Random Jottings

Marcia Clark - the Rachel Knight series

I read a lot of crime fiction these days as you well know, and love many variations in this genre. However, I love courtroom scenes and all the procedural staff that goes with it.   This is why I prefer the Micky Haller books of Michael Connelly to those featuring Harry Bosch, excellent though they are too.    A while back I reviewed a book Involuntary Witness by Gianrico Carofiglio, link here which kept me totally riveted all the way through with a nearly thirty page summing up at the end of a trial. Masterly stuff.

When checking back to link a post I found a review of a book by Marcia Clark. I had enjoyed it tremendously and made a note to keep an eye out for more by this author. This is part of what I wrote about her debut novel:

"Rachel is another survivor with baggage to carry. In this case, it is the disappearance of her younger sister many years ago for which she blames herself.   As with Alice, she has difficulty in maintaining a long term relationship and to compensate buries herself in her work.

Her trusted and idealistic colleague, Jake, is found dead beside the body of a murdered teenage male prostitute and it appears as a murder/suicide.   Rachel does not believe this can possibly be the truth and sets about trying to prove the FBI wrong.   She is also dealing with a rape case of the daughter of a wealthy doctor who is applying pressure on Rachel's boss for a quick solution and whose re-election he is supporting.

Rachel has two good friends, Toni who works with her in her office and Bailey, a police detective and this trio provide the book with warmth and humour as the three support each other along the way. Bailey works for the Crime Unit in the LAPD and my first thought was that he must know Harry Bosch and then, no Elaine, wrong books...

Lots of twists and turns again and dealings with the seamy side of LA and, as with Alice in the previous book, Rachel finds herself in danger and being shot at and then kidnapped.  Also, as with Alice, there is a rather dashing and glamorous hero eager to get to know her better, in this case Lieutenant Graden Hales "six feet tall, on the lean side but tastefully muscled under his blue unfiorm, his dark blon hair just long enough to comb.  HIs eyes were a gold flecked hazel and he had wide, pronounced cheekbones, a strong nose and a generous mouth".  Mmmmm, nice.

I then lost my note and it was only when re-reading earlier crime round ups that I came across the name and checked on Amazon to see if she had written more since then. Well she had so I downloaded one onto my Kindle. After fifty pages I put my e-reader to one side, logged on and downloaded the others and I have spent the last week totally engrossed in these books.   If you want to check her out, here is a link to her Amazon page:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Marcia-Clark/e/B000APWZSU/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1409835327&sr=1-2-ent

The book that has had me welded to my chair all week is Killer Ambition. All the others are good, but this is the best on, in my humble.

The kidnapped daughter of a Hollywood Mogul and producer is found dead after the ransom has been paid. Looks as if it has been set up by the daughter herself in league with her boyfriend to get money out of her estranged father, but then there is a twist to the tale and something nastier crawls out of the woodwork. When DA Rachel Knight arrests the manager and close friend of the father of the kidnapped girl, all hell is let loose with the Hollywood publicity machine in full cry and Rachel feels the full force of the blast, both in the Press and on the TV.   She is harrassed and attacked and it is clear that if she fails to convict her job will be toast.

Marcia Clark was the lead prosecutor on the OJ Simpson case and pretty sure that the background on this book is what happened to her. As we know, OJ got off, even though everyone knew he was guilty, though he has now paid the price for his crime and the mayhem surrounding his trial was broadcast worldwide. I expect the prosecutors of Pistorius are suffering in the same way right now.

Loved every word of it. Rachel is the usual commitment phobe heroine with a tragedy in her past, but she has gorgeous boyfriend now, two great friends and she lives in the Biltmore hotel in return for a conviction of the murderer of the CEO's wife. So she has laundry, room service and a great place to hang out. 

I really recommend these books. Do read them in order because, once again, the story of Rachel's personal life and feelings is gradually revealed in each title. There are two short stories as well, available for Kindle, but not sure you need to bother with those. One is good, the other not.

