Monday, June 10, 2013

Book Review - A Case of Redemption


A Case of Redemption

By: Adam Mitzner
Publisher: Gallery Books
Publication Date: May 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4516-7479-8
Reviewed by: Diane Lunsford
Review Date: June 2013

Adam Mitzner delivers an entertaining and high stakes courtroom drama in his second novel, A Case of Redemption.

Defense attorney Dan Sorensen had the perfect life. His high-powered position at one of New York City’s most prestigious firms, Taylor Beckett, was his cake. The cherry on top was his gorgeous wife Sarah and angelic daughter, Alexa. Sorenson soon learns perfection comes with a price when a drunk driver kills his family; leaving him with nothing more to consider than the rest of his life without them.

After the funeral, Sorenson takes some time to regroup—enough time for the revelation that perhaps he should have spent more time with his family. Second chances are hard to come by when the first one is ripped away. With his decision in hand he tenders his resignation to his boss, Benjamin Ethan, managing partner at Taylor Beckett. High stakes and long hours didn’t matter anymore. His new best friend Johnnie Walker convinced him it was what he needed to do. After months of swimming in a bottle, Sorenson finds himself putting in an appearance at best friends Rich and Deb’s Christmas party. Maybe jeans and a sweatshirt, accompanied by a week’s worth of beard stubble wasn’t the most festive attire, but at least he was making an attempt to rejoin the living. What Sorenson didn’t know was meeting Rich’s sister Nina was his second chance—something that would require donning the courtroom as a practicing attorney once again.

Pop star Roxanne is found bludgeoned to death by way of a baseball bat. The accused is number one rap star Legally Dead “L.D.” It makes sense he is the perpetrator given the lyrics to his number one hit: Gonna stop you when you sing, gonna give it til you scream; don’t like what you said, gonna go A-Rod on your head. Sorenson doesn’t care. He was more concerned with getting through each day than defending a killer, innocent or guilty. Nina refuses to take ‘no’ for an answer and continues to plead her case the next morning on the other end of the phone. Not quite remembering the previous evening’s conversation, Sorensen attempts to recall just exactly when he agreed to teaming with Nina in defending L.D. Nina reminds him of her certainty that L.D. is innocent and finally manages to coax Sorensen into a trip to Riker’s. What neither of them realize once they team up on the case are the challenges that lay ahead—challenges ranging from the constant smack-downs from celebrity wannabe Judge Pielmeier as well as road blocks from L.D.’s silver-tongued and diabolical manager Matt Brooks.

Adam Mitzner has proven ten-fold his confidence and ability to deliver nothing less than compelling courtroom drama in A Case of Redemption. He is a confident master of his pen and not only does he deliver full-bodied characters, but he also plays out a tremendously gripping tale of deception and intrigue from beginning to end. I am a huge fan of suspense-filled, courtroom drama and nowhere throughout this novel did Mitzner disappoint. The story never stumbled and the element of surprise was always present in his winning formula. Mitzner has set the bar high for his competition with a superior surprise ending. Well done! I sit in anticipation of your next novel Mr. Mitzner. Clearly, there is no question you endeavor to push the envelope from good to great in whatever you write. Hands down, this was a great read!

Quill says: A Case of Redemption is by far an entertaining and fast-paced body of work filled with nothing less than a bounty of strategic twists and turns.






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