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Summary: Entertaining legal caper
Review: This is more a caper novel that an thriller, but it's great fun. The humor is subtle and light, and the main characters have touching stories to tell. When I first heard the premise for this book, I thought "no way," and in fact, it's not believable. But the book is less a legal drama (where believability does matter, to me) than a light-hearted escapade that manages to tell a meaningful story. The characters come alive on the page.
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Summary: Sorry, but I just didn't like it much
Review: From Scottolines first book through to Mistaken Identity, I really enjoyed her work, it was fast, fresh, suspenseful, and at times laugh out loud funny. Her last book was a dissapointment however, and I am sorry to say that this is an even bigger one. Maybe I am crazy, seeing as how it has been geting glowing reviews here, but I just didn't like it. I thought it was very slow paced, and not very suspenseful at all. I found myself constantly skimming ahead for the "good" parts. The characters were flat and pigeon Tony was annoying with his constant "I no murder him, I kill him!" There were snippets of humor, but nothing compared to some of her previous books. I hate writing such a negative review of an author I like, but that is how I feel. I will still read her next book, and hopefully it will go better.
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Summary: Carrier-Pigeon
Review: Judy Carrier, lawyer, is set to defend Pigeon Tony a man who has not only been accused of committing a murder but actually admits he did it. For a lawyer an admission of guilt makes for a tough defense; for a story it makes a great plot. I enjoy legal thrillers, as long as the bulk of the story is told outside of the courtroom. To me there is nothing more boring than courtroom action, or inaction as it were, and courtroom dialog. I was not disappointed when I read The Vendetta Defense. The courtroom scenes turned out to be very well written and entertaining. Lisa Scottoline is great at characterization. Pigeon Tony, this guy is a character, reminded me so much of my father that part way through the story I had total empathized with him. The story is great, the writing is exceptional, the characters are wonderful, the dialog is crisp, and should Judy Carrier lose her case at least Lisa Scottoline comes away a big winner with her masterpiece The Vendetta Defense. (Pigeon fanciers take note: was it intentional or ironic that Judy "Carrier" ended up defending "Pigeon" Tony?)
Rating: 
Summary: A Great Legal Thriller!
Review: As a legal thriller novelist myself, I found The Vendetta Defense to be a real page turner! Scottoline is indeed splendid with her characters and plots, leaving the reader wanting for more. I recommend this one to any true fan of the genre. From the author of DAMNING EVIDENCE, WHEN NIGHT FALLS, MURDER IN THE ROSE CITY, DEADLY SECRETS IN THE MOTOR CITY, and the soon to be released legal thriller, POSITIVE I.D.
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Summary: LEGAL THRILLERS 4 LIFE
Review: Nuthin like a legal thriller. I'm a lawyer and I read this book with my wife nightly. We curl up and kind of lose ourselves in this book. We immerse ourselves from lawyers into a different world where lawyers reign. Legal thrillers. When lawyers get harassed by beasts and stuff. We go, "WHOOOOO HE GOT AWAY GOOD BECAUSE THE LAWYER IS THE PROTAGONIST AND WE WANT HIM TO LIVE BECAUSE HES A LAWYER AND SO ARE WE". Im having a child soon and were putting up posters of the Santa Monica Court House in his room. He will love it. We will read legal thrillers to him...legal thrillers.. he'll tell campfire stories at Legal Camp, and they will be scary because we tell him scary legal thrillers.
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Summary: Brava, Scottoline!