Try them, do, and let me know what you think.

London and Los Angeles - two debut thrillers

Two debut thrillers have arrived at Schloss Random in the last week and I have enjoyed both of them very much, one set in London, the other in Los Angeles.

First one is Cross Bones Yard by Kate Rhodes. Our heroine is Alice Quentin, a psychologist who has problems of her own after suffering an abusive childhood when she and her brother suffered at the hands of their father and had to watch their mother being regularly beaten.   Hiding in a cupboard in a desperate bid to avoid him she is now a troubled adult who suffers from claustrophobia and is incapable of forming long lasting relationships.  So we have a troubled protagonist which seems to be a given for crime and detective thrillers and the writing and story has to be good to overcome a feeling of deja vu.

And it is.   Sharp narrative and good plotting.    Alice is a loner and one night out on her regular run she discovers a body on waste ground at Crossbones Yard, an area where prostitutes used to be buried.   The wounds are similar to those inflicted on the victims of Ray and Marie Benson (shades of the Wests here) who killed thirteen women before they were caught.   Alice is asked to interview Marie Benson to see if they can found out who is the copy cat killer.   The bodies begin to mount up and Alice has to go into hiding as threatening letters are sent to her, somebody tries to break into her apartment and it is clear her life is in danger.

In charge of the investigation is D I Alvarez, a widower, dark and brooding and grieving for his wife. "The bad tempered detective who had given me a lift home appeared in the doorway. ...he looked different by daylight. His black hair and pale skin made him look exotic, Middle Eastern maybe, starved of sunshine for much too long. There was still no indication that he knew how to smile".   He and Alice are attracted to each other and a relationship develops though both of them try to fight it and Alice is fresh out of breaking up with her previous boyfriend, Sean, a surgeon who is now exhibiting worrying signs of anger and resentment.

A tense, exciting ending when Alice finds herself abducted and a final twist I did not foresee at all.  I hope this is to be a series featuring this character as I found this an exciting pacy thriller by Kate Rhodes and look forward to the second.

Guilt by Association - Marcia Clark.  I gather that the author is a former LA Deputy District Attorney, as is her heroine Rachel Knight, and was the lead prosecutor in the OJ Simpson murder case so she certainly knows her onions and has produced a snappy, pacy thriller which zapped along, complete with witty one liners and sassy dialogue.

Rachel is another survivor with baggage to carry. In this case, it is the disappearance of her younger sister many years ago for which she blames herself.   As with Alice, she has difficulty in maintaining a long term relationship and to compensate buries herself in her work.

Her trusted and idealistic colleague, Jake, is found dead beside the body of a murdered teenage male prostitute and it appears as a murder/suicide.   Rachel does not believe this can possibly be the truth and sets about trying to prove the FBI wrong.   She is also dealing with a rape case of the daughter of a wealthy doctor who is applying pressure on Rachel's boss for a quick solution and whose re-election he is supporting.

Rachel has two good friends, Toni who works with her in her office and Bailey, a police detective and this trio provide the book with warmth and humour as the three support each other along the way. Bailey works for the Crime Unit in the LAPD and my first thought was that he must know Harry Bosch and then, no Elaine, wrong books...

Lots of twists and turns again and dealings with the seamy side of LA and, as with Alice in the previous book, Rachel finds herself in danger and being shot at and then kidnapped.  Also, as with Alice, there is a rather dashing and glamorous hero eager to get to know her better, in this case Lieutenant Graden Hales "six feet tall, on the lean side but tastefully muscled under his blue unfiorm, his dark blon hair just long enough to comb.  HIs eyes were a gold flecked hazel and he had wide, pronounced cheekbones, a strong nose and a generous mouth".  Mmmmm, nice.

As the story progresses it gradually becomes clear that the two cases are linked but how to prove it?

Thoroughly enjoyed this one as well.  Two good debut thrillers whose authors will go on my list of Those to Look Out For.