Bad Lawyer [Hardcover]

David Cray (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 2001 | Series: An Otto Penzler Book

Sid Kaplan once had it all: a dynamic career in criminal law, success, celebrity, lots of money, and enough arrogance to alienate practically everybody he knew. So no one wept for Sid when booze and cocaine plummeted him to hell. Only now a big case has fallen into Sid's lap, a case that, Sid thinks, can take him back to where he was and wants-no, deserves-to be. Thelma Barrow, a Queens housewife, has sought out Sid to defend her accused daughter, Priscilla, in a media-hot murder case. For Sid, the publicity more than compensates for the pittance Thelma can afford to pay, as the news headlines stories of drugs and violence and an abused white woman who has done in her black husband. Nor is Sid disinclined by the fact that the white woman is a babe-an ice-cold babe who's probably lying about more than a little, but a babe nevertheless. It's when drug dealers show up and insist that Priscilla is holding out on them with $450,000 of their money that matters begin to get more criminally perilous. Then Sid's two roommates-the only friends he's managed not to lose-are killed in an attempt to make Sid himself cough up the dough. Obviously, the case in this gritty, masterfully crafted crime novel is getting to be far more complex, and deadly, than anyone, especially Sid, ever imagined it could be.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Sid Kaplan is a fallen-from-grace Manhattan lawyer whose career self- destructed after drugs and booze chased him all the way to the bottom of the barrel. After a long battle to become sober and regain his self-respect, he's eking out a living in a crummy one-man office when a big case comes his way. The client, Priscilla Sweet, is accused of murdering her husband, a drug dealer whose bloody death is not in dispute. But Priscilla's motives are. Is she an abuse victim who pulled the trigger in self-defense or a crafty villain who killed her husband for money? Sid's not sure, but the prospect of a juicy trial sure to garner headlines (and new clients) makes him put his misgivings aside and take the case. With the help of Julia and Caleb, the two friends and associates who stuck by him during the bad times, he sets out to clear Priscilla and win back his reputation. But the more he learns, the more he wonders whether Priscilla is all she says she is. When his best friends are killed, he digs even deeper. Priscilla is the most interesting character in the book; multifaceted, by turns winning and chilling, she drives David Cray's second gritty, well- crafted thriller (after Keeplock) to a truly shocking conclusion worthy of O. Henry. Even after reading and rereading the penultimate chapter, the coup de grâce meted out in the courtroom doesn't completely make sense. But that won't keep it from lingering in the mind long after the final sentence. --Jane Adams

About the Author

David Cray is the pseudonym of someone who knows a great deal about crime and bad lawyers. He is also the author of KEEPLOCK. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Carroll & Graf Publishers; First edition (March 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786708255
• ISBN-13: 978-0786708253
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,092,931 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read!, May 11, 2001

By 

Roz Levine - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bad Lawyer (Hardcover)

Manhattan criminal defense attorney, Sid Kaplan, lost everything, his big law practice, money and fame when drugs and booze sent him from the pinnacle of his career to the very bottom of the barrel. Now sober, he's spending his days plea bargaining and defending petty criminals. What he wants is a chance to be on top again. He needs a high profile, big media case to get him started and one walks in the door. Pricilla Sweet is accused of killing her dope dealing husband. She's claiming self defense, he beat and abused her for years. The police say it was cold blooded murder, she was skimming profits and wanted the drug business and money for herself. Sid realizes early on that Pricilla isn't telling him everything, some things don't add up and there are holes in her story. But, it's the right case; he knows he can win this one and it will be his ticket back to the top. When drug dealers show up at his office demanding their "stolen" money, 150 large, the case takes on a whole new deadly dimension and winning may turn out to be the least of Sid's problems..... David Cray has written a suberb legal thriller that has it all...compelling, intricate plot, vivid, riveting scenes and terrific, original characters with strong voices. His writing is spare and gritty and Mr Cray has a wonderful ear for dialogue. With suspenseful twists and surprises and a stunning ending that will knock your socks off, Bad Lawyer is a novel that mystery/thriller fans shouldn't miss.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars a dark moody book that depresses, March 30, 2001

By 

Pete Robinson "mprob1996" (Columbus, Georgia USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bad Lawyer (Hardcover)

This book had a flat, unappealing style that depressed rather than entertained the reader. It was very, very cynical and failed to excite me as it progressed. it became a chore to finish.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HARD TO PUT DOWN, October 31, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Bad Lawyer (Hardcover)

This was a great read and very tough to put down. Cray did a fantastic job of creating wonderful characters like Sid Kaplan that seemed to come to life on the page.