Customer Reviews

In Her Defense

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

In Her Defense, Stephen Horn's debut novel, is a compelling legal thriller you won't be able to put down, no matter how hard you try. The story begins as Frank O'Connell, down on his luck defense attorney, is hired to represent Ashley Bronson, rich Washington socialite, accused of murdering an old family friend. To make her defense even trickier, Ashley admits to pulling the trigger. From this point on, the story pulls you in and never lets go. This is a fast paced, exciting, plausible thriller with plot twists that keep you guessing to the very end. The characters are terrific, well drawn and interesting. And, the writing is very entertaining, with witty and irreverent dialogue. Mr. Horn obviously knows his way around Washington, the Justice Department and the courtroom and his insight lends real credibility to the story. A strong climax and satisfying ending finish the story off and the last chapter is just icing on the cake. A great read that's destined for the best sellers list. I'm already looking forward to Stephen Horn's next book.

Legal thrillers are pretty much of a sameness--young, beautiful damsel in distress, down-on-his luck attorney, twists, turns, yawns. In Her Defense includes all these elements with the exception of the yawns and the addition of a genuinely likable protagonist. I admit to enjoying this book a great deal inspite of my reservations for the genre in general. Frank O'Connell's relationship with his ex-father-in-law is terrific and his "operatives," wonderfully, are people I would like to meet.

The flaw--and it's not a small one--is that Ashley Bronson is a complete throw-away. (Writers and publishers take note: the client needs to be neither young nor beautiful. In fact, if a book's dustjacket or blurbs include "beautiful" in a character's description, I won't buy it.) Anyone or anything, including goldfish that provide haircuts at reduced rates, would have been more interesting in place of Ashley, the obligatory femme fatale.

Having said that, however, I still recommend In Her Defense as an interesting, fast-paced legal thriller with very human and appealing characters (save one), and great plot twists. I hope to see more from this author.

Stephen Horn's In Her Defense is as good as the best of Turow, Patterson, Grisham or other established authors of legal thrillers. The characters are fresh and funny and appealing, and the well researched plot has interesting twists and is more plausible than most. It's a fun read. I bought it expecting to take it on a trip but read late to finish it in one sitting. I recommend this book without reservation to anyone who likes this genre or is interested in trying it out. And I'll by the next Stephen Horn book without even reading the blurb.

his second novel, and I caught up with his first, "In Her Defense", recently. The book is a great read. The legal plot is complex and takes a simple case of murder and mixes it with a government plot. You're not sure who the bad guy is until the very end! One thing you do know is that Horn's hero, Frank O'Connell, is a principaled attorney who has left the comfortable life of his father-in-law's law firm in order to pursue criminal matters, his passion from his days in the NYC D.A.'s office.

No one, not Frank's estranged wife Moira, his son, his beloved father-in-law, a Washington D.C. "fixer", his client, or his investigator really understands what makes Frank tick, and why he's pursuing the kind of court appointed criminal cases he's taken. Enter a society homicide, complete with ethical temptations, and O'Connell & the story are off and running.

Fast paced, great characters, and the promise of more to come from Frank O'Connell make "In Her Defense" a worthy read!

What a great book- perfect timing because it is a fun summer read! The plot of this book involves and attorney and his client, but unlike other legal thrillers I have read, this book had a very realistic story line. The plot revolves around an attorney who is seperated from his wife, and is defending a woman who is accused of murder. There are lots of plot twists, and I won't spoil the ending, but I couldn't put the book down, and was really sorry to see it end. I only hope there is a sequel out soon! Don''t miss this one--you will love it.

A wonderful first book from an author with obvious promise. I loved the book and found the story to be original and creative and the characters well developed. I especially like Moira. She epitomizes how all x-wives should be and proved how important a good relationship is not only for her son but for everyone! There was great depth and intrigue to this story and I wanted more after I had finished the book. I am looking forward to his next book!

"In Her Defense" is a fresh, smart, and fun approach to an old favorite: the murder mystery. There are twists and turns at every corner, keeping you guessing what the next page will bring. The more I got into it, the harder it was to put down. What a great book! I'm looking forward to more from Stephen Horn!

Frank O'Connell has lost his family, his name, and a partnership in his father-in-law's prestigious Washington firm. He now has to comb the cellblocks for clients. One day while he is down in the cellblocks talking to a client, a woman in the next cellblock notices Frank, and when she gets out of jail, she goes to him and hires him.

Ashley Bronson is the client and she is accused of killing Raymond Garvey, former Secretary of Commerce. In the beginning, it appears to Frank that the most difficult thing about the case is that Ashley confessed. He soon finds out that there is more to this case that meets the eye, and it started years before the murder.

This is Stephen Horn's first novel and what a great read it is. This is not just your typical mystery. There are Russian American spies involved. The courtroom scenes were as up and down as a roller coaster. This was a fast-paced legal thriller with a tale of betrayal and murder all wrapped up in one suspenseful story.

Kudos to Stephen Horn. I cannot wait for his second book.

Stephen Horn's first novel has one of the best scenes I have ever had the pleasure to read and visualize. In Chapter 10, the main protagonist, Frank O'Connell, a somewhat down-and-almost-out lawyer, who also happens to be a Vietnam combat veteran, takes on a very snooty, highly pretentious old school attorney by the name of Robert L. Burnside. O'Connell puts the ol' sourpuss neatly in his place after sitting through a sermon of threats by this blowhard barrister to sue our hero for slander. You can almost see the sweat on Burnside's brow and smell the soiling of his neatly pressed pants when O'Connell finishes with him. John "Lilly" Lelankevitch of Evil, Be Gone would really like Frank O'Connell. This book is worth buying just to read this scene (pages 148 to 153).

Not since John Grisham's early work A Time To Kill have I read a book that tells the tale from the standpoint of a real trial lawyer.

We meet Frank O'Connell, a criminal lawyer with a doubtful future, largely the result of his own pride and arrogance. Handling CJA (Criminal Justice Act) cases in the DC Superior Court, Frank manages to insult a young corporate litigator assigned to appear for the celebrity defendant of the year, the lovely Ashley Bronson, painter and self-admitted killer.

This chance meeting proves fateful as she appears in Frank's office to retain him. Only a trial lawyer would understand his response when she hands him a list of defense counsel and asks if he is as good as the people whose names are on the list. "Yes" he replies, never looking at the list.

We learn that the prosecutor is pro, two Yale degrees, and three prosecutions so important that the courtroom artists sketch of him in action hang in his office. Frank fails to flinch, despite his modest circumstance. It is only then we learn of his own sterling credentials, the Manhattan DA's office, thirtysomething murder trials (all convicted) and the head of the white-collar crime section before moving to Washington to join his father-in-law's bigtime practice, only to leave as his marriage crumbled.

What follows is the perspiration of trial practice, punctuated by sudden insights, and luck-both good and bad. Consumed by the desire to win, the need to win, Frank prepares himself for the battle. Like every good trial lawyer, he never gives up, he never commits to a strategy so completely he cannot revise or abandon it on a dime, he never loses faith in his ability to deliver a verdict in the courtroom (well almost never).

I enjoyed it greatly.