Customer Reviews

The Whole Truth

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Back in 2002, when young Elizabeth Smart was kidnaped out of her own bedroom window, the whole country felt the Utah family's pain. We could only imagine the guilt, anguish and complete helplessness her parents felt. But there was someone else I remember empathizing with even more: Elizabeth's younger sister, Mary Katherine. She'd been in the room when it happened. She'd waited to tell. What kind of guilt had SHE felt?

In James Scott Bell's latest legal thriller The Whole Truth we find out exactly what she could have felt. As a tender five-year-old boy, Steve Conroy watched his older brother Robert be abducted from the bedroom they shared. And just like Mary Katherine, Steve didn't tell. How could he? The man threatened to kill them both if he did. There was no way for Steve to know those first three hours are the most crucial in abduction cases. But unlike the Smart case where Elizabeth was returned to her family, Robert never came home.

Now thirty and a struggling lawyer, Steve Conroy has tried to get on with this life. But his Dad never did forgive him and eventually committed suicide. His mother died a few years later, and Steve's experiences in the foster care system certainly didn't help him heal. It was no surprise he eventually turned to drugs to rid himself of the guilt.

Those days are over, and Steve's determined to better himself and live life clean and sober. Except things never seem to go right for him. His wife's filed for divorce, and he can barely afford the rent of his shabby law office. Paying clients are few and far between.

Then a law student named Sienna shows up on his office doorstep. Not only does she skillfully ward off his landlord's demands and buy him more time, but she fields a call from a prisoner named Johnny LaSalle who wants Steve to represent him. For ten thousand dollars. It's an offer Steve isn't about to refuse. Only Johnny turns out to be far more than he expected. How does the man know so many intimate things about him? Is he just an expert con, or could Johnny LaSalle really be his long-lost, dead brother?

James Scott Bell takes this intriguing what-if concept and weaves it into yet another page-turning, redemptive thriller. Chapter after chapter we're perplexed and confused right alongside Steve. We feel for him each time he's kicked to the dirt. We root for the guy when he slowly rises from the ashes. We gasp when a twist hits Steve, and us, between the eyes.

Bell's novels have taken a darker turn these days, but The Whole Truth returns him to his roots. There's more light here than in No Legal Grounds, something I welcome. Sienna's open faith gives Steve, and the reader, much to ponder. The most interesting exchanges spiritually come as Steve is challenged by a religious cult leader who spouts Scripture left and right, yet manages to twist each verse to further his own desires. Even someone like Steve who's avoided God and religion recognizes the deception. It's an eye-opening perspective to see how innocent people can so easily be swept up in a man's charisma.

The Whole Truth is a worthy tome in the Bell catalogue, cementing its place on our shelves right alongside John Grisham and Randy Singer.

--Reviewed by C.J. Darlington for TitleTrakk

James Scott Bell presents us with a flawed hero who's doing his best to overcome the trauma of a childhood episode, a marriage in the last stages of dissolution, and an adult cocaine addiction while hanging on to his law practice with his fingertips. Just when we think things can't get worse for the protagonist, Bell tightens the screws. And in case you're one of those readers who like to guess what's going to happen...you'll be wrong, again and again. I found myself unable to put this one down, promising to turn out the light after "just one more chapter." Like the cocaine that keeps calling to the hero, this tale is addicting.

You can depend on Bell throwing more curves at you than a major league pitcher. Steve Conroy, a gritty character battling addiction, seized my allegiance on page one. I continued turning page after page, wooed on by the story. Then Bell, a master at plotting, caught me totally off guard with a twist quickly followed by another. You'll never know the ending of a James Scott Bell novel until you get there.

A cinema on the pages of a book is the best description for The Whole Truth. Bell's artistry with words will hold you captive till the last page. I give this book a high recommendation.

The Whole Truth is one of those novels that forces you to stay up later than you intended because you have to see what happens next. It's a delightful mixture of humor and suspense. You'll cheer for Steve Conroy as he attempts to outrun shadows of the past and make decisions that will affect his current and future life. Jim Bell did a great job creating characters we care about, and a story that keeps the pages turning.

This story will keep you reading late into the night. Chilling suspense, I found myself captivated until the very last page. James Scott Bell has really created a character to love and a story that will linger in your thoughts for days after you've read the last sentence.

Steve Conroy, 30 years old, is the miserable lead character in James Scott Bell's new legal thriller, THE WHOLE TRUTH. Miserable, meaning his marriage is falling apart, he's a former drug addict, he's been evicted from his law office, and he has no money or clients. Steve's tragic adult life can be traced back to when he was five years old. One night, two strangers broke into his house and kidnapped his brother. Steve was too afraid to say anything until the morning. That event has haunted him every single day since then.

