Customer Reviews

The Letter of the Law

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Unlike his previous novels that are set in the NFL arena, Tim Green takes you into the inter workings of the legal system. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat for the entire ride.

Eric Lipton a famous law professor is accused of a bizarre murder, the evidence is stacked against him. Enter Casey Jordan, his former student whose beauty is only surpassed by her brains. Lipton picks Casey to defend him knowing that she has the ability to create reasonable doubt in the minds of the twelve jurors selected to judge him. Casey takes the case thinking is will launch her into the national spotlight and give her the recognition she desires. She gets more than she bargined for, not only is she fighting for justice, she is fighting for her life.

The roller coaster ride begins and you are left trying to figure out who the guilty and innocent are. This is an non-stop thriller that is the best work from the author to date.

Loved the book, couldn't put it down.

In Austin, the police have a witness who swears seeing law professor Eric Lipton running from the murder-mutilation of law student Marcia Sales. Eric hires a former student Casey Jordan to defend him. Believing in the innocence of her former mentor, Casey pulls out all the stops to prove a shadow of doubt, turning the spotlight on the victim's violent father Donald as the possible killer. As the chief juror reads the verdict, the pompous Eric informs his attorney that he in deed did the crime.

Stunned by Eric's confession just as he is acquitted, a distraught Casey is abducted by an irate Donald. He plans to teach the lawyer first hand what happened to his daughter before she was killed. Already convinced her former instructor is a psychopathic serial killer, Casey joins with Donald to try to bring down Eric before someone else dies.

Tim Green known for his NFL days and his sports mysteries turns to a serial killer legal thriller with his current novel, THE LETTER OF THE LAW. The story line is filled with raw action that never eases up until the final page. However, the characters and their motives never fully develop and some of their actions require leaps across the Grand Canyon. Mr. Green shows the energy of a blitzing linebacker targeting the hit, but the quarterback suffers a concussion before the game is over. This tale filled with action and excitement is for those readers who enjoy hard hitting from the blind side.

Harriet Klausner

Casey Jordan is the best defense lawyer in Texas and is looking to stretch that claim to best defense attorney nationwide. To that end she likes big, headline making, provocative cases, those with the biggest clients and the biggest risks. When Eric Lipton, nationally known criminal law professor, is accused of brutally murdering a former student, he hires Casey to defend him and she's thrilled. Though a tough case, Lipton was arrested leaving the country with the victim's bloody underwear in his luggage, it's just the kind of headline grabbing, career advancing trial she likes. And Casey does an admirable job, tearing apart defense witnesses and even laying suspicion on the victim's father. Just before the jury foreman reads the not guilty verdict, Lipton leans over and whispers into Casey's ear..."I really killed her". Now as other bodies begin to pile up, Casey is caught in a real bind, her duty to her client as an attorney and her need to see justice done. Tim Green has written a fast paced, page turner with well developed, interesting characters, powerful, riveting scenes and enough twists and turns to keep you off balance and guessing to the very end of the book. As a practicing attorney, his knowledge of the ins and outs of our criminal justice system, lend real credibility to the story. The Letter of the Law has it all, great characters, an action packed tight plot and a very satisfying ending with a few surprises thrown in.

I admit it. I love legal thrillers. Even if it's poorly written, I still love them. And fortunately, this one is well-written and it grabs you by the throat and won't let go till the last page has turned.

Casey is a star defense attorney who takes pride in being number one, till a sordid murder trial made her take stock of her life and where she was going with that life. Casey was asked by her old professor, Dr. Lipton, to represent him in this horrorific murder trial and he claimed that he was innocent of this woman's murder. Casey won the case for him ... only to have the serial-like murders continue to happen. And the adventure has just begun.

It is a quick read ~~ I finished it in one day. It's also a page-turning read as well. If you're looking for a good book to read on that long airplane flight, I'd recommend this one. Green will keep you guessing throughout the book ... and you better make sure that you didn't miss your connecting flight ... it's that good that you can't just put it down.

6-7-02

This is my first Tim Green book and I was delighted. After putting off reading this book for months, I have to kick myself for not reading it sooner. The book is about a lawyer named Casey who is asked to represent her law professor. He is accused of killing a student by cutting her up and removing her gall bladder. Pretty disgusting.

The whole premise of the book is how Casey manages to get the professor acquitted to then find out that he may have done it. In order to free the professor, she had to attack the character of the dead girl's father on the stand. In freeing her professor, Casey is now stuck between a serial killer and the dead girls father's hatred.

