Obstruction of Justice

Since this is the first Nina Reilly book I picked up, I have absolutely no complaints. I literally stumbled upon this book on a friend's bookcase, casually opened it up, and almost literally didn't put it down again until I had read the very last page.My only question is: Where have I been? Why had I not heard of this wonderful series, and its equally wonderful authors, sisters Mary and Pamela ("Perri") O'Shaugnessy? If this is, as some of the reviewers say, the "weakest" in the series, will I survive the strongest?The story takes place in scenic Lake Tahoe, where sleazy casinos vie with gorgeous mountains and stately pines for attention. The night are dark and starry, and the days...well it depends who you are. For struggling attorney Nina Reilly, who is living with her brother and sister-in-law when the book begins, the days are full of crime and conspiracy. So she decides to hike a nearby mountain with a man who interests her: deputy DA Collier Hallowell. Collier is still mourning his wife, killed a few years earlier by a hit-and-run driver who was never found. Nina has some vague idea of bringing him into the world of the living.But before that can happen, the two encounter a family that puts the word "dysfunctional" to shame. It consists of blustering Ray DeBeers, given to abusive language, his fearful wife Sarah, his gorgeous twins Jason and Molly, and a family friend. A storm comes up, Ray is hit by lightening and killed--and the action begins, not to stop until the very last word of the very last sentence. Was Ray's death really an accident? Is his death somehow connected with the death of Hallowell's wife? And what of the mysterious, ethereal artist Kim Voss, she of the indoor cactus garden? Add in a genuine grave-robbing, a mysterious gardeners, stolen cars, people who won't talk, people who talk too much, and a brilliant teen who may or may not be connected to the DeBeers family, and the action is fast and furious. Nina, her sidekick and sometime lover, PI Paul van Wagoner, Hallowell himself, Nina's Native American secretary and a host of lesser characters try to solve a mystery that simply compounds upon itself like a cancerous cell. In the end, nobody is untouched or unhurt by the actions that unwind at dizzying speed.I loved this book so much, I purchased everything else in the series I could get my hands on. Now my problem is: Do I go back to the beginning, and patiently catch up? Or do I read the next book in the series (whose teaser appears at the end of the paperback version), "Breach of Promise"? Stay tuned. This is one reviewer who is totally, happily, hooked.

Excellent reading. It kept you intrigued. I recommend it to all of my friends who love these types of books. I can't wait to read the rest of the books by the O'Shaughnessys.

I live here at the So. shore of Lake Tahoe. I have lived here for 25 years. "Obstruction of Justice" was the first book that I read. When I read that there was a murder at the north end of the Raley's parking lot, where the trees are, I thought, that can't be true. My husband has worked at that store for 22 years and there are no trees at the north end of the parking lot. I had to drive down there at 12:30A.M. to check it out! There are trees. So many of the details are absolutely right on! Very exciting.

T'ain't nobody can write like an Irishman, and O'Shaughnessy proves that in OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE, a page-turner (hope my own novel THE SHAPE is as good). Wonderful summer-time read.

Deputy District Attorney Collier Hathowell takes Tahoe lawyer Nina Reilly mountain climbing, expecting to have an enjoyable outing with her. Instead Nina inadvertently becomes involved in a situation that turns her life into danger and heartache. A sudden storm appears on the summit of Mount Tallic, forcing the pair to seek shelter. Fortunately, they find a place to protect them from the nasty elements. The other climbers are no quite as lucky as one of them is hit by lightening and plunges to his death. ...... The victim's death causes Collier to flash back to three years ago when his own spouse was murdered by an unknown hit and run driver. Nina realizes that her love interest needs time to close that period of his life before he can commit to someone else. She recommends that he hire her former suitor, private detective Paul Von Wagner, to investigate. Paul agrees to handle the case, but soon finds himself also working for Nina, whose client (the son of the person who died on the summit) has been accused of killing his grandfather. Nina receives no cooperation from her client or able to obtain information from his dysfunctional family. Nina soon finds herself being accused of OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE as she struggles to provide her client with the best defense possible even if no one else (including her client) seem interested. ....... There is double the pleasure and double the fun with this mystery within a mystery novel written by one of the rising stars in the legal procedural sub-genre, Perri O'Shaugnessy. This book, with two fast action story lines that works well together, provides readers with a roller coaster ride into the hearts and minds of all the characters. Ms. O'Shaugnessy is beginning to rival the great ones, Nancy Taylor Rosenberg and John Grisham, as she heads towards world wide recognition. OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE is a tale not to be missed as it showcases the talent of a future New York Times best selling author. .......Harriet Klausner