the Olympics is a dream for most athletes, and knowing that you'll finally have the chance to represent your country and compete against the world's finest athletes must be one of the most incredible achievements. Some out athletes, including figure skater Johnny Weir and New Zealand speed skater Blake Skjellerup have said a boycott of the games is not the answer.

Skjellerup commented, "I think visibility is the best possible solution, as opposed to hiding away and not attending." He went on to explain, "For me it’s less about taking a stand and more about just being myself...I have no interest in going back into the closet in Sochi...This is not about defiance. This is me standing up for what I believe in." Skjellerup has said that he plans to wear a rainbow pin during the Sochi games which, under Russia's laws, could get him arrested.

It's time for the U.S. to take a stand. We're all too quick to condemn people like Bradley Manning or Edward Snowden as treasonous traitors, yet is our country willing to turn a blind eye to the potential mistreatment of LGBT athletes and others? Where is the outrage of the U.S. in this instance?

I don't know whether boycotting the Olympic games will actually accomplish anything. I do know that we, as well as the IOC, need to serve as a barrier to discrimination and mistreatment, or the Olympic spirit means nothing. But more importantly, I echo the words of openly gay Danish actor Christian Vincent, who recently recorded a video called, "Dear Russia: It's Not Okay."

It's not okay.

Love wins the day...

I woke up this morning feeling immensely apprehensive about what the Supreme Court would do relative to the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and California's Proposition 8, especially following the Court's decision to overturn portions of the Voting Rights Act yesterday.

Would the Court take the bold steps necessary to begin laying the foundation for marriage equality across our country? Would they allow same-sex couples married in states that have upheld marriage equality to receive the same benefits as heterosexual couples? Or would the Court decide to uphold the idea that some people are more deserving of equality than others, or that voters should decide who is worthy?

The Supreme Court decided 5-4 that the Defense of Marriage Act is unconstitutional. Basically, the Court explained that the states have long had the responsibility of regulating and defining marriage, and some states have opted to allow same-sex couples to marry to give them the protection and dignity associated with marriage. By denying recognition to same-sex couples who are legally married, federal law discriminates against them to express disapproval of state-sanctioned same-sex marriage. This decision means that same-sex couples who are legally married must now be treated the same under federal law as married opposite-sex couples.

The Court also struck down California's Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage in the state, on a technicality, by saying that those Proposition 8 supporters who brought the case to the Supreme Court lacked the legal standing to do so. While this wasn't the sweeping ruling that some had hoped, a ruling that would have paved the way for marriage equality in those states without it, it does move us in a forward direction. Plus, same-sex couples can begin marrying in California within a month, so anything that allows for more love to be legally recognized is more than satisfactory!

From the moment I heard the Court's decision on DOMA, I've been just on the verge of emotional. Much as President Obama's public support of same-sex marriage and the growing number of states and foreign countries that have approved marriage equality recently, I never believed I'd see these giant steps taken in my lifetime.

To quote one of Virginia's Senators, Mark Warner:

Huge victories today, but more work to be done to ensure #MarriageEquality for all Americans.

So once again, love wins. And I believe, ultimately, it will keep winning. Love is love is love, no matter who does it.

Book Review: "The Execution of Noa P. Singleton" by Elizabeth L. Silver

No matter where you stand on the capital punishment debate, there's no denying the fact that a number of people sentenced to die for their crimes were actually innocent, wound up being convicted because of incompetent representation, or there was far more behind what they did than their court cases might have divulged.

While Elizabeth L. Silver's riveting The Execution of Noa P. Singleton doesn't truly approach capital punishment from these angles, these questions do come up. Noa Singleton is a convicted murderer, sentenced to death in a capital murder case. She doesn't deny what she did. She didn't testify on her own behalf during her trial, didn't offer much information to her attorneys during the laborious appeals process, and has essentially resigned herself to her fate.

