Wally Lederer used to be a small time criminal picking pockets, but he's a mature man now and has been reformed. He served his time in jail and his loving wife Meg has stuck by him through it all.
Wally and Meg are out at a casino when they run into an old acquaintance of Wally's named Jay Wilkins. Jay invites them back to his house to show off his expensive trinkets. Jay shows Wally a little trinket worth $25,000 that coincidentally goes missing the next day. So, Jay sends his lawyer and the police after Wally. But, before an investigation can even begin, Jay is found dead in his house. This recent development makes Wally look extremely guilty. Did he kill Jay so he wouldn't have to go back to jail? Did Wally take the trinket or is he being framed?
Wally hires Barbara Holloway to represent him. Barbara puts her life on hold to investigate the murder of Jay Wilkins. When she finds out that Jay's wife is also missing, the case takes another turn.
Barbara starts to find out things about Jay's life that will completely change the outcome of the case. These new findings are extremely important but Barbara doesn't know what to do with this new found evidence. Should she hide what she knows and risk one person's life to save another?
SLEIGHT OF HAND had a lot of court room drama that I enjoyed because I haven't read a legal mystery in a long time. I found this one to be very interesting. However, I didn't care that much for the subplot of the romance between Barbara and Darren. I didn't feel any chemistry between them and it just felt unnecessary to the story.
I was disappointed that all the loose ends of the mystery weren't tied up by the end of the book. The reader needs to buy the next book in the series to find out what happens with Barbara Holloway. SLEIGHT OF HAND is an intriguing legal mystery that John Grisham fans are sure to enjoy.
Gregarious Vegas entertainer Wally Lederer hasn't always
enjoyed the attention of center stage -- something he
learned about himself over thirty years ago when he was in
the slammer serving time for picking pockets. He claims
he's
turned his life around, and his lucrative and legitimate
showbiz career seems to support this. But will the police
believe he's a changed man now that Jay Wilkins, a
childhood
friend, is accusing him of stealing a valuable artifact?
More important, does Barbara believe him when he pleads his
case to her?
Wally swears he's innocent. There's no way he would
jeopardize years of hard work for the fleeting thrill of
minor deception. But when Jay is found murdered, Barbara
knows Wally is in serious trouble -- the police have named
him as their prime suspect.
Barbara begins to "dig up the dirt" and is shocked to learn
that Jay's wife is now missing -- and that Jay himself was
far from being the upstanding businessman he claimed to be.
Before long, new evidence points toward an unlikely killer,
and Barbara must decide is protecting her client by
revealing the truth will destroy another life she means to
save.
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