What makes this book unique is that Casey is not that likable for heroine. She is shown as being very materialistic and doing whatever she can to win a case. However that all changes when she sets a killer free and she starts questioning where she went wrong.

Good book and Tim Green does a great job of laying out the plot.

Marcia Sales eviscerated body was discovered by her paperboy. She'd been a beautiful co-ed studying law at the University of Texas. Austin cop Bob Bolinger has a list of suspects and he's not crossing anybody out, not even the girl's father. However his prime candidate for the murder is Eric Lipton, one of Marcia's law professors.

Lipton flees, is caught near the airport and a bloody lingerie is found in his baggage. He claims he was sexually involved with Marcia. Lipton engages former student Casey Jordan, who is driven by success, but all through the trial Casey is uneasy, because Bolinger is convinced of Lipton's guilt, not only that, he thinks the man is a serial killer. Finally the verdict is in, it's about to be read. Lipton leans toward Casey and admits to the murder.

And now the killing begins.

Reviewed by Vesta Irene

See storyline above.

Tim Green obviously has no trouble writing about something other than football based novels, as this quite readable suspense novel proves. Just when you think you have it figured out and start cheering on the good guys, you read a little more and go oops! wrong one. Or is it? A good book with a lot of suspense and colorful characters. How about that Donald Sales guy, and what he does to prove a point? I also enjoyed the ending. Overall a very satisfying read. Keep it up, Tim Green, because Grisham has nothing on you.

Highly Recommended for legal thriller and suspense fans.

This was the first Tim Green book I have read. I was interested in something light but exciting and 'Letter of the Law' fit the bill. Neither weak character development, stilted writing, nor somewhat unbelievable plotting took away from my enjoyment of this light read. It didn't matter to me that the author knew nothing about law enforcement or law, it was an ok book to pass some time with. But 2/3rds of the way through the book the author's plot began to be so unbelievable, his characters so absurd that I began to laugh out loud and I skimmed through the remainder hoping that the plot wasn't going in the direction I feared it was heading towards. It did.
Additionally, If Mr. Green read's these comments, he should have someone explain to him how computers work. His lack of basic computer knowledge is embarrassing.
Still, this book was a fast and enjoyable read and shows that the author has a lot of potential for airport thrillers. I intend to buy his next book.

If you like legal thrillers you will finish this book.

That said, it wasn't written badly enough to put down in the middle, and the murder victim, Tanner, in the first chapter, nags at you so you have to finish. But when you're done, you'll feel like you just had one of those little cups of sugar-free jello. Not much taste, not much to remember, you'll be hungry again as soon as it's finished.

Characterization is only adequate, with the heroine, Casey Jordan, being forgettable from her first appearance in the novel. "Casey stood before the jury with the power and the majesty of a Celtic princess" ????? Casey does slay the dragon, an impotent serial killer that teaches at law school, but there are plenty of details about his kills that are shared with the reader before she traps him in the wilderness, instead of the courtroom.

This was my first Tim Green book, but his courtroom scenes were patently unreal, and there was really no character to like or to identify with in the book. I'm told Green uses football as a backdrop in his prior books. I like football, so I'm not sure I'll want to read Green's attempts with the game.

Picked up the book in an airport book store when I'd desperately finished the last one, and my next flight was late. Next time I'll bring a second book rather than take a chance on having to finish an eminently forgettable plot.

Tim Green is a pretty amazing guy. He starting writing thrillers while still an active player in the NFL. Somewhere along the line he picked up a law degree, passed the bar on the first try, and established a business law practice. He now comments on football in USA Today and on NPR as well as announcing games for FOX (which he says is "like methadone for a heroin addict.") He also has four small children.

Somehow, in the middle of all of this he writes books. This is his first book without a hint of football and it worked pretty well for me. This is your basic vacation reading sort of a book. It has a well paced plot, is written competently and the chapters leave you wanting to read more. Green is a bit heavy handed with the forshadowing. Likewise, the is it Sales or Lipton ping-pong is overdone. (Makes you wonder how good a writer Green would be if he actually wrote full-time.)

The characters vary in quality. Most interesting for me were Sales, the murder victim's father and Bolinger, the Austin, Texas cop. Casey Jordan, the lawyer turned slueth, is harder to warm up to. As for Lipton, the law professor, he is right up there with Hannibal Lector.

Bottom-line: Not likely to win any awards but a good choice for those who like legal thrillers for their entertainment reading. It is a bit gorey for those with squeamish stomachs.