An absorbing read with drama, shocks and surprises. It gives an insight into the American justice system and the pitfalls of capital punishment, and of lack of any meaningful access to the legal process for the mentally ill, and those with no finance to cover their legal costs, instead depending on the public system, as was the case with Rommy.

In this book, Rommy Gandolph aka Squirrel has languished on death row for a number of years and having confessed to a triple murder, (under duress apparently) he finally has a date to be executed and is now protesting his innocence.

His case is taken up by Arthur Raven, the lawyer for his final appeal after some initial reluctance to take this case, with his associate, Pamela Towns and soon evidence is found which exonerates Rommy. Gradually over a period of time, the case for the prosecution unravels, but along the way there are shock revelations. Is Rommy innocent or guilty, this is anybody's guess and it is impossible to predict at any point right up until the final page what the outcome will be and whether Rommy had suffered a miscarriage of justice. It kept me riveted, I was so absorbed in the exciting story line.

Fortunately at the start of the book, there is a diagram showing the various characters, something about them and the role they played in the building of the case against Rommy Gandolph.

There is human interest, the relationship between Arthur and his sister, Susan, who is mentally ill and his growing relationship with Gillian, the judge who sentenced and convicted Rommy and was convinced she had the right man.

What a complex tale this is, it takes some concentration to focus on the various characters and the way they are involved in the case, their mistakes, misunderstandings, all give the reader an insight into their characters. Well worth persevering with this complex and enlightening book.

I was engrossed from start to finish and can recommend this book to anyone who enjoys police and courtroom drama.

From Follett: Arthur Raven, the reluctant court-appointed attorney for Rommy Gandolph, a death-row prisoner convicted of triple murder, must face down an ambitious prosecutor, crooked cops, and a disgraced judge when he learns another inmate has new evidence that could exonerate his client.

Here is another book review that was a re-visit for me.

Readers meet Arthur Raven, the protagonist. He is not handsome, or young, or someone most people would gravitate towards. But he is successful as a corporate lawyer because he is resilient through his dogged perseverance towards his cases.

But one day he is tested when he reluctantly takes the final appeal for Rommy Gandolph. Gandolph is a prisoner sentenced to die in less than two months, as a result of his conviction for a brutal triple murder and rape that occurred in 1991. This appeal takes place in federal court under the doctrine of habeas corpus - which permits appeals of convictions on grounds including an alleged violation of the Constitution.

Unfortunately, the detective who arrested him, and the prosecuting attorney made a fairly winning case, and have no interest in having their case against him questioned.

But the Judge, who oversaw the original case and actually sentenced him to death, and has been jailed for corruption, now feels Raven has a case. What changed her mind?

Even if this novel is littered with small-time crooks, compromised cops, ambitious lawyers, and people struggling, the characters are believable, and the story feels plausible.

And, it actually feels like a compelling mystery, that will give readers a wonderful examination of the law, and a look inside what happens when "good" people become flawed people that cross the line. In this way, Turow does an excellent job of emphasizing the moral complexity of his characters.

Could redemption be possible? The next question for readers might be, whose redemption? No spoilers from me.

From Follett: Arthur Raven, the reluctant court-appointed attorney for Rommy Gandolph, a death-row prisoner convicted of triple murder, must face down an ambitious prosecutor, crooked cops, and a disgraced judge when he learns another inmate has new evidence that could exonerate his client.

9/10
This is the story of a murder investigation, both when the murders happened and 10 years later when the man who was convicted is on death row and someone else has now confessed to the crime. Against that legal backdrop are the personal dramas of love, ambition, lies, and second chances. Both aspects of the book are compelling, with plenty of surprises along the way.

I don’t give five stars easily

This book is a marvel. The plot, as it twists and turns and surprises on page after page, is irresistible reading. The knowledge of the law is exciting. The characters are, though initially hard to keep track of, wonderfully realized. And the prose! Every few pages there’s some description of the sky, or someone’s mindset, or someone’s physical appearance, or even the one major scene of making love, that will knock your socks off. I found everywhere thoughtful and beautifully phrased observations about human nature.

I found myself stopping to enjoy the phrasing. Stopping to copy bits of those observations about human race. I want to remember them

This book is why reading is such a joy.

Arthur Raven is assigned a case by the federal appellate court. A former prosecutor, he has been in private practice for several years. He has never been a criminal defense attorney and his first client is a death row inmate. Romy Gandolph was convicted of a triple homicide and as his execution date draws near he writes a letter to the Court of Appeals proclaiming his innocence which is how Arthur ends up with the case.

The legal machinations in this case will be familiar to any true crime podcast junkies like myself. There are no easy paths to justice even if the offender is innocent. Scott Turow illuminates the court system and the roadblocks that prevent quick resolutions even in the face of new evidence. There aren't many winners in this process.

A very disappointing read. Written by an attorney, it seems the legal processes good and solid, the story itself is the timeless old formula: An innocent (in this case black) man on death row pleading for help because he is innocent. The good guys, new and improved attorneys, jump into the case, Tada! to right this evil miscarriage of justice. and free, who-else, the poor ultra ignorant simple, stupid convict.
There are two major flaws in this novel: 1st and most obvious right off the first page, is the type casting of the poor unrighteouslye convict whose dialogue is straight out of old black and white Shirley Temple movies, with a just a pinch of blackness from "Gone with the Wind." 2nd the end is telegraphed by the end of the 1st chapter. Super hero Good Guy Lawyers save the po' old black man.
My advise is two fold: don't waste time reading the whole the he whole thing, just read chapter one and the last chapter. You'll have the pretext of the body of the work in ten minutes of reading.
Lastly, the author, Scott Turow, should give up his day job.

It wasn’t as good as Scott Turow’s other books. I thought the plot was a little confusing. The subplots of the relationships between the characters was a little unrealistic. It could’ve been a good book with a few minor changes.

I generally like Scott Turow. Some parts of this legal thriller were good and others were hard to follow. The same was true with the characters - some drawn well and others flat or not interesting. I enjoyed the addicted judge who had gotten clean and the schizophrenic sister. Color from real life to brighten a confusing story with a lot of twists and turns. Glad I read it; glad I can go on to the next thing.

One of Turow's best novels. More than a policier, a book about truth, friendship, love and human nature. The plot may be not the greatest one, but characters are vigouros, full of live and quite likeable, especially Arthur. A book I warmly recommend...

A convoluted story about a man on death row with time running out fast and apparently no case to stop his execution except for the doggedness of his court appointed lawyer who desperately tries to uncover other truths.
There are some interesting but unlikely characters and I found this a book a bit long going.