Move to Strike: A Novel (Nina Reilly)

Lake Tahoe attorney Nina Reilly's latest outing, finds the single mother still grieving over the murder of her husband ("Acts of Malice") and worrying over her son, subject, like herself, to horrifying nightmares of the killer still at large.When Nicole Zack, 16, a friend of Reilly's 13-year-old son, is accused of murdering her uncle while attempting a burglary, Reilly takes the case, though the troubled girl seems determined to thwart her through lies, stubborn silence, and even defiant courtroom dress.Reilly calls upon her ex-lover, private investigator Paul Van Wagoner, for help. Van Wagoner, struck by the coincidental death of the victim's son in a plane crash the same night, takes that angle but he's hampered by a terrible secret - unbeknownst to Reilly or anyone else, he killed the man who murdered her husband.Nicole and her hapless mother are sympathetically drawn and the story is an absorbing one with a surprise ending but the real meat here is the continuing development of Reilly, her pubescent son and Van Wagoner. O'Shaughnessy gets better with every book and this one will have you thinking about the next as you turn the last satisfying page.

Move to Strike is a worthy successor to Perri O'Shaughnessy's previous books. Nina is at the top of her form as she struggles to defend Nikki, a friend of her son's. Nikki, although a sympathetic character, is not a terribly likeable one, but her mother Daria, a total airhead, has driven her to take over the household. Uncle Bill, the victim, is a totally reprehensible character; his widow Beth, Daria's sister, appears to have some sort of hidden agenda. I found Paul's investigation of the plane crash which killed Beth & Bill's only child, Chris, one of the most fascinating aspects of this book. The killer and the motive did surprise me. I wish there had been a little more of the courtroom action. I couldn't put it down.

Single mother, and attorney, Nina Rielly is struggling to raise her teenage son, and run her law firm when her son's best friend, Nikki Zack is accused of murdering her uncle.Nikki is a tough, rebel type girl, living with her mother, Daria. The Zack's don't have much, so Nikki has the idea of going to her uncle Bill, a wealthy plastic surgeon, and stealing one of his many precious items. Nikki's uncle is killed when she is at his house, and one of his neighbors, witnesses her running from the yard.Nina is not sure she wants this case...Nikki is not very cooperative, and the strange behavior of Daria, and Nikki's aunt Beth puzzles Nina. Beth was Bill's wife, and on the same night her husband was killed, so was her nineteen year-old son Chris. Nina enlists the help of one time lover and private investigator, Paul Van Wagoner, to look into the plane crash that killed Chris.As Nina and Paul get deeper into this case, they find out Bill was not very well liked, and Nikki may have seen something the night of the murder."Move To Strike" is an exciting entry in the Nina Reilly series; the pacing fast, the characters real and likable, and the plot surprising.Perri O'Shaughnessy are two sisters that have created a fresh, original character in Nina Reilly, and they always come up with interesting plots for this legal thriller series.An entertaining read for fans, and new comers to the series.Nick Gonnella

In my community, among us avid mystery readers, the release of the the "latest" book in Perri O'Shaughnessy's Nina Reilly series is an eagerly anticipated event. This annual reunion with Nina Reilly, Paul van Wagoner, Sandy Whitefeather, Bob Reilly and Nina's brother, Matt, and sister-in-law, Andrea, is much like spending time with "old friends" and catching up on their latest trials, tribulations and exploits. Even so, this sixth book, MOVE TO STRIKE, is far more than a welcome visit with people we've come to know and love. It's a fast-moving story shot through with action, suspense and psychological turmoil. Nikki Zack may have murdered her uncle, Bill Sykes; she may have caused a plane crash that killed two people; and she may be mixed up in a mysterious mining claim. But when Nina Reilly's son, Bob, insists his friend, Nikki, is innocent, intrepid defense attorney, Nina, takes on Nikki's problem-ridden defense. Masterful both at making minor characters memorable and major characters unforgettable, O'Shaughnessy brilliantly draws the reader into Nikki Zack's nightmare by making this stubborn, smart-alecky and rebellious teenager both likable and sympathetic and then spices up an already delicious plot by mixing in Paul van Wagoner's struggle to deal with his prior act of vigilantism. A satisfying "read" that's sure to please both long-time devotees and newcomers alike, MOVE TO STRIKE is yet another tour de force that will undoubtedly insure Perri O'Shaughnessy's preeminence among today's mystery writers.

Nina Reilly remains grieving the loss of her husband seven months ago and though she feels the killer may return, she knows she and her son Ben must get on with their lives. Insomnia plagues her so she heads into the desert seeking peace. One night while wandering out there, she sees a plane followed by a flash of light as the aircraft obviously exploded.At approximately the same time as the crash, someone murders plastic surgeon Bill Sykes using a sword from the doctor's collection. The police arrest the victim's niece teenager Nikki Zack, a friend of Ben, for the killing. Ben persuades his mother to represent Nikki in court. Nikki was near her uncle when an unknown person killed him. She hid in the bushes by the nearby swimming pool until it was safe to leave. However, she left her blood at the scene. Nikki's cousin died in the plane incident, leaving Nina believing a tie exists between the two events.Perri O'Shaugnessy is a fantastic writer of action-packed legal thrillers that allows the non-attorney to understand the legalese while enjoying an exciting tale. In MOVE TO STRIKE, the suspects seem endless as each one has a powerful reason for killing the doctor. Nina is a superb character whose basic honesty and goodness make for a strong individual, but whose flaws make for a real and likable person. Fans of Nancy Taylor Rosenberg will not want to miss this winner.Harriet Klausner