Devil's Corner

The story is a nice mystery. There are many plot turns and Ms Scottoline has a great sense of humor that makes one laugh when the tension grows. Vicki and Rahema are strong characters. I have to strongly disagree with the prior reviewer. I thought the narrator was superb.

One reason I chose another Scottoline book was because I like the narrator. She does a superb job with the characters and I will continue to look for her books. Great job.

Already entrenched as one of the most popular authors of legal thrillers, Lisa Scottoline shows no signs of success lag. Her twelfth book, Devil's Corner, is once more headed by spunky, bright heroine, Vicki Allegretti, and peppered with trenchant dialogue. Vicki's the kind of gal who finds trouble wherever she looks, and determinedly faces it down. She packs a wallop and a gun, sometimes in her left coat pocket "where it could shoot out an ovary." Actress Barbara Rosenblat gives a strong vocal performance as Vicki allies herself with Reheema Bristow to break up a gang dealing in cocaine and death. Meeting an informant can be standard procedure for Vicki but when she shows up at the appointed time what she confronts is a loaded gun. By dint of determination and a lot of luck she escapes a bullet but two others aren't so fortunate. She's at a loss to understand why and how a routine meet turned into a massacre. Her investigation takes her to Philadelphia's sleazier neighborhood, one known as Devil's Corner, a haven for no one but dealers and thieves. It's easy to discover who deals; the big question is who's behind the dealers? A former trial lawyer and Edgar Award winner, Scottoline has delivered another rousing ride through places both low and high with the indefatigable Vicki exceeding the suspense limit at every turn. - Gail Cooke

This is the first book I've read by Lisa Scottoline but it sure will not be the last. She really knows how to breathe life into characters that are so often flat in books like this. Set in and around the legendary row house slums of Philly, Scottoline's hero is Assistant U.S. Attorney Vicky Allegretti. Vicky is new to to the U.S. attorney's office and finds herself inheriting a case left behind by the previous Assistant DA. She's investigating an illegal gun sale operation and along with her partner, an ATF agent named Morty, they visit an apartment complex to speak to an informant. Their visit interrupts a robbery, or so it seems and both Morty and the informant are shot dead. Vicky is determined to find the killer but she's stonewalled by her her boss as well as wrangling by various departments over who will handle the case. She comes in contact with a woman who may have been involved in the shootings. Certainly she was invloved in the sale of the illegal guns. Vicky attacks the woman after she won't cooperate and gets suspended from her job. Yet shortly later this woman, Reheema decides to help Vicky after he mother is killed. The two make for a typical odd-couple pairing but Scottoline handles the characters with such skill that it comes across very fresh and with a good deal of humor to boot. The pair take their investigation to the grimy and dangerous city streets to uncover a plot filled with unexpected twits and sub-plots involving the local drug traffickers in the area where Reheema's mother was killed. Devils' Corner takes full advantage of Scottolines legal expertise and knowledge of Philadelphia to write a story with plots and characters that are so true to life. Great book!

Lisa Scottoline has written a well-researched thriller whose scary subject matter is thankfully relieved by some well-placed comedic touches. The heroine, as indeed she is, is Vicky Allegretti, an Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA), who has also been a D.A. in the plot's location of Philadelphia. Vicki is a veritable dynamo when going after what she wants. In this case, the tale opens with Vicki and her ATF agent partner, Morty, coming into an apartment building to interview a Confidential Informant for a case about a woman caught reselling guns. Before they can meet with the CI, they hear shots fired, a young teenager comes down the stairs, and more shots are fired killing Morty. Vicki is also threatened by the gunman but the young teenager tells the shooter that she is a "cop" and to hurry and leave. The informant, a young black woman who was 8 months pregnant, is also found brutally murdered. Vicki feels that her office and police are not doing enough so she starts doing her own police work including re-interviewing the young woman accused of re-selling guns, Reheema Bristow. Vicki is suspended for a week as she gets too angry with Reheema during the interview and thus begins some free time for Vicki - maybe too much time to think and analyze the case. Vicki starts down a trail beginning with interviewing Reheema's mother, watching and taking notes about drug trafficking in the neighborhood, Devil's Corner, and ending up pairing up with Reheema who is released with charges dropped. Vicki's persistence in spite of pressure from her boss, his boss and her boyfriend and in spite of very serious danger makes for some very exciting chases and scenes. Vicki has amazing and sometimes frightening perseverance and drive. She is also great at analyzing and coming to the correct conclusions and bringing in law enforcement when needed. This thriller was very hard to put down as you never knew what might happen next and with the side story of Vicki's best friend/boyfriend Dan Malloy as well to add some romance it made the whole book a great read!! Very highly recommended!