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Summary: KATE BURTON READS - SUPERBLY, OF COURSE
Review:
Accomplished actress Kate Burton has a one of a kind stage voice. (Something in the genes, perhaps?) It doesn't really matter how she acquired her voice; it is simply there for all to enjoy. She can be soothing, menacing, comedic, whatever the role demands. Ms. Burton provides a superb reading of Lisa Scottoline's adventure starring Bennie Rosato, head of an all women Philadelphia law firm.
As our story opens said firm is in financial straits. Things couldn't get much worse - the group is about to be tossed out of their offices onto the sidewalk and Bennie feels personally responsible for her partners, Mary DiNunzio and Judy Carrier. Being cash poor is one thing but to have someone trolling about Philadelphia impersonating you and raising all kinds of havoc is quite something else. Bennie knows there's only one person who could pull that off - her mean spirited twin sister, Alice.
It's any port in a storm so when Bennie has an opportunity to represent a class-action suit that could be a real money maker she doesn't even think about it - she charges ahead. However, she hadn't counted on murder. Suddenly, the stakes are much higher than she'd ever dreamed.
Listen, and be both entertained and surprised.
- Gail Cooke
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Summary: Another page-turning blockbuster.
Review: Bennie Rosato is a lawyer familiar with struggle and heartbreak, but nothing could prepare her for what's about to hit...Bennie's law firm is having a hard time financially, and her current client has just dropped the bombshell of not being able to pay her, but before she can say bankruptcy in walks a new client wealthy businessman Robert St. Amien. Just as things start looking up for Bennie a lost wallet will spin her life out of control. Someone hell-bent on destroying everything in Bennie's life has stolen her identity, and Bennie knows it's her twin sister Alice. As Bennie desperately searches for her twin, a murder will force her to track down a killer, and in the process bring her face to face a dark evil. 'Dead Ringer' is a fast-paced read that will keep readers guessing right up until the end. Lisa Scottoline can always be depended upon to write original thrillers filled with interesting characters, and surprising plot twists and her latest novel scores on all accounts. 'Dead Ringer' is filled with humor and suspense, and anyone looking for a great beach read should look no further...Scottoline has written another winner. Nick Gonnella
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Summary: Entertaining Humor about the Perils of Private Practice
Review: Bennie Rosato is the heroine and narrator of Dead Ringer, and the book opens with a very compelling series of episodes that display the problems that any small legal practice faces during hard economic conditions. Bennie is losing clients right and left to bankruptcy, and the clients she has aren't paying her. She's behind on the rent, and has laid off one staff person. No new clients seem to be on the horizon when she gets an unexpected call from a courtly Frenchman whose company has been hurt by an illegal boycott. But . . . the case will be a class action suit, and Bennie has never done one before. Soon, she's mixing it up with the multimillion dollar class action lawyers who expect her to pony up $30,000 to play in the contingent fee case. If that isn't enough, someone has started impersonating her and is using her credit cards to send unwanted goods to the office. Whenever Bennie thinks she has gotten her head above water, she has another setback. Before long, she's engaged forced to defend her very honor by solving two mysterious crimes. In the process, the danger grows to unacceptable levels . . . and a mysterious, handsome stranger becomes her Good Samaritan. With her hear aflutter, she finds it hard to concentrate on her legal practice. Dead Ringer started off to be a remarkably entertaining book. Around two-thirds of the way through, the book began to unwind from its excellent beginning. The first weakness is that Ms. Scottoline makes too little use of the other characters who work at the Rosato firm. Although they are in many scenes, the narration doesn't shift to them . . . or give us enough of a sense about how they feel. As a result, the associates and staff seem more than a little too understanding about Bennie's financial problems. Why aren't they out looking for another job . . . or at least petrified by their financial peril? The mysteries turn out to be way too easy to resolve . . . and Bennie's many complications unwind themselves like a slip knot. Although it's impressive as a plot device, the result feels hollow to the reader. Also, litigators seldom have financial problems unless they only do contingent fee work. If Bennie is all but unbeatable in court, why weren't clients lined up at her door all along? Her disregard for police procedures also seems flagrant. She really is obstructing one police investigation, and all she gets is one growl along the way. As a result of these flights into fantasy, the book ends up not being a serious effort . . . but rather as scaffolding for a number of fairly humorous gags. But slapstick isn't a fine novel, even though it can be entertaining. Those who have enjoyed Ms. Scottoline's other books will probably enjoy this one as well. If you like lawyer humor and don't know Ms. Scottoline's work, feel free to try this one. If you want a taut legal thriller that seems so real it scares you, look elsewhere. As I finished the book, I thought about why novels tend to have great endings rather than great beginnings. I assumed that Dead Ringer would have an ending as good as the beginning. Perhaps authors realize that it's more important to leave you on a high than to start you with a bang!