Six months before her scheduled execution, she is visited by Oliver, an eager young lawyer representing a nonprofit organization, Mothers Against Death, and they are committed to blocking Noa's execution. Surprisingly, this nonprofit is headed by high-powered attorney Marlene Dixon, who happens to be the mother of the woman Noa was convicted of killing. Marlene tells Noa she has changed her mind about the death penalty and Noa’s sentence, and will do everything she can to convince the governor to commute the sentence to life in prison. But what Marlene wants is answers: why did Noa kill her daughter? What is her story?

For someone conditioned through a tumultuous life (somewhat of her own making) not to trust anyone, and someone whose true secrets have remained so for too long, Noa at first doubts Oliver and Marlene's motivations. But as she begins her recounting of her life and the events that led up to the murder, you begin to wonder who was truly at fault for Noa's turning out the way she did. Was there more to the murder and the trial then meets the eye? And, like Noa, you begin to wonder whether Marlene truly represents her last chance at avoiding death, if she were to want to in the first place.

Some of what unfolds in this book is surprising, some not so much if you've watched any episode of the Law and Order franchise. But that doesn't make the book less compelling, or Noa's character more mercurial. You can't figure out whether to feel sorry for her or loathe her for her actions until everything is divulged, and even then, you're still not 100 percent sure how you should feel.

While The Execution of Noa P. Singleton has the makings of a great beach read, especially for fans of legal thrillers, it's far more than that. It's the story of a woman buffeted by circumstances beyond her control, yet who chooses to cede control when she shouldn't. This is a good one.

An historic day...

Today the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments about Proposition 8 in California, which struck down marriage equality. When the Ninth Circuit Court and a district court in California subsequently overturned the voters' decision to ban same-sex marriage, supporters of the ban brought their case to the Supreme Court. While early analysis of the justices' questions point toward the possibility of a narrow ruling which might set aside Proposition 8 but not provide guidance as to marriage equality in other states, a decision is expected in June.

Tomorrow, the Court will hear arguments to overturn the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which limits the definition of marriage to being between one man and one woman. Briefs supporting the nullification of this law have been filed by countless people, from President Obama to professional athletes like football players Brendan Ayanbadejo and Scott Fujita, and countless entertainers. President Clinton, who signed the bill into law, has also called for it to be overturned. Four Democratic Senators—Senators Mark Warner (VA), Claire McCaskill (MO), Mark Begich (AK), and Jay Rockefeller (WV)—have publicly stated their support for marriage equality, as has Republican Senator Rob Portman (OH), whose son is gay.

As you might imagine, there is a tremendous amount of emotion surrounding these events. I never would have believed the Supreme Court would ever deign to discuss marriage equality, and I certainly would never have believed that I'd see a tweet from President Obama like this:

Seeing the photo of the tweet on Facebook earlier today made me a bit emotional, because as I've said a number of times already, when I was growing up and struggling with how to accept myself, I never would have believed a sitting president of our country would make me feel I was worthy of equality.

I am hopeful that the Supreme Court will ultimately rule with the best interests of the many and not the few, but I have a feeling their decisions will be so narrow that it will continue to be left up to the states to decide individually, and many states already have constitutional amendments in place banning same-sex marriage. I know history will at some point prove that opponents of marriage equality are on the wrong side of the argument, as were those opposed to civil rights, suffrage, and interracial marriage, but waiting for history to prove those wrong does the many of us wishing the same benefits as our fellow citizens small comfort. There is no reason we should bear the same burdens without the same advantages.

I leave you with a few images of the many that have been shared via the internet today. As I've said countless times, I fail to understand why people fear love between two people. Love builds us up, it lifts us up. Fear of that love only serves to tear us down.

Book Review: "Bear is Broken" by Lachlan Smith

As much as I love reading new books by my favorite authors, I really enjoy finding new writers, new voices to savor. Lachlan Smith is such a find, thanks to a recommendation from Amazon. His first thriller (the start of a series), Bear is Broken, might not break any new ground, but his characters are well-drawn and compelling, and I look forward to reading his future work.

It's 1999 in San Francisco. Leo Maxwell just found out he passed his bar exam. He has always lived in the shadows of his older brother, Teddy, a defense attorney beloved by the city's criminals and reviled by the police and those in positions of authority who have crossed his path. One day while Leo, Teddy, and his entourage are at lunch, just before Teddy is supposed to deliver closing arguments in a spousal abuse trial, he is shot in the head, in the middle of a crowded restaurant. Yet the shooting is so well executed (no pun intended), the shooter gets away without anyone seeing him. And Teddy lies in a coma, with a bleak prognosis—if he even survives.

