The Tenth Case

There are times when I swear that I learn most of what I know from murder mysteries. Like this one. I've read three or four mysteries since this and critiqued the courtroom scenes from what Jaywalker (or Teller) says and does. This alone wouldn't make the book really good, of course. But it's funny, irreverent, with a plot that holds together through a second reading. I love the client, especially when she gives the prosecutor a lesson on terms used in Las Vegas regarding interpersonal relationships and dating. Teller takes chances here that don't violate the "play fair with the reader" conventions but still come as a surprise.

"The Tenth Case" refers to the "final" case Jaywalker has been allowed to finish before he is suspended for using "creative" techniques in his defense of his clients. A brilliant defender, Jaywalker wins more cases than any other defenders because he is willing to go the extra mile to make certain his client - guilty or not - is given the best defense possible, with the shot to walk free. His final case is a corker, however - a young trophy wife who was previously known to accept gifts and money for her "services" is suspected in the death of her much older husband. A knife covered with blood, a bloody towel and one of her blouses, with blood on it, are all found in her townhouse. Her husband is found murdered in his own city apartment, the door locked from the inside and the last person to have visited him being ... his wife. It looks like an open and shut case, but the wife insists on her innocence, claiming she has been framed. What follows is quite a ride. For those who enjoy a good mystery, a courtroom drama and more twists than I-90 going over the mountains in Montana, you won't be disappointed. Pick up this most enjoyable book and read your heart out!

Everything about this book was enjoyable. I liked the main character, an attorney, who was willing to break some rules, in order to best defend his clients. I enjoyed how the attorney dealt with his upcoming suspension, and mostly I liked the interaction with his final client. I found the book had just enough comic relief to keep it from getting too serious, while keeping to the framework of a going through his client's trial. The storyline stayed on track and the ending had enough twist and turns to keep a mystery reader like myself happy.

If you are a fan of the "legal thriller" genre, I highly recommend that you read this book. There are two types of legal thrillers. In the first, the lawyer (and/or one or more others) is in peril and the suspense comes from that danger. The other centers on a case and the suspense comes from wondering how the case will turn out. This book is an excellent example of the latter type. From what I can tell it is the author's first novel. His bio at the back of the book indicates he spent 35 years as a criminal defense attorney. That experience shows in this book. I look forward to his next book, due in April 2009. Harrison J. Walker, known to all as Jaywalker, is a very good attorney from his clients' perspective. He has an amazing acquittal record. But he is a very bad attorney from the ethics board's perspective. For various infractions, he is given a three-year suspension of his law license. But he is allowed to "dispose of" 10 cases before his suspension begins. This book, as the title suggests, is about the tenth and final case. In many courtroom dramas, the defense lawyer is convinced of the client's innocence and spends the novel trying to find the real culprit. In this novel, Jaywalker's client, Samara Moss Tannenbaum, is a young and very pretty woman accused of stabbing and killing her much older, very wealthy husband. The evidence against her is overwhelming; Jaywalker believes she is guilty despite her repeated denials and inability to explain away the evidence. But he does not change his depth of dedication to getting his clients acquitted based on whether or not they are guilty so he puts all his skill into what he feels is the 1-in-10 completely unwinnable case. Often courtroom dramas told from the defense side make the prosecutor be the bad guy, with underhanded tactics, a lousy personality or outright fraud on the court. But Jaywalker's adversary is a prosecutor who is one of the "good guys." He doesn't use dirty tricks and shares mutual respect with Jaywalker. Many parts of the courtroom scenes are formatted like a trial transcript with the characters name then what he or she said. This made those sections read like a trial, not cluttered with "he asked" and "he saids." The suspense, obviously, is whether Samara is really innocent and if she is, who killed her husband and planted all that evidence to make her look guilty. Or whether Jaywalker will manage to acquit a guilty murderer. The pre-trial preparation and the trial itself unfold in a skillfully written manner. I could barely stand to put the book down. Based on this book, I think Joseph Teller has a good future as a novelist and I will add him to my "must read" list.

The Judicial Panel informs Harrison J. "Jaywalker" Walker that he will be suspended from practicing law for three years. He pleads with the members to give him time to finish his cases. They tell him to pick 5; a do-gooder he offers 17; that is trimmed back to 10. Over the next nine months he completes nine of his cases. His last client is twenty something Samara Morsi; she who allegedly killed her sexagenarian multi-billionaire spouse with a knife through his heart. The evidence overwhelming points to her having murdered her husband of eight years to inherit his money and collect on insurance. As he begins to believe she did the crime, he feels certain he will go out a loser; his ninety plus acquittal rate meaningless. Still Jaywalker struggles to give his best even as his client refuses to say anything except she is innocent. THE TENTH CASE is a fabulous legal thriller starring an interesting attorney whose outlook on defending his clients is much different than the typical literature lawyer. Besides a fascinating lead, the courtroom sequences and other legal wrangling that make up much of the novel will grip the audience as both Jaywalker and ADA Burke are consummate professionals. This is must reading for sub-genre fans. Harriet Klausner