One day, a prisoner named Johnny LaSalle contacts Johnny and claims he is Robert, the brother that disappeared so many years ago. Steve knows it can't be possible because his brother was later found dead. However, Johnny knows things that only his brother would know. Then Johnny offers Steve a large amount of money to be his lawyer, and the lawyer to his religious group living at a mountain compound. The middle of the novel consists of Steve fighting to stay off drugs and trying to cope with the idea that Johnny could be his long lost brother. If Johnny is his brother, then Steve has to reconcile his sense of morality with Johnny and his friends' white-supremicist beliefs. Can Steve be the lawyer that the White Supremicist group wants him to be? Can he stay off drugs? Can he convice young law clerk Sienna Ciccone to take a chance and go out with him? Will ex-wife Ashley give him another chance?

In my opinion, this novel had a great beginning, a strong ending, and struggled in the middle, thus only 3 stars. Bell describes vividly the closeness Steve feels to Robert and how he idolizes his older brother. Then Robert is taken and Steve must live with the devestation that the kidnapping was somehow his own fault. Then the middle comes and Steve comes off as an obnoxious character. He tries to be funny, peppering many of his jokes with pop culture references that will soon be out of date. I feel like Steve needed more of a seriousness about him since his life was in such dire straights. Perhaps Bell wrote Steve as a comedian as a way of coping with his pain, but for me there was too much of it. Once the final act arrives, and the novel picks back up again. Steve has been attacked, betrayed, saved, shot at, rescued and lied to. He's been through the ringer. He meets a girl named Bethany that had been held captive at the LaSalle compound. He finds out the truth about his brother, and he even begins to believe in God. I liked the end. It had plenty of twists and turns and packed an emotional punch.

This book isn't as good as some of Bell's recent novels. The opening kidnapping is such an emotional tragedy and what follows just doesn't have the same feeling. However, the ending is good and makes the novel worth reading.

"The Whole Truth" is yet another fine work of fiction from former trial lawyer James Scott Bell. This one, with the backdrop of a sinister cult hidden away in a barricaded compound, is interesting, suspenseful, and thrilling... woven with several unique twists. The author's legal background adds a compelling authenticity dimension which holds the reader's interest throughout. The novel also underscores Mr. Bell's Christian faith... which perhaps, sadly, is the reason that his and other Zondervan authors' works are bypassed by many, including movie producers who would otherwise find his suspenseful plot structures to be ideal for intriguing screenplays. In any event, "The Whole Truth"--and other James Scott Bell works--are highly recommended by this reader!
--R.C. Howe (a.k.a., Toby Martin II) / Erskine, Minnesota

James Scott Bell is a truly blessed and gifted author. This is the latest book I have read by Mr. Bell and as with all the others it kept my interest from the beginning to the end. As I was half way through the book the though "disturbing" kept running through my mind. Until you understood "The Whole Truth" then "disturbing" was gone with a feeling of fullfillment or satisfaction that this was a well written, thoughtful and meaningful book. Christian's and non-Christian's will come away with a feeling that this book shows us everyday life, disturbing yes, but also fullfilling if you seek God.

As a boy of five, Steve Conroy sees his seven-year-old brother, Robert, kidnapped from the bedroom they shared. His brother is lost and never found. The cacophony of his guilty silence on that night has had a devastating effect on Steve's life. Thirty years later, a recovering crack addict and less-than-professional lawyer, Steve's only hope seems to be Sienna, a young, inexperienced law student, convicted criminal, Johnny LaSalle, and his addiction peer sponsor, Gincy. Steve's search for the truth is thwarted often as he becomes entangled in a deeply layered web of lies and untruths. In this corrupt world, deadly consequences seem inevitable.

The author's stories are exciting to read because he packs in superb action which drives the reader to finish the novel. His law thrillers are top-tier faith fiction. The Whole Truth weaves a scarred childhood with deep seeded regrets and hard choices that don't come easy.

The storyline of The Whole Truth's is driven well by both character and action. The protagonist is strongly developed. It's easy to empathize with his messy life. The "nitty-gritty" of a lawyer's life is detailed, (as opposed to the glamorous). You want him to succeed! Steve has come to the crossroads where's he's trying to do it all by himself, without God, (who he feels doesn't care what has happened in his life). It's not overly preachy but redemption is an integral undercurrent of the story.

There are plenty of surprises in The Whole Truth although the ending was anti-climatic and not what I expected. The conclusion felt abrupt and forced.

I'll continue to read James Scott Bell because he is a superb storyteller by being an excellent wordsmith!

An uncorrected proof was read for this review.

Review by Dale Lewis for TitleTrakk

The Whole Truth was okay. The plot and story idea was very good, and Bell started off with an excellent beginning, but somewhere in the middle it began to drag, and when the ending came, I thought "That's it?" I expected more of a showdown, but there was none.

In summary: Good plot, good story, good usage of words (dialogue was great!); bad pace, disappointing finish. It seems like one of those books where the author had a brilliant story idea, but lacked enough talent to write it brilliantly. Oh well.

This was my first book by Bell, and I may check out another in the future, but I can't say I care much for this one.