Publication Date: 28th March 2023
Genre: Contemporary Legal Thriller
4.5 Stars
One Liner: Super entertaining; Love it
Keera Duggan, the daughter of the reputed defense
attorney Patsy Duggan, is making a name for herself as a prosecution lawyer in
Seattle. However, she is back at her father’s law firm after ending a toxic relationship
with her former boss. Things aren’t great with her family either, and Keera
finds comfort in playing anonymous online chess and sharpening her
skills.
Vince LaRussa, an investment advisor, hires Keera’s
family law firm when he is suspected of his wealthy wife’s murder. Keera sees
this as a chance to establish herself but soon realizes she has to use all her
chess strategies to stay one step ahead and win the case. What’s more, Keera
may have to make some tough decisions that could affect her family, the law
firm, and her career.
With her former boss and lover as the prosecution
attorney, Keera knows the stakes are higher than ever, and there may not be a
second chance.
What I Like:
The book takes time to set the stage but does it
very well. We already know how Keera’s mind works by the time the actual case
is introduced. This makes it easy to read fast and enjoy the developments
too.
As a legal thriller, the focus is on courtroom
scenes and the backend work lawyers do. The police work complements the case
instead of overshadowing it. And I got strong Adaalat vibes (one of the
crime shows I binged on telly). Am I right or am I right? ;)
I really like how the author writes women. I was
impressed by Tracy Crosswhite’s character though I read only one book in the
series. Keera Duggan is also etched to be real and relatable.
The family dynamics also get some importance in the
book. Given how the law firm is run by Patsy and his daughter, this move to
present them as a dysfunctional yet loving family enriches the plot and
characterization.
Chess is an integral part of the book (I skimmed the
scenes as my knowledge of the game is the bare minimum) and shows the
importance of using one’s mind and wits to fight a case in court. Turns out the
author doesn’t even play chess. Very impressive!
Patsy’s alcoholism, its impact on the family, and
the subsequent changes in the family dynamics during the case have a natural
arc. Patsy isn’t just an alcoholic lawyer. He is a father who loves his
children. Never did I expect to like an alcoholic character this much. He made
me root for him.
Despite being a legal thriller, it doesn’t get heavy
on the jargon. Only the necessary terminology is used, and some of them are
explained in a natural flow. There’s even a Powerpoint presentation in one of
the scenes. Nothing more fun than reading about a systematic approach to things
(I love lists).
Miller Ambrose may seem like a stereotype, but he
nails it on the head. He’s a character readers would love to hate. I wish Keera
beats him in more cases.
I could guess the murder case and the connection
halfway through. However, I enjoy the process of logically revealing the
information to readers. I also think the author didn’t try to prevent the
reader from connecting the dots b deliberately misleading them or ‘pulling the
rug’.
What Could Have Been Better for Me:
Well… nothing much for me to rant about. But I still
got a couple of issues to talk about…
While repetition is expected in courtroom scenes,
the same seems unnecessary during the climax reveal. The conversation gets a
bit too long, with one character repeating information that has been already
presented multiple times. Since I figured out almost all of it, I just wanted
to get to the ‘how’ and ‘what next’ part of the story.
A certain diagnosis (for the lack of a better word)
doesn’t seem to be necessary. The character has already been established. This
didn’t add anything to it. In fact, I like it when characters can be who they
are without some sort of medical diagnosis to support it (trying hard not to
reveal spoilers).
To summarize, Her Deadly Game is easily one of the
best legal thrillers. It is entertaining, intriguing, and fun to read. I hope
the author turns this into a series. All main characters have the potential to
star in multiple books, especially Keera, Rossi, and Patsy.
Oh, the author’s note is one of my favorites. It’s a
letter from the author to the readers, and that’s how it is written.
Beautiful!
Thank you, NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer, for
the eARC.
#NetGalley #HerDeadlyGame
Sounds interesting
ReplyDeleteOh, yes! I enjoyed this one a lot. :)
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