Bitter Truth

Rating:
Summary: Four and a half really, but doesn't quite get five
Review: The writing in Veritas (which apparently is called Bitter Truth now) is just as good as in Hostile Witness. The plot had great possiblilties, and was often more interesting than Hostile's plot, but it didn't quite pay off the way I had hoped. Apparently Veritas is a shortened--though still 440 long pages--version of Bitter Truth, and Bitter Truth might take its time in the ending better and be richer, I don't know. At this point, I would say that Lashner's best plot was Fatal Flaw (though not executed very well in the beginning), his best writing was Hostile Witness--when you consider the meaning of the words and the whole book, and Veritas kind of gets stuck in the middle. Almost the whole time I was reading it I thought I would call it his best book, but it didn't resolve itself quite to my satisfaction, and I don't. Bottom line: I don't think Lashner has written his best book yet--even though Hostile will define him due to the introduction of Carl. Two things are for sure, I'll keep reading Lashner's books, and there isn't anybody like him.

Rating:
Summary: Victor Carl gets more complex, but old house is trite
Review: This is a much more ambitious book than Hostile Witness. Lashner is clearly trying to move beyond the confines of writing a courtroom procedural. In fact, very little of this book takes place in a courtroom. Victor Carl is becoming an interesting, funny, and complex character. The book's weakness lies in its reliance on the shopworn plot device of a gloomy old mansion whose every closet is rattling with skeletal remains of past sins. Despite this, I think Victor is interesting enough to outweigh Lashner's overused plot line. If Lashner's writing continues to improve (and if he can develop a more original plot line) his next book may be very good indeed.

Rating:
Summary: Gothic, Long, but still intriguing...
Review: This is clearly not Lashner's best work. It took a while to get thorough, but Lashner kept me interested. This is a book that cries out for better editing. Way too many long descriptive passages that lead to yawns. The story is convoluted, but at least the main plot is interesting--just who is the evil force behind the Pickle family? And Carl is so darned interesting. I love Morris as always. I noticed that this book was called Vertias first and there was almost a 6 year lag between novels for our boy Lashner...I hope that Fatal Flaw is better. Still, because I love Philadelphia (Lasher even gets the restaurants right here) and Carl, I will read it.

Rating:
Summary: Gothic, Long, but still intriguing...
Review: This is clearly not Lashner's best work. It took a while to get thorough, but Lashner kept me interested. This is a book that cries out for better editing. Way too many long descriptive passages that lead to yawns. The story is convoluted, but at least the main plot is interesting--just who is the evil force behind the Pickle family? And Carl is so darned interesting. I love Morris as always. I noticed that this book was called Vertias first and there was almost a 6 year lag between novels for our boy Lashner...I hope that Fatal Flaw is better. Still, because I love Philadelphia (Lasher even gets the restaurants right here) and Carl, I will read it.

Rating:
Summary: Totally enjoyed this book.
Review: This was my first Lasher book and it won't be the last. It kept me guessing through the entire story. I did have a hard time getting all the characters straight but once I did I could not put the book down.

Rating:
Summary: Totally enjoyed this book.
Review: This was my first Lasher book and it won't be the last. It kept me guessing through the entire story. I did have a hard time getting all the characters straight but once I did I could not put the book down.

Rating:
Summary: "Veritas" has all the elements of a good read, it isn`t
Review: Veritas has all the elements of a truly good lawyer/client story. It does not however, deliver on those promises. I`m sure the author tried to deliver but got blocked, or did not know where to go, and used tired plot devices to make the story work. The absolute absurdity of the story is the only thing that saves it from becoming pointless. I feel that this author is talented but his editors did not require him to use his skills as a writer more effectively. The other thought is that this author is writing of subjects he`s really not comfortable or qualified to write about. I do know someone who will enjoy this novel due to it`s absurdity, and will pass it on.

Rating:
Summary: A most talented writer with larger-than-life ambition
Review: What made me think during reading this book was that Victor Carl's eyes seemed to permanently recover from his old weakness, i.e., very easy to wet by other people's insult. But in this book, the hero seemed to become a totally different person, more attorney but less humanbeing. The writing was smooth and almost as good as Nelson Demille's "GOLD COAST"(but not his "Plum Island"--which was a nuisance and downride), full of witty sentences that made me smile. The plot was also fine, yet making the hero become a totally different person--althoght still craving success and richness--was a twist that the author should be carefully worked out in his next Victor Carl series. I strongly suggest Mr. Lashner to change to other venues of his 3rd-up novels, because talented as he is, he could write anything, any kind of hero or heroine as he choose and not necessarily has to stick to the complicated-yet-become-more-vague Victor Carl. To have such gifted new writer on the bookshelves is absolutely a blessing to our world readers.