Customer Reviews

Shadow of a Doubt

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I picked this book up in the early 90's when it was first published. I thought it remarkable then and now, re-reading it, even more so. It is scary to try a case, especially when the cards are stacked against you.

Charley Sloan beefed up his courage with alcohol, and the house of cards eventually came tumbling down.

Now he has a chance for redemption . . . . and those that hate him a chance for retribution.

This really captures the marriage of alcohol and litigation, regrettably often not that far apart. Coughlin has a strangle hold on the the self doubt of any lawyer who struts and frets his hour upon the stage and his descriptive powers of that fear are without parallel.

Nice view of the dark humor of the meetings, too. 5 stars. Could be 8. Highly recommended. Larry Scantlebury

Charlie Sloan has been around the bend and is slowly coming back. He's made millions of dollars, wed three beautiful women, had a prosperous career, and lost them all to the bottle.

When an old lover comes to him asking him to help with her step-daughter's defense in a case of murdering her father, Charlie sends her elsewhere, but she refuses to go. As he digs, he believes Angel hasn't committed the crime and is determined to get her off--because an NGRI plea isn't an option anymore and he's not willing to send a girl with a mental illness to prison.

The novel's fast-paced and interesting. The end was surprising if you weren't paying real close attention. A good read by an author I want to hear more from!

This a well-written, compelling legal thriller, about a Charley Sloan, a lawyer who once had the whole world in his hands and was an extremely successful litigator. Then, through his abuse of alcohol, he lost it all.

Now, a recovered alcoholic, he is struggling to make a living. His future looks bleak, as his career is on the skids. Then, like a bolt out of the blue, an old flame asks him to defend her step-daughter, a young woman who is alleged to have killed her father.

At first, he is hesitant to take the case, but both his former lover and her step-daughter are insistent. So, he succumbs and takes the case. After all, it is his chance to once again grab the brass ring and maybe find redemption along the way. He soon finds out, however, that things are not always what they seem.

This is a fast-paced, well-plotted legal thriller that will keep the reader turning the pages. Fans of this genre will not be disappointed.

William Coughlin's novel 'Shadow of a Doubt' is different from other boooks in this mystery genre. While many of these books stray to the action thriller hunt them down chases...this one looks at the mystery and slowly works its way through the plot with a great story and interesting characters.

The story centers on a lawyer, Charley Sloan, that is riding the fine line between failure and barely making it. He is thrice divorced and a recovering alcholic. He was once a big shot with big money, big clients and a big reputation...all of that has gone down the gutter and he is trying to just get by--that all changes when a former childhood lover visits him and asks him to defend his stepdaughter.

I like the story because it deals with a guy that you see is struggling with his talents and his addiction to alcohol. You see the difficulty that he would have in trying to defend this high profile case. You get to know the women characters in this (Robin Harwell--former lover and wife of the dead man, and her stepdaughter Angel who is accused of murdering her dad) and become as frustrated as Sloan is when they give him little help in defending Angel.

It is a good mystery with good characters and it is well written. There are some twists and there are some turns and there is some humor. Well done effort by Coughlin.

If you have nothing better to do than listen to uninspired mind of a main character that leaves you feeling uninspired in the end, go ahead and pick up the book. If rediculous endings do not at all cause uneasiness, go ahead and read it. It wasn't a terrible book by any means, but there's nothing other than an absurd ending that's memorable.

Ordered 3 books from Thrift Books, all were condition as described and quick delivery. Will continue to use this seller.

This was the top of this author's works, after this one, it's a 6-degree downgrade

I loved the Sloan character and wished that Coughlin wrote a series.

Coughlin did a great job with Sloan.

Attorney Charles Sloan, "Call me Charlie, every one else does.", has a serious case. Not only his client's life, but his own career hang in the balance, and Charlie must walk a desperate tight-rope to victory or failure. If he fails, his client could go to jail for life - or worse! But Charlie knows that his life is just as much in the balance as the prosecutor, judge, and media try to sell him down the river. A five-star read if ever I've seen one.