Rating: 
Summary: the "i did it" defense
Review: how to defend a good man who purposefully kills a bad one? author's trademark female perspective ("the law is a jealous mister" p.302) and comedic elements combine with a tricky legal issue when a jury decides between the law and what it thinks is just. meandering pacing, including flashbacks to fascist italy.
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Summary: SCOTTOLINE IS THE BEST!
Review: Lawyer Judy Carrier takes on a case that can make, or break her career.Elderly pigeon racer, Anthony Lucia (pigeon Tony to his friends), is arrested for the murder of lifelong enemy, Angelo Coluzzi. Tony, and Coluzzi have had a 50 year-old vendetta against one another, bringing pain, and murder to both men for many years. Against the wishes of her boss, Bennie Rosato, Judy takes on the case, even though her client has confessed his guilt. As the case heats up, Judy will find herself attracted to Tony's grandson Frank, and attempts will be made to finish off Tony before the case can go to trial. Before long, Judy, will be fighting for her life, if she is to see justice served. "The Vendetta Defense" is another MASTERFUL thriller by bestselling author, Lisa Scottoline. The plot races along at break-neck speed; combining a colorful cast of characters, with snappy dialogue, and plot twist, after plot twist. I have said it before, and I will say it again...Scottoline has been compared to Grisham, but that is an unfair statement because she is better, MUCH better! Lisa Scottoline has made a career of writing interesting legal thrillers, and her new one is no exception, it ranks as one of her best, and will surely fly up the bestseller list's. A MUST read!!! Nick Gonnella
Rating:
Summary: Perfect
Review: Judy is a hard working lawyer. Get the job done. Her best friend Mary is still recuperating from her wounds. Mary's father, adored by Judy, asks a favor. Can you help my friend Pigeon Tony? he has been arrested for murder. What follows is a great suspense and courtroom thriller full of great humor, interesting characters and most of all an enthralling story that you will not be able to put down. This is not so much a whoddunit as it is a whydoneit! Great read and I am glad to see Scottoline back to her old self. Buy this one.
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Summary: Her best work to date
Review: Philadelphia contains a special law firm, Rosato and Associates, that consists exclusively of women, who have each had at least one case where someone shot them or otherwise injured them. Mary DiNunzio is on sabbatical recovering from wounds received while defending a client. Her friend and co-worker Judy Carrier, misses Mary, but the latter feels safe working civil suits and preparing briefs. That changes when Judy agrees to defend "Pigeon Tony" Lucia against a murder charge. The DA accuses Pigeon Tony of killing Angelo Coluzzi, a person he has known for six decades. Tony believes that Angelo killed his wife, son. and daughter-in-law. Consequently, he snapped the neck of Angelo. The Coluzzi family is well connected in South Philly and goes to extraordinary lengths to silence Tony and his lawyer, but the intrepid Judy refuses to stop representing her client. She wants justice, not the law served. The law and justice do not always match as the theme of THE VENDETTA DEFENSE indicates. This leads to important distinctions and even more important issues that hold the audience in thrall as they anxiously wait to see Lisa Scottoline's position on justice vs. the law. Judy's legal strategy is brilliant and remains on the right side of the law although she doubts justice will be served for her client. Tony has stolen a piece of Judy's heart with his grief and likewise does this to the reader also even with the knowledge that he killed a man. Lisa Scottoline has written a clever, intelligent legal procedural that sub-genre fans will relish as the story line focuses on the essence of the justice system. Harriet Klausner
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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.
Rating: 
Summary: Not up to Scottoline's standards
Review: I have enjoyed all of Lisa's Scottoline's books, except this one. And I should confess this review is only about the first half--I abandoned the book when I got to the midpoint and it still wasn't holding my interest. (I almost NEVER do that.) If this is your first Scottoline mystery, and you felt the way I did, please don't give up on her. Most of her books are lively, interesting, funny, and have characters worth spending time with.
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Summary: Schmaltzy, but fun
Review: An 79-year-old Italian immigrant, called Pigeon Tony for his lifelong love of pigeon racing, is arrested for the murder of another old immigrant, Angelo Coluzzi, at their local pigeon racing club. As a favor to the family of her best friend Mary DiNunzio (recovering from injuries sustained in the last Scottoline) Judy Carrier, of Rosato & Associates, takes the case.
Her job is made difficult by her client's insistence on his guilt - though Pigeon Tony calls it justice, not murder. His act, he explains, was the culmination of a vendetta begun 60 years before in Italy when he married Coluzzi's sweetheart and Coluzzi relatiated by killing her, leaving their only son motherless.
Coluzzi, says Tony, taunted him in the moments before his killing with confirmation of Tony's suspicions that Coluzzi was responsible for the car wreck that killed Tony's only son and his wife.
Judy, swayed by the old man's pathos, wracks her brains to establish a defense of gray areas and sympathy, a tactic which goes against her strict legal principles. As Pigeon Tony's neighborhood friends help her investigate Tony's allegations against the Coluzzi clan, Judy finds herself falling for Tony's handsome grandson. Fireworks ensue as threats, mayhem and attempted murder derail her budding romance and play havoc with her case. Her boss, Bennie Rosato, steps in with some good advice about fighting fire with a legal blitz and the battle is more evenly joined.
Scottoline's wit and deft plotting are well in evidence here but the Italian neighborhood schmaltz gets a little thick. Nevertheless Judy is funny, brave and caustic and "The Vendetta Defense" will please fans.
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Summary: Excellent read!
Review: This book, the first of her books I have read, was gripping from beginning to end. I love lawyer/mystery type books. When people call her the female John Grisham, they are so right, but she has much better endings to her books than he does. I have read many since this one, and loved each individually. I had a chance to see her speak, and she is as funny and sharp as her books read. Loved it and hated when it ended.
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Summary: a story of revenge, love, hate & more
Review: This audio adaptation of Lisa Scottoline's the Vendetta Defense tells a story of revenge, love, hate, and more. The "Vendetta" between Angelo Coluzzi and Tony Lucia "Pidgeon Tony" over the killing sixty years ago of Lucia's wife, as well as son and daughter in law, runs deep. Judy Carrier, the attorney who takes Pidgeon Tony's case, has all she can do to keep him from ruining his case, with the jury; given the hard bitten prosecutor who'd like to see him punished. Kate Burton does a fine job at reading the book, but her accents for the "Italians" are a bit exaggerated. She does better with the English speaking doctor. Still, a fine book.
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Summary: Fast-paced tale of revenge, regret and family
Review: Philadelphia lawyer Judy Carrier takes on the case of "Pigeon Tony" a self-confessed murderer of Angelo Coluzzi, another octagenarian Italian-American with whom he has had a "vendetta" for 60 years. This story is an interesting look at the culture of the Italian families in Philadelphia and their history and culture, particularly the acknowledged requirement to avenge wrongs from the past. Through flashbacks, we relieve Tony's experience as a 17 year old farmer in Italy, his meeting with his wife, his bullying by Coluzzi...P>There are interesting characters and a love interest for Judy. I enjoyed Tony's logic and flashbacks and even didnt mind the broken English. Much of the action took place before Tony's trial for murder, so I would categorize this book as more a legal procedural than a courtroom thriller. The ending was interesting: some reviewers here don't think it was believable but I can see how a jury could make the same choice. A very entertaining read.
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