The Murder List

Almost lawyer Rachel North is married to superstar defense attorney Jack Kirkland and she dreams of being his partner in their own law firm, finding justice for the accused. First though she needs to complete an internship and she has chosen Jack's most hated rival, Assistant District Attorney Martha Gardiner as her new mentor.

In The Murder List by Hank Phillippi Ryan this internship creates strife in the family. Rachel knows how much Jack hates to lose cases, so she decides to go "undercover" and work as an intern with Gardiner to find her weaknesses and relay them back to Jack. Such a smart idea, she thinks, guaranteed to lead to success in the future. (The Murder List will be released by Tom Doherty Associates on August 20.)

The story is told in two time periods. The first is when Rachel worked as Chief of Staff for Senate President Tom Rafferty including her experience on a murder case jury in which Jack was the defense attorney and the second portion covers her time as an intern with Gardiner.

Of course Gardiner knows who Rachel is and pointedly makes comments about Jack, just to keep Rachel on her toes. She drags her to the site of a murder on the first day of Rachel's internship and uses every opportunity to keep her unbalanced.

Finally after several weeks, Rachel feels she is making strides with Gardiner and she relaxes into her own scheme of finding weaknesses. But there's a cat and mouse game going on with Rachel thinking she is outsmarting Gardiner. But who is the cat and who is the mouse?

A twisting, turning, spin you on your head plot that then freaks you out with the shocking ending. Don't miss this book. It is Hank Phillippi Ryan at her most devious.



Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

Trust Me

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There are two sides to every story, but when one side changes the telling of the story every time you hear it, it's difficult to know what the truth is and what is fiction. In Trust Me by Hank Phillipi Ryan, Mercer Hennessey has been wordlessly ticking off the days in the steam of her shower since her husband and daughter were killed in a car accident.

She has pretty much blocked out life for the last 18 months and is surprised to hear about the "Trial of the Century" being held in Boston. When her friend and former editor convinces her to  write the inside true story of the gruesome crime - the murder of Baby Boston, Mercer is not convinced. She knows she needs to get back to work, but sometimes the struggle is too difficult.

When Katherine explains Mercer can watch the courtroom testimony through the same feed the TV stations are using, Mercer realizes she doesn't even need to leave her house to watch. The video equipment is brought to her the next day.

Of course with all the pretrial publicity, everyone is convinced the mother, Ashlyn Bryant, is guilty and will be convicted.

Day after day Mercer watches the video feed and diligently writes what she thinks happened in the case. Her book is almost complete, call she needs is the guilty verdict. After the verdict is announced, Mercer's entire life is turned upside. She begins to doubt everything she believed in and before long isn't sure who she can trust, including her editor.

An diabolical tale of duplicity and lies and much more. Trust Me, you need to read this book.