Final Witness: A Novel [Hardcover]

Simon Tolkien (Author), J. K. Lambert (Designer)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 24, 2002

The grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien makes a thrilling debut as a novelist in this suspenseful courtroom drama that will have you guessing to the very end.

“Don’t let the author’s last name confuse you, for there are no Hobbits in this debut novel by the grandson of J.R.R. Tolkien, only a wonderful story of family, relationships, and suspense. . . . Part English cozy, part family saga, part courtroom drama, this genre-bending work of fiction is touching and enchanting.” —Booklist (starred review)

“The book is fast-paced and crisply plotted, with Tolkien elegantly piecing together the different perspectives and introducing unexpected twists.” —Publishers Weekly

“Tolkien’s skill as a storyteller is worthy of notice in this taut, well-paced legal thriller. The excellent courtroom drama and well-drawn, believable characters make this a good choice. . . . With an easily recognizable surname, a formidable Oxford education, and a successful career as a London barrister, the grandson of the author of The Lord of the Rings is bound to create a stir with this debut novel.” —Library Journal

One summer night, two men break into an isolated manor house and kill Lady Anne Robinson. Her son, Thomas, convinces the police that his father’s beautiful personal assistant sent the killers, but Thomas is known for his overactive imagination, and he has reasons to lie.

Thomas’s father, Sir Peter Robinson, the British minister of defense, refuses to believe his son. Instead, he marries his assistant, Greta Grahame, and will be giving evidence for the defense at her trial. He will be the final witness.

Author Simon Tolkien successfully combines legal suspense and psychological tension in this sharply etched portrait of four people whose lives are changed by a murder. Alternating between the trial in London’s Central Criminal Court and private moments among the characters, Tolkien expertly describes the art of the trial, the clash between Britain’s social classes, and, most notably, the complexity of family relations.

Who is telling the truth—the new wife or the bereaved son? What will Sir Peter tell the court? With tantalizing ambiguity, Tolkien keeps readers guessing about the true motivations of these characters until the final witness.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

A British teenager accuses his stepmother of conspiracy in his mother's murder in Tolkien's absorbing if uneven debut legal drama. The book pits 16-year-old Thomas Robinson against the beautiful, social-climbing Greta Grahame, who married Thomas's father, Sir Peter Robinson, a prominent politician, soon very soon after Lady Anne Robinson was killed. Thomas, who witnessed his mother's murder by two armed robbers, alleges that Greta was behind the killing. His courtroom testimony alternates with Greta's, and with a third-person narrative that at times contradicts both of the witnesses and keeps the reader in suspense. As Tolkien spins his tale, he explores the tense relationship between Greta, formerly Sir Peter's personal assistant and a working-class Manchester girl, and the well-born Lady Anne. The book is fast paced and crisply plotted, with Tolkien elegantly piecing together the different perspectives and introducing unexpected twists. Yet the characterizations are quite thin and stereotyped, and Tolkien relies on elaborate physical descriptions and heavy-handed, oft-repeated epithets ("green-eyed Greta" or a police officer's "sinister smile") to fill in the gaps. Readers may also be disappointed by the ending; after all those nail-biting twists, characters turn out to be more or less as they initially seemed, and tidy reconciliations strain credibility. Still, this is a promising first effort from Tolkien; one hopes that in the future he will be able to handle his characters as masterfully as he does the plot mechanics.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

With an easily recognizable surname, a formidable Oxford education, and a successful career as a London barrister, the grandson of the author of Lord of the Rings is bound to create a stir with this debut novel. Sir Peter Richardson has it all: a country house, a promising career in government as the British minister for defense, and a young, bright, and very ambitious personal assistant, Greta Grahame. Sir Peter's fatal flaw is that he neglects his wife and young son, Thomas, while focusing on his job and his personal assistant. Greta is from the working class, and Lady Anne resents her as much as Greta envies Lady Anne's finery, social position, and husband. Soon, there is a break-in at House of the Four Winds, and the intruders kill Lady Anne while Thomas watches from a nearby hiding place. Meanwhile, Greta seizes the opportunity to become the next Lady Richardson. Still grieving for his mother and certain of Greta's involvement in her death, Thomas convinces the police to pursue the case and does a bit of sleuthing on his own. Tolkien's skill as a storyteller is worthy of notice in this taut, well-paced legal thriller. The excellent courtroom drama and well-drawn, believable characters make this a good choice for popular fiction collections.
Susan Clifford Braun, Aerospace Corp., El Segundo, CA
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 283 pages
• Publisher: Random House; 1st edition (December 24, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375508821
• ISBN-13: 978-0375508820
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,869,261 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book--Mr. Tolkien please write another!, January 10, 2003

By 

S.C. (Providence, RI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Final Witness (Audio Cassette)

I thoroughly enjoyed "Final Witness" by Simon Tolkien. Right from the beginning I loved this book and wanted to get a note to Mr. Tolkien asking that he finish another novel asap. It's suspenseful, and the story line and characters are well developed. The author takes the reader alternately from court scenes, to the murder scene and to past and present events in the characters' personal lives weaving together a story that kept me at the edge of my seat.

I was leary about buying the audiobook because it is read by the author and I've been disappointed more than once when I've bought books read by their authors. I was pleasantly surprised
to find he has an enjoyable reading voice and accent.

I highly recommend "Final Witness"!

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great british courtroom drama, one for pbs, April 24, 2006

By 

lisatheratgirl "lisatheratgirl" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Final Witness (Mass Market Paperback)

First I have to say that the reviewers (some at Random House) that compared this author to his grandfather, JRR Tolkien, are comparing potatoes to mangoes. Not only do many families have more than one talented author, but these two are writing in completely different genres. If you're into fantasy and Lord of the Rings, this may not be for you. But Simon Tolkien is a British barrister practicing criminal law and he knows what he is talking about. As a lifetime fan of Rumpole of the Bailey (and a one-time visitor to the Old Bailey) I looked forward to this book.

Here is why it rates over and above the conventional mystery or police procedural. Most mysteries are written from the point of view of the detective or other person investigating a crime, usually murder. The reader guesses who did it by process of elimination, although many authors put a good twist at the end. This book is written from the different points of view of all the characters, each of whom is trying to put himself in the best possible light. It's a lot trickier to figure out who is guilty, who is innocent, who is lying, who is mentally unbalanced. The suspense builds up with the minutes counting down to the final witness, after whose testimony no new evidence can be introduced. The lawyers and police are in the background. The case centers on the family members, who are not exactly likable people. The story begins with a terrifying incident and builds to a frightening climax. I think Mr. Tolkien has done an excellent job with this first novel and I will look for more.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A legal thriller with a difference, January 30, 2003

By 

ANTHIE ZACHARIADOU - See all my reviews

This review is from: Final Witness: A Novel (Hardcover)

Although this is mainly a courtroom drama, there is a blend of other genres too, making this a very individual novel. It is part literary prose, part action thriller, part old-fashioned English mystery, part family saga to name a few issues. It combines various settings, from an old aristocratic mansion to cosmopolitan London, to dirty gangways and alleys. There is however a classic mystery structure, which is not lost in the study of various relationships (father-son, wife-husband, the ingenuous man and the seductive woman and many others). It is an intricate and multi-level story that offers enjoyment as well as serious reflection. I found that the author's ability for character development was amazing - an example is that although the accused has all the characteristics of a typical evil manipulative beautiful woman, she is often portrayed as sweet and vulnerable, arising a mixture of emotions in the reader. I reccommend this book to anyone who likes their mysteries complex and thought-provoking rather than action-based.