Review: In her best novel yet, Lisa Scottoline has once again mined her knowledge of all things Italian and the result is pure gold. "The Vendetta Defense" is the story of "Pigeon Tony" Lucia (he breeds and races pigeons), an elderly Italian gentleman who admits that he has killed his enemy, eighty-year-old Angela Coluzzi, in order to settle an ancient vendetta. In a series of flashbacks, we learn the story of Tony Lucia and Angelo Coluzzi. These two men were neighbors in a small town in Italy sixty years ago, and they were rivals for the hand of the beautiful Silvana. Silvana chose Tony Lucia over Angelo Coluzzi, and Angelo, a rabid Fascist and a vicious thug, never forgave this betrayal. Coluzzi spent his life doing everything that he could to destroy the Lucia family. For over half a century, Tony has restrained his anguish, until the fateful day when he and Coluzzi finally have it out. Judy Carrier, a hotshot lawyer in Bennie Rosato's all-female law firm, decides to take on Tony Lucia's seemingly hopeless case. While trying this case, Judy risks her life, weathers exciting and nerve-wracking courtroom battles and finds love with Frank, Tony's gorgeous grandson. Scottoline's novel is at times achingly poignant, especially during the flashbacks, and at other times, it is laugh-out-loud funny. Scottoline is politically incorrect in her depiction of the old Italian men and young Italian mobsters who live in South Philly. "The Vendetta Defense" works as a light and entertaining mystery, and I recommend it unreservedly. Fans of Scottoline will fall in love with Judy and Pigeon Tony, and they will enjoy this wonderful novel immensely.
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Summary: Scottoline Scores!!!
Review: Since reading "Every Where That Mary Went", I have read each Lisa Scottoline novel as quickly as they have been published. "The Vendetta Defense" certainly deserves five stars! One of the best things about this series is that each book has featured a different character or combination of characters from the law firm of Rosato & Associates. This time it's Judy Carrier's turn to shine. For those who follow the series, Bennie Rosato and Mary DiNunzio both make brief appearances here. But it's Judy who picks up the murder case and consequently falls in love. Her client is an elderly Italian man whose main interest is taking care of and racing his beloved pigeons. Pigeon Tony is a terrific character and Ms. Scottoline does a wonderful job making him feel very "real" to the readers. There really isn't a "mystery" because Pigeon Tony tells Judy immediately that he is responsible for Angelo Coluzzi's death. The interest is how Judy will build a defense and how she will escape the vengeful Coluzzi family. This is Lisa Scottoline at her best!
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Summary: Entertaining Legal Thriller
Review: Another hit for Lisa Scottoline. Contains thrilling courtroom drama, intrigue, compassion, comedy, and pleasant entertainment in a book that you can't put down.
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Summary: A TAUT, NUANCED READING OF AN ACE LEGAL THRILLER
Review: Broadway actress Barbara Rosenblat offers a taut, nuanced reading of Lisa Scottoline's latest compelling legal thriller, "The Vendetta Defense." Mystery fans have come to respect Ms. Scottoline not only for her suspense driven narratives but for the integrity of her work as she largely bases stories on her experience as a Philadelphia trial lawyer. Legal ethics are often the core of her drama, and she has lectured on this subject at law schools throughout the country. Now, we meet "Pigeon Tony"Lucia, an elderly Italian pigeon racer who admits killing his number one enemy, Angelo Coluzzi, to avenge a fifty year old blood feud. His attorney, Judy Carrier, has more than a guilty client on her hands as Coluzzi's family want vengeance for their father's death and Judy long gone before the case goes to trial. Can she outrun and outsmart these lethal, amoral foes? You're simply going to have to listen to Barbara Rosenblat's accomplished reading to find out.
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Summary: The Vendetta Defense is Lisa's BEST
Review: Wow, Lisa Scottoline has really topped herself with the Vendetta Defense. Pigeon Tony is exasperating as he insists on telling the judge that yes, he killed Angelo, and yes, he wanted to, but no, "I no murder!" His justification fits Italian culture, but not United States law. He drives defense attorney Judy Carrier crazy as he keeps insisting "I tell judge", while she does just about everything to prevent him incriminating himself. Lisa Scottoline's characters are so real, I would know Tony (and his parade of friends, "the Tonys") in an instant if saw them or heard them talking. Judy is real too, as we get to know her through her mental dialogue, her own self-doubts contrasted with righteous indignation about the offenses Tony and his family suffered at the hands of Antonio. She knows what's right, but she also knows the law. The characters are what makes this book stand apart, but the plot is solid, the issues strong, and the writing superb. If you haven't discovered Scottoline, this is the time, and if she's already on your list of favorites, she just might move up to the top!
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