Sun 6 Feb 2011
Reviewed by LJ Roberts: SHELDON SIEGEL – Judgment Day.
Posted by Steve under Bibliographies, Lists & Checklists , Characters , Reviews1 Comment
Reviews by L. J. Roberts
SHELDON SIEGEL – Judgment Day. MacAdam/Cage, hardcover, June 2008; trade paperback: June 2010.
Genre: Legal thriller. Leading characters: Mike Daley & Rosie Fernandez; 6th in series. Setting: San Francisco/Bay Area.
First Sentence: The oldest man on death row is eying me from his wheelchair.
Attorney Mike Daley, in spite of a promise to his ex-wife and law partner Rosie Fernandez, takes on a death-row appeals case. Former powerhouse-attorney Nate Fineman, is due to die in eight days. He was convicted of killing three men in a Chinatown restaurant shooting, but he claims he is innocent and the gun was planted by the police.
Now Mike has not only to prove Nate’s innocence, but to find and identify the killer in order to prevent Nate’s execution. There is one slight conflict; Mike’s late father was one of the officers at the scene of the shooting.
Living in the Bay Area, I do love books set here and it is delightful to read of places I know or have been and people whose names are iconic with the area. But it is also nice that Siegel gets the geographic and atmosphere right as well.
Siegal has a great voice, writes realistic dialoque and uses humor well, but it’s his characters I particularly like. His people are … people; not over-the-top or infallible. Mike and his ex-wife Rosie work together, are occasionally intimate but can’t life together yet they make it work so they are both involved in their children’s lives.
The contrast between Mike and his ex-cop brother, Pete, is a study in contrasts and adds dimension to both characters. The story is very well plotted.
The element of time counting down is always effective and, although I don’t know how realistic they may be, I do particularly like the courtroom scenes. [An attorney friend tells me the courtroom scenes are very well done.]
Siegel is a writer whose books I very much enjoy and was pleased to learn there is a new book on its way.
Rating: Very Good.
The Mike Daley & Rosie Fernandez series —
1. Special Circumstances (2000)
2. Incriminating Evidence (2001)
3. Criminal Intent (2002)
4. Final Verdict (2003)
5. The Confession (2004)
6. Judgment Day (2008)
7. Perfect Alibi (2009)
February 6th, 2011 at 11:06 pm
As LJ says, and I’ll second her recommendation, the books in this series are an excellent combination of legal fireworks and solid, down-to-earth characters.
I’ve read the first four, but after that they may have stopped coming out in regular paperback, because those are the only ones I have. (I’m not sure about Number Five.)