Leo realizes that because Teddy made an enemy of the police, they're not too eager to track down the shooter. Torn between wanting to become the lawyer he knows he can be—like Teddy but perhaps without the questionable ethics—and wanting to find out who tried to kill his brother, Leo starts digging into some of Teddy's cases, and finds himself coming face to face with an odd assortment of clients and others with whom Teddy had relationships. At the same time, Leo struggles with his feelings for Teddy (who took care of Leo after their father was imprisoned for their mother's murder) and unresolved feelings for Teddy's ex-wife and ex-law partner, Jeanie.

The more Leo tries to uncover the truth, the more trouble he seems to find himself in, and the more uncertainty he faces. At points in the book, he's pretty much convinced everyone in Teddy's life had something to do with his attempted murder. But the scattershot approach to investigation doesn't help him—it only threatens his potential law career, and his life.

I really enjoyed the depth Lachlan Smith gave to Leo's character, and the way he fleshed out the details of his relationship with Teddy and others. While the outcome of the book isn't necessarily surprising, there was enough uncertainty about who to trust that made the book compelling the entire way through. And while there may have been one red herring too many (I guess Smith needed to set up some threads for the next book in this series featuring Leo), it didn't detract from the book's appeal.

This isn't quite a legal thriller, and it isn't quite a mystery, but it is a well-written and fascinating book, so if you like those genres, give it a try.

Book Review: "The Promise of Stardust" by Priscille Sibley

Wow. Here's a book that will make you think, and make you want to discuss it with others.

Matt Beaulieu has known his wife, Elle, since right after she was born when he was two, as their families were close friends. He's loved her since he was 17 and she was 15, and although they weathered many challenges to their relationship (there were years they barely spoke), they finally had everything they've always wanted—except a healthy baby.

One day everything changes. Elle sustains a severe brain injury in a freak accident and will never be able to recover. Knowing how much she feared being kept alive by machines after watching her mother die of cancer when Elle was a teenager, Matt prepares to take her off of life support. And then he finds out Elle is pregnant again, despite her inability to carry a baby to term. He knows how much this child would have meant to Elle, and how much she would have wanted to fight for it, but he faces a difficult decision—should he keep her alive on the off chance the baby is able to survive, despite the fact she never wanted to be kept alive in this way, or should he let her—and their unborn child—go?

Matt's decision is further complicated by the fact that members of his and Elle's families come out on both sides of the issue. Some want Matt to do everything he can to keep Elle alive, especially if there's a chance the baby can survive, while others feel he is contradicting Elle's most fervent wishes and is simply blinded by his grief. No one feels as strongly toward the latter than Matt's mother, Linney, who was Elle's godmother and her mother's best friend. Convinced she knows better than Matt what Elle would have wanted, this emotional battle is taken to the courtroom, where the case becomes a bellwether for pro-life and right-to-die advocates, and the effects ripple far beyond one family.

Switching back and forth between the present and reminiscences of Matt and Elle's relationship through the years, this is a thought provoking, emotionally powerful book. While it clearly leans toward one point of view on this issue, it doesn't discount the views of the other side, and it illustrates how the issue blurs the lines between whose interests should be thought of first and foremost in cases like this. Priscille Sibley has clearly done her homework, and she also has created a beautiful love story between Matt and Elle, one that choked me up from time to time.

Many of the reviews I've read of this book have likened it to a Jodi Picoult novel. While I don't think that's a necessarily negative comparison, I don't think it's entirely accurate either. Sure, at the heart of this book is the question about whether or not a woman should be kept alive if there's a chance she could deliver a healthy baby, but I feel that Matt and Elle's relationship, how they nurtured and challenged each other, is as much a focus of this book as the controversial issue.

