Undue Influence (Paul Madriani Series #3)

by Steve Martini

Overview

Defense attorney Paul Madriani is mired in a complex web of intrigue and murder when the sister of his late wife, embroiled in a bitter custody battle with her former husband, becomes the prime suspect in the murder of her ex-husband and his new young wife.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101563922
Publisher:	Penguin Publishing Group
Publication date:	07/01/1995
Series:	Paul Madriani Series , #3
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	480
File size:	559 KB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Steve Martini worked as a newspaper reporter in Los Angeles and as a capital correspondent at the state house in Sacramento, California. An honors graduate at the University of California at Santa Cruz, Mr. Martini holds his law degree from the University of the Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law. He has written widely on the law and politics, having covered both state and federal courts, the state legislature, and the administrations of governors Ronald Reagan and Jerry Brown. In 1984 Martini turned his talents to fiction, quickly earning positions on bestseller lists and garnering both critical and popular praise for his New York Times–bestselling novels, including The Simeon Chamber, Compelling Evidence, Prime Witness, Undue Influence, The Judge, The List, Critical Mass, The Attorney, The Jury, and The Arraignment. Mr. Martini lives on the West Coast.

Hometown:

California

Date of Birth:

February 28, 1946

Place of Birth:

San Francisco, California

Education:

B.A., University of California, Santa Cruz, 1968; J.D., University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, 1974

Editorial Reviews

Martini's track record as a best-selling thriller writer--"Compelling Evidence" (1992), "Prime Witness" --is well established, so it's a safe bet that his latest novel will draw a crowd. It features the return of defense attorney Paul Madriani, now defending his sister-in-law, Laurel, on a murder charge. Recently divorced, Laurel has been involved in a bitter custody battle for her two children. Her ex-husband, remarried to a conniving bimbo, is about to win custody when his new wife is found shot to death in her bathtub. Although all the evidence points to Laurel, she swears she didn't do it. Madriani takes on the case and vows to win despite all the odds: a ruthless prosecutor, a cop with a bitter vendetta against him, and a mounting suspicion that Laurel is hiding something. Martini's plot is inventive, the courtroom scenes are dazzling, and the climax is guaranteed to shock. The down side? Unless a good editor tackles the manuscript (granted, this review is based on an advance galley) and can clear up the shocking number of punctuation and grammar errors, the clunky run-on sentences, and the truly unforgivable dialogue, which is full of bad teen talk ("So, like, he goes . . ."), Martini's mesmerizing courtroom drama may sink in the quicksand of clumsy prose.

Emily Melton

Martini’s novel is, on the surface, a well-crafted courtroom drama. However, Martini takes his well-developed characters far beyond the courtroom, and he brings us along for the ride. It’s a pleasure to listen to Guidall develop his narrative craft, and it’s impossible to find fault with any aspect of his performance. With its heavy reliance upon dialogue, Undue Influence is ideally suited for audio and for Guidall’s talents. D.R.T. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine

JULY 95 - AudioFile