I love that Mr. Martini's novels are so honestly written that you can speculate on the solution to the mysteries. I hate it when other authors lead you down the primrose path and then spring the up-to-that-point-undisclosed facts that provide a surprise ending. Thank goodness Steve Martini has more respect for his readers.

My only criticism is that there is a lot more detective action going on than courtroom drama. I love me some Paul Madriani (and Harry Hinds) courtroom performances!

Attorney Paul Madriani's sister-in-law has been accused of murdering her ex-husband's current wife. Paul and Harry are the defense attorneys for her. There are many unanswered questions about the events of the night Melanie was killed, but the state proceeds with its case without considering other possibilities.

Since this book is a bit older, DNA evidence was primitive and most people didn’t have cell phones. Kinda interesting that way. Good courtroom drama. I did realize, though, that I’ve come to expect the protagonists to have fighting skills. When the protagonist was hiding from the killer, I’d think, well just go fight him off. Maybe I just don’t read courtroom dramas that often. Lawyers don’t have fighting skills.

His very best, wonderful inventive plot with ultimate twist!

We've nearly given up on Steve Martini several times. While we enjoyed his first novel, "Simeon Chamber", most of the others of his books we have read, including a couple others from the Defense Attorney Paul Madriani series, have been so incredibly dry during sluggish middle sections that we really should have quit them right there. However, this his fourth novel, and third Madriani, gets it completely right: good writing, one of the most clever plots we've ever encountered, sustained suspense and pace, and a story so engrossing we'll admit to staying up til three in the morning to get to the end!

We don't want to reveal too much plot, but in short, Madriani is defending his sister-in-law Laurel on the charge of murdering her ex-husband's trophy wife. A custody battle for her two kids is an apparent motive, and the evidence all seems to look bad, including secrets Laurel won't even reveal to her defense team. Suspense builds as we join the courtroom audience for an entertaining fight with a female prosecutor with a chip on her shoulder, not to mention the main cop (Lama) who is a Madriani enemy. Things don't get sorted out until quite late in the book, yet we're on edge til nearly the very last page as twists and turns in the story line have us hustling through the pages at breakneck speed. A most unusual ending is our final reward!

This book is as good as Scott Turow or John Grisham at their best. While we're still not totally Madriani fan club enthusiasts, this is surely one of the best books we've read in a long time -- and thus very highly recommended!

I read this book as a starter; not having read or known about the first two in the series. At times I thought the story might lay out predictably but I enjoyed continuing to find out otherwise. Now interested in going back to read the first two.

Wooow

This is a little twister. Thibgs are happening left and right to Paul's sister-in-law where she gets caught in some crazy situation and needs Paul's help legally and as family. It keeps you on your toes and the way everyone ends is something you wouldn't really expect. Toll enjoy this one!

This is my second Paul Madriani mystery and, it seems, author Mr. Martini is wedded to the surprise ending. Undue Influence has a surprise within a surprise and it feels like an unnecessary twist that is more annoying/contrived than anything. Up until then, a good read.

Steve Martini does a magnificent job keeping you spellbound.

Steve Martini spins an excellent mystery and manages to keep you guessing “who dunit” once again. And one of the things I like the best is his sense of humor, and for which he has my funny bone.

Great read of mom on trial for murder - nice plot twists

Entertaining courtroom drama with all loose ends tied up.

Paul Madriani promised his wife as she was dying (spoiler for previous books) that he would look after her sister, Laurel. Paul is now a single dad raising a seven-year-old girl, and Laurel indeed needs looking after.

She is in a custody battle with her former husband for their teenage children. The husband, a state legislator, traded Laurel in for a younger more top-heavy model, and the divorce proceedings have gotten rancorous and ugly. But Paul isn’t handling the divorce. He’s in the courtroom, but someone else is dealing with the case.

Then, the new trophy wife is murdered in her house, and Laurel Vega has left the state. Worse still, she was seen leaving the house where the murdered woman’s body was found.

This, then, is the account of Madriani’s efforts to clear his sister-in-law, and it is a twisty literally explosive story that will keep you pressing on to the back cover.

First Martini novel and definitely would read another. Kept me guessing until the very end and court scenes provided realistic drama. A steal for $1.99!