Nick Pellisante has made a career of taking down mafia bosses. A respected member of the FBI, he is finally seeing the worst of the worst, Dominic Cavello, brought to trial. Security is tight, and the tension, tighter. Cavello’s connections will make the judicial process near impossible.

Andie DeGrasse is a single mom who has been assigned jury duty for the Cavello case. She thought she’d be able to get out of serving, but she was wrong, and now she must look over her shoulder.

When things go devastatingly wrong, Andie’s life and Nick’s career are blown apart. A series of disasters lead Andie and Nick to undertake extreme measures in order to deliver Cavello a plateful of justice. The question is whether they’ll succeed, or die trying.

This novel encompasses the entire range of human expression: maternal love, unrelenting grief, blinding rage, vicious cruelty, crushing vengeance, and more. It is a powerful tale that will grab the reader by the collar and shake until there’s nothing left to give.

Nick’s perspective is told entirely in the first person, and the remaining characters are told from third person. While this doesn’t necessarily soften the impact of this story, it could be jolting to the average reader.

The writing quality is superb, as usual, with short chapters typical of Patterson. Fans of both Patterson and Gross will likely enjoy this novel, although the ending casts a long shadow over the main characters, Nick and Andie.

Recommended for readers who enjoy legal suspense infused with action and romance.

Reviewed by Christina Wantz Fixemer
6/8/2006

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