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Summary: Murder Mystery and Humor
Review: Bennie Rosato, is a successful lawyer but a businesswoman on the decline. While her reputation as a trial lawyer is stellar, her firm is on the verge of bankruptcy, until a big case comes along that just might solve all her problems, then things suddenly go haywire, and it started with a lost wallet. Lisa Scottoline brings us through this mystery with attitude and wit, never allowing a serious moment to go by without a quirky afterthought. The writing was informed and just right, and while certain things just pop out of nowhere, this book has no pretentions. The tension its plot could have had in unbearable proportions was lightened by the exceptional character of Bennie Rosato who, even in the direst of situations, never takes herself seriously. Bennie is pushy, but endearingly so, and she doesn't have to apologize for it either. Her character and St. Amien's was the best developed in the entire cast. Bennie, however, could've done without a certain Navy Seal. A hefty reward and a thank you would've sufficed. ^_~ All in all, it was a good book and I would recommend it for the Murder-Mystery enthusiast who just wants to sit back, relax and take a break from intensity.
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Summary: Thoroughly enjoyable legal thriller! Great book!
Review: Dead Ringer caught me off guard because I frankly did not expect a lot from it. Boy was I surprised when I discovered that this is an incredible legal thriller that rivals many of Grisham's books! Take any recent Grisham novel of choice, make all his legal-professional characters female, add some actual depth to his recent one-dimensional characters, and presto - Dead Ringer! Bennie Rosato, head of her own small law firm composed entirely of female professionals (lawyers and scretaries), is the main character of the book. The main plot revolves around how her twin sister almost destroys her life by trying to assume her identity when Bennie's wallet is lost. However, that is only the main plot. The depth of character development is enthralling as we learn of Bennie's struggles to maintain a financially depleted firm, make contact with a long lost father, develop a new relationship with a guy, and attempt to win a huge class-action lawsuit. Wow! If you are a fan of legal thrillers like Grisham writes, you will love this book. GUYS NOTE - yes, many of the main characters are female, and it is an all-woman firm. However, there is no man-bashing or overly sappy text. As stated before, its like a Grisham novel with female lead characters. This is a quality novel that I thoroughly enjoyed and so will you, no matter what age or gender!
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Summary: The twin is starting to annoy me
Review: I like all of Scottoline's books and this is also a quick, enterntaining read. The only downsides are that the author doesn't develop as much with the relationship to the cute guy and she could have AND she has the evil twin return. I find the twin annoying. But overall, a nice beach read.
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Summary: The twin is starting to annoy me
Review: I like all of Scottoline's books and this is also a quick, enterntaining read. Unfortunately, the evit twin of Bernie's returns to cause more chaos. If you have never read any of Scottoline's books before, then choose one of her earlier novels. If you always read Scottoline's books, then you are going to buy this one anything. Just realize it won't be one of her "better" ones.
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Summary: More Bennie is always just enough!
Review: I met Lisa Scottoline at Book Expo Canada a few years ago, and she's a blast. So, whenever I saw her books, I nabbed them. But, truth be told, I'd not started reading them. Recently, I listened to 'Legal Tender,' and really enjoyed it, and so when I saw this and another Lisa Scottoline available on audio, I nabbed it.
We return to Bennie Rosato and find her just as snarky, sarcastic, and tough as ever. The reader still being Kate Burton really helped, as she's got the perfect voice for the character.
Now, since I've been reading this out of order, some characters I knew weren't in it (apparently, the relationship that began in 'Legal Tender' didn't work out, for one), and I didn't know that Bennie had a twin (I must have missed a book between this and the last one). But when her twin starts to show up and make malicious attempts to ruin Bennie's life, things get interesting. Especially when Bennie's own little law firm is on the financial rocks. And when her biggest client ends up murdered, Bennie's in real trouble - because what if the murderer is her twin? Or are they unrelated? Or, is someone else also trying to ruin Bennie?
Solid stuff, this story, interesting, and the mystery had me confounded (bonus points for that). Thumbs-up, especially for Kate Burton's reading voice.
'Nathan
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Summary: Too good to put down
Review: It is such a pleasure to write a glowing review rather than commenting on the last Patterson cut and paste formula fiasco. This story was funny, clever, well constructed and a complete pleasure that I couldn't let go of. Move over James Patterson and Dean Koontz. This lady writes like you used to James, and you never could, Dean!
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Summary: So-so legal thriller
Review: It's my first book by Lisa Scottoline. Maybe I didn't pick the best one by this author but I found this book without much suspense, without well developed and believable characters (as much as author tries very hard to create ones), with weak plot that is not always very well logically connected. I don't say that it's a bad book, it's just not very good. Also, the fact that the main character is a lawyer doesn't make it a courtroom thriller (as it is advertised).
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