MADRIANI FOR THE DEFENSEIt's been quite awhile since I read a really good courtroom drama and, revisiting Steve Martini's recurring character, Paul Madriani, was the perfect way to get back into the melee. Since I refer to myself as a RIO, (someone who reads series "in the order in which they were written"), this was officially the third book I've read in this series. I think I have to say that it was the best of the three thus far which is always promising. I love it when an author gets better and better. There's nothing worse than a great debut book followed by a good sophomore book and then going downhill from there. I can already see that this will not be the case with Martini. I had about 160 pages left to go in this book very late last night and refused to go to bed until I had finished it -- clearly the sign of a great book in my estimation. Every other review has pretty much given a synopsis of the storyline but, in one sentence, Madriani is defending his sister-in-law who has been accused of murdering her ex-husband's new, much younger, very pregnant, wife. Curiously enough, on the first page of this book, attorney Paul Madriani is thinking about his recently deceased wife Nikki and the promises he made to her before her death. Right away I'm thinking....did I miss something? She wasn't even ill in Prime Witness, the second book in the series. I guess Martini didn't like the way that marriage was unfolding so he gave her cancer. Bad for Nikki but actually better for the reader as Madriani is much better as a single father trying to take care of his young daughter Sarah in the evening while saving the lives of his defendants during the day. As a widower, this opens the door to some romantic dalliances, which adds another interesting layer to the main character's life. As in his previous books, Madriani still seeks the help of another attorney Harry Hind. These two make quite a good pair and I enjoy the way Harry handles things. If there's such a thing as a good lawyer, bad lawyer routine, Harry and Paul have this market cornered. Paul Madriani seems to be such a nice guy and is very adept at his job but there's always someone who has it in for him with some vendetta or another. In this book it's police officer Jimmy Lama, who makes it his business to throw roadblocks in the way providing some stumbling blocks for Paul as he makes his way towards unraveling this case. This series comes highly recommended by me. My only complaint with this book, and it's a minor one, is that Martini had the ending neatly tied up with quite a twist and I was very satisfied with it. In a matter of two or three pages, he fools the reader by throwing in yet another twist, one I wasn't particularly fond of and one I found unnecessary. Just my humble opinion, but come on Steve, how do you expect us to feel about this character in future books?
I am rereading Martini's Paul Madriani series and still find his courtroom scenes as the best I've read. Some ay be put off by the first-person, present tense narrative, but I think it adds to the drama, and it offers insight into the strategies Madriani makes.As the series progressed, however, Martini seems to have drifted away from the courtroom drama and instead focused on more conspiracy theory plots of terrorism and mayhem. Madriani was no longer just concerned with saving his client, he wanted to save San Diego, Washington or, ultimately, the world. I burned out after reaching his sixth or seventh book in the past. The first three or four, though, are still amazing reads. I'll reserve judgment on the rest once I get back to them again.There are a few knock-off writing techniques Martini uses that seem to get in the way, and that's why I dropped this to a four-star instead of the five it could deserve. He often writes how his characters "make faces" as responses to something. A few times it's okay. But after a while, I begin making the face "Not again" when I read it. In his first book, "Compelling Evidence," Martini often had his characters placing "their buttocks on the edge" of desks. It was enough buttock-fest that I took notice.Also, a small point in the ending of this. I won't do the spoiler thing that so many freak on, but there is a lapse in reality at the very end - a small detail - that in reality would not allow the climactic ending to continue. I have covered courts for newspapers for 30 years and an element that set things in motion in Undue Influence would not happen in reality.That aside, Martini is a far better writer than most legal fiction authors. He is comparable to the deep-plotting brilliance of John Lescroart and so far above the standard-setter of the beach-reading genre of Grisham. I look forward to continuing my delving into his books and I may have a different attitude toward the conspiracy stuff once I get into them as well.
What do You think about Undue Influence (1995)?
His very best, wonderful inventive plot with ultimate twist!We've nearly given up on Steve Martini several times. While we enjoyed his first novel, "Simeon Chamber", most of the others of his books we have read, including a couple others from the Defense Attorney Paul Madriani series, have been so incredibly dry during sluggish middle sections that we really should have quit them right there. However, this his fourth novel, and third Madriani, gets it completely right: good writing, one of the most clever plots we've ever encountered, sustained suspense and pace, and a story so engrossing we'll admit to staying up til three in the morning to get to the end!We don't want to reveal too much plot, but in short, Madriani is defending his sister-in-law Laurel on the charge of murdering her ex-husband's trophy wife. A custody battle for her two kids is an apparent motive, and the evidence all seems to look bad, including secrets Laurel won't even reveal to her defense team. Suspense builds as we join the courtroom audience for an entertaining fight with a female prosecutor with a chip on her shoulder, not to mention the main cop (Lama) who is a Madriani enemy. Things don't get sorted out until quite late in the book, yet we're on edge til nearly the very last page as twists and turns in the story line have us hustling through the pages at breakneck speed. A most unusual ending is our final reward! This book is as good as Scott Turow or John Grisham at their best. While we're still not totally Madriani fan club enthusiasts, this is surely one of the best books we've read in a long time -- and thus very highly recommended!
—Jerry
I think Martini is better than Grisham, particularly his courtroom scenes. In Undue Influence, Paul Mondriani is defending is sister-in-law, Laurel Vega, who has been accused of murdering the new wife of her erst-while husband, a state legislator who is under investigation by the feds for bribery. Laure|’s two children become pawns in a tense drama that pits her attorney unwittingly against the mob and a local police lieutenant who hates the contents of his abdominal cavity. The evidence against Laurel is overwhelming ,and the case has some neat surprises for the reader.
—Eric_W
Well, I have now read all the Paul Madriani books, and have read everything Martini has written, except for his very first book, The Simeon Chamber. I’ll read that sometime just for completeness sake I suppose. Anyway, this is the second book in the Madriani series, so it was a lot more about court intrigue and machinations than the “action adventure” stuff of the later novels. I personally enjoy the court stuff a lot more, but Martini is a good enough writer to pull off either style. As usual this one was a real page turner, and it had the most out of left field twist at the end that I’ve seen in his books. Looking back I guess there were some clues, but I was still going “What? Come on…no way.” when I got to the end at 3:00 this morning.
—Dan
