Customer Reviews

Judging Time (April Woo Suspense Novels)

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A couple die outside a restaurant one night. They're friends who were having a late dinner together. Merrill Liberty si stabbed in the neck after seeing Tor Peterson collapse to the footpath. When the police arrive on the scene, they have to work out two things about the deaths: who died first, and; was one person murdered or both.

April Woo returns in this New York City police mystery. She has just started at a new precinct after her promotion to sergeant and is finding her new fellow officers less than welcoming. Her ex-partner and would-be love interest, Mike Sanchez has been assigned to the murder case as a special investigator and joins April, sho is heading the investigation, in trying to solve it. What a coincidence!

April and Mike are under constant pressure to solve the case because the murdered woman's husband is Rick Liberty, a former pro-footballer, and the murdered man was one of the richest men in America. Clues prove hard to come by and their job isn't made any easier when apparent mistake are made by the medical examiner while performing an autopsy on the bodies.

To keep things interesting, the ongoing love / hate relationship between April and Mike enters a new phase, adding a whole new level of unease and tension to the case.

April Woo finds herself in a constant identity battle being fought on two fronts. The first is with herself as she tries to overcome her Chinese instincts that dictate that, as a Chinese woman, she should remain subservient. If she is to be a successful New York City cop she must overcome this. The second is with her fellow officers who clearly don't think a Chinese woman has what it takes to lead murder investigations.

The plot is pretty standard fare, but for those who have met April Woo before, it is interesting to see her character develop. It's quite an enjoyable addition to the April Woo series.

A very informative and accurate description of the mixture that characterizes New York City. The author takes time to describe the different ethnicities, not always as accurate as we would like for them to be, but better than most. the story is well thought, and with lots of in and outs. In my opinion, it is what a book is supposed to be, entertaining, somewhat educational, and suspenseful. Thanks

Chinese-American police officer April Woo is assigned to investigate a double murder that occurred near the Liberty restaurant. Also assigned to the case is her boyfriend Detective Mike Sanchez. The chief suspect is a former football star, Rick Liberty, whose spouse Merrill and his best friend Tor Peterson are the victims.

The evidence proves that the motive, opportunity, and means were all available to Rick. This makes everyone in the police department and the media believe that Rick did the crime during a jealous rage. That is everyone except April, who has to overcome her own peers and boss, the medical examiner's office, and her personal distrust of Mike to prove that the former football star is innocent. However, if Rick did not do it, the culprit had the opportunity to set it up so it seemed as if he did.

The novel is a great mystery that provides interesting insight into the Chinese-American culture and , to a lesser degree, the Hispanic-American culture. Fans of this series will especially enjoy JUDGING TIME because it is clearly the best novel to date. The relationship (and often times non-relationship) between the protagonists has taken quantum leaps forward that will elate the reader. Leslie Glass, a superstar in the making, continues to climb the ladder towards the top run of the ethnic-mystery novels.

Harriet Klausner

This was my first encounter with detective April Woo and I enjoyed her character very much. I especially liked her mother, Skinny Dragon. I had a little trouble with the writing style of Ms. Glass in the beginning. Over long descriptive sentences plopped down in the middle of dialog between characters was disruptive and annoying at times. But once I made a connection with these characters, the writing flaws became easier to overlook. The plot was intriguing. The similarities to the O.J. Simpson case were pretty obvious, but Ms. Glass takes this story in a much different direction. Interesting resolution.

i'm sorry, but this book is going no where fast. it's incredibly slow and bland.i usually give a book the 3 chapter test - if my interest is not peaked by the end of the 3rd chapter, then i discontinue the read. with this one, i've been more than generous- i'm in chapter 4 and still, nothing!! i won't even bother finishing.