In the end, I don't know if this book breaks any new ground, but that doesn't matter. For me, it was tremendously compelling (I read the entire book on a flight from Albuquerque to Washington, DC) and beautifully written, and that's more than enough. I don't know where you stand on this issue, but I'd encourage you to read this with an open mind—and a full heart.

It's Not Okay...

Time to get back on the soapbox.

In February 2008, 14-year-old Brandon McInerney killed his classmate, Lawrence King, because King, who was gay, allegedly teased McInerney repeatedly with sexual advances, and wore makeup and women's accessories to school. Three years later, McInerney was tried in a California court as an adult. While the prosecution alleged that this was a premeditated murder, as King had expressed his fears that McInerney might act violently toward him, the defense used the pathetic "gay panic" defense, saying that McInerney was "provoked" by King's repeated sexual advances.

And yesterday, the judge declared a mistrial. The jury voted 7-5 in favor of finding McInerney guilty of voluntary manslaughter, not first- or second-degree murder, which meant that seven jurors sided with the defense's version of events: that King's death was his own fault because he acted and dressed effeminately, and made sexual overtures toward McInerney.

While I'm not surprised by this result (except that the trial ended in a mistrial instead of an acquittal), I'm disgusted all the same.

Being gay is not an excuse for murder. It doesn't matter if Lawrence King wore makeup or called Brandon McInerney "baby." While those actions were misguided, they didn't justify McInerney's shooting King point-blank in the head.

Where does this second-class treatment stop? On an almost daily basis, gay people are verbally harassed and physically abused—sometimes seriously or even fatally—while they are walking on the street. Gay business owners or homeowners have had their property vandalized, even destroyed.

And rarely do the perpetrators pay the price. Judges, even when presented with overwhelming evidence supporting that anti-gay violence should be considered a hate crime, refuse to consider it as a possibility, nearly universally. And juries just don't seem to think that gay people are entitled to the same protections under the law that straight people are, as the majority of anti-gay violence cases end in the defendants being acquitted, or at least in mistrials.

Prosecutors will now have to decide whether to retry McInerney, although I'd be surprised if they do. It's sad to think that the legal system, built on guilt or innocence being determined by a jury of our peers, fails to protect gay people time and time again.

With peers like this, who needs enemies?

Answers to Questions We May Never Find...

In a verdict that rippled with the same level of shock as the decision in the initial OJ Simpson case, Casey Anthony was acquitted yesterday of murdering her two-year-old daughter Caylee three years ago. (Given the traffic the verdict received on Facebook yesterday, I can only imagine what the hours and days following the OJ verdict would have been like if social media were around then.)

The jury returned their decision after less than 11 hours of deliberation over two days. While there are many people—including some legal experts—who feel the jury made the right decision given the evidence the prosecution presented, most feel that the tragic end of Caylee's all-too-short life deserves some justice.

Casey Anthony lied to police, even partied and got a tattoo during the month Caylee was missing. She invented an imaginary nanny, whom she claimed Caylee was with, created a fictitious wealthy boyfriend, and even claimed that she and Caylee had been visiting the imaginary nanny after she was injured in an out-of-town car crash. And yet because the burden of proof remained with the prosecution, the defense's only task was to raise one iota of doubt with one juror to successfully protect their client.

While Anthony was convicted of lying, it is expected that she will be released from jail shortly given the time she has served. And while undoubtedly she will have the opportunity to tearfully tell her side of the story to every media outlet, perhaps "write" a book about her ordeal and even authorize the TV movie about the case, there are many questions for which we may never get answers.

What really did happen with Caylee?

Was her death an accidental drowning as the defense suggested, or did the chloroform and duct tape play a role?

What role did Casey's father really play in all of this?

Is Casey simply a sociopath who was able to party while her child was missing, or were her actions those of a highly stressed young woman trying to cope with unbelievable angst and sadness?

In the end, while Casey gets the chance to live her life freely, Caylee is dead. It doesn't matter who killed her or how she died, but clearly her life was not the beautiful one which all children should be entitled to.

And that is the saddest part of all. One can only hope that Casey has the sense to refrain from having another child, who might eventually inconvenience her life much as Caylee did.

Justice was served. Unfortunately, our legal system worked on the wrong person's behalf.