The Associate (Mass Market Paperback)

by Phillip Margolin (Author) "The headlight beams of Dr. Sergey Kaidanov's battered SAAB bounced off a stand of Douglas firs then came to rest on the unpainted wall of..." (more)
Key Phrases: primate lab, bail hearing, Aaron Flynn, Arthur Briggs, Geller Pharmaceuticals (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Daniel Ames, a blue-collar associate at a preppy, white-shoe law firm, gets snookered by a pretty colleague into reviewing thousands of pages of documents. The client, a pharmaceutical company, is charged with falsifying test results on a new drug that appears to cause horrendous birth defects. Daniel is sure the company didn't do it, but among all the documents he overlooks a letter that could destroy his client's defense. The opposing counsel gets hold of it, and the next thing you know, Daniel's smack in the middle of a murder as well as the attendant legal fraud and chicanery. Who else, besides its manufacturer, wants the truth about the drug trials covered up? Whose body, charred almost beyond recognition, was found in the lab along with a score of dead test monkeys? And what's the connection between a double kidnapping and murder that happened years ago in Arizona and the headline-grabbing lawyer that's trying to pin the blame on Daniel's client for the drug's terrible effects?

Phillip Margolin, author of seven previous bestsellers (including Wild Justice), is clearly venturing into John Grisham territory here. Although he rarely probes beneath the surface of his central characters, he spins an electrifying yarn in this provocative thriller. --Jane Adams --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly
Another year, another young-attorney-in-peril story from Margolin (Wild Justice). This time, the attorney is Daniel Ames, an earnest, pink-cheeked associate at Portland's most prestigious law firm. Ames gets fired for a paperwork blunder that may force the firm's biggest client out of business. The client, Geller Pharmaceuticals, is being sued for its diabetes drug Insufort, which is believed to cause severe birth defects, much like thalidomide in the 1950s. Set up to take the fall by another lawyer in his firm, Ames mistakenly gives the plaintiff's attorney the results of a secret medical study documenting Insufort's shortcomings. Ames, however, suspects the story is a fake. To get his job back, he knows he has to prove that not only he, but also Geller Pharmaceuticals, has been scapegoated and hung out to dry. But who would do such a thing? The likely suspect is rich-but-sleazy attorney Aaron Flynn, who filed the lawsuit against Geller and has a history of backhanded tactics. Aided by legal investigator and love interest Kate Ross, Ames traces the case's roots back to a mysterious murder and disappearance in the Arizona desert nearly a decade earlier. Margolin's writing for the most part is unremarkable, his plot won't stand up to serious scrutiny and his characters engage only on a surface level. Yet the author of seven previous handsomely selling thrillers deserves credit. While his latest is eminently forgettable, the whole package light intrigue, good-looking, wealthy people under stress, a couple of ghoulish murders and a scattering of clever plot twists is undeniably entertaining and enjoyable if you don't think about it too hard. Major ad/promo; 25-city national radio campaign; 12-city author tour.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: HarperTorch (July 30, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061030643
• ISBN-13: 978-0061030642
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (55 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #48,845 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Roller Coaster of a Ride to Nowhere....., September 30, 2001

By	Roz Levine (Virginia) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Associate (Hardcover)

Reed, Briggs, Stephens, Stottlemeyer and Compton is the largest and most prestigious law firm in Portland, Oregon and Daniel Ames, young, up and coming associate, still can't quite believe his good fortune of working there. But when Reed Briggs' biggest client, Geller Pharmaceuticals, is sued for manufacturing a pregnancy drug that causes horrible birth defects and opposing attorney, Aaron Flynn, finds evidence, during discovery, that Geller is hiding studies that prove it was aware of the problem, Daniel finds himself to be the company scapegoat, blamed for incompetence and fired. Within hours, senior partner, Arthur Briggs, is murdered and Daniel is arrested. Now, as murder and mayhem ensue, Daniel is determined to sort out this mess and get to the truth and he finds that his life may depend upon it..... Phillip Margolin is back with a readable, fast paced thriller, but this is also a book with problems. The plot, though compelling at times, is more complicated than intricate and the convoluted storyline jumps around so much, it's confusing. I found myself constantly flipping back and forth to keep track of who's who and what's what. His characters have little depth and less motivation and you never really get inside their heads. Add to that, an ending that leaves too many loose ends and unanswered questions and you have the makings of an unsatisfying novel that leaves the reader feeling cheated. Phillip Margolin has written some great thrillers, Gone But Not Forgotten and Wild Justice, being among his best, but not this time out. Do yourself a favor and skip The Associate.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good, fast-paced roller coaster ride., February 1, 2005

By	DWD "intrepid reviewer" (Indianapolis, IN) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

If the first two opening scenes don't grab you than you had better check your pulse and see if you're still alive!

Others have reviewed this book and correctly stated that it is not a pure legal thriller. True enough. There are legal parts to this story, but the case is not resolved through fancy legal footwork. Rather, the thriller becomes a mystery too and we race along with our heroes to see if they can save everyone and expose the villains.

Is it great literature? Hardly. But, it's a lot of fun and I tore through it like a starving man at a buffet.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A convoluted legal thriller that goes nowhere., September 4, 2001

By	E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Associate (Hardcover)

Daniel Ames is "The Associate" in the latest novel by Philip Margolin. Daniel is a somewhat naive young man whose impoverished background has not prevented him from getting a good job at a prestigious law firm in Portland, Oregon.

Unfortunately, Daniel gets caught up in a series of complex events involving a drug that may cause birth defects, a scientist on the run, and a bunch of dead bodies that keep cropping up. The police are suspicious of Daniel, since not only was Daniel overheard arguing with one of the victims before he was killed, but an eyewitness saw Daniel fleeing the scene of the crime.

Daniel gets help from a beautiful and brainy woman named Kate Ross. Daniel and Kate look into the circumstances surrounding the various crimes that have occurred and their investigation unearths a plot that is both convoluted and sinister.

"The Associate" is weak in many areas. The characters are completely undeveloped. The plot is so filled with dead bodies and intrigue that it collapses under its own weight. It is impossible to keep track of what is happening without a score card. Who killed whom and why become very tricky questions by the time you reach the end of this confusing and pointless book.

Needless to say, I do not recommend "The Associate." If you want to read a terrific legal thriller, do yourself a favor and pick up Barbara Parker's excellent new novel, "Suspicion of Vengeance."