In Kindle County, a woman is killed in an apparent random drive-by shooting. The woman turns out to be the ex-wife of a prominent state senator and an old acquaintance of Judge Sonia Klonsky, on whose desk the case lands. As the pursuit of justice takes bizarre and unusual turns, Judge Klonsky is brought face-to-face with a host of extraordinary personalities and formidable enemies bent on her destruction.
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"Scott Turow has a writing style that is ethereal in quality, you feel it, you are there, and you tense up with the movement throughout. I am writing this review over ten years since I read the book, and still feel the aanger, the hopelessness, the fight that writhes within each of the subjects."
— Mel (5 out of 5 stars)
“The Bonfire of the Vanities meets The Big Chill…Wonderfully colorful.”
— New York Times“Absorbing…An ambitious novel and, happily, the author’s firm grasp is more than equal to his reach.”
— Wall Street Journal“Enthralling…Several cuts above the popular competition.”
— Time“Splendid…Every bit as gripping and profound as its predecessors…Turow is in a category of his own.’
— San Francisco Chronicle“From the evocative opening paragraph, Turow reaffirms all that separates him from most of his contemporaries…There are so many reasons to savor this book. The language is breathtaking… It’s the real deal.”
— Miami Herald“His dialogue is superb, and his scenes move with pace and authority. The opening is a tour de force of beautifully orchestrated action writing.”
— Newsday“No other novel this year is likely to be as thoughtful, as timely and richly detailed, and as satisfying to read…A tour de force.”
— Detroit News-Free Press“Powerful…A big, ambitious novel…One of the most thoughtful and satisfying novels this year.”
— Philadelphia Inquirer“Laws of Our Fathers is a rich, complex and ultimately profoundly moving tale that, like all Turow’s work, is quarried from the mysteries of human character rather than simply from the sometimes too-easy drama of the courtroom…Most fine novels have a keen sense of the passage of time, and Turow’s grasp of the revolutionary fervor of the ‘60s and how it has later calmed into rueful, if still compassionate, acceptance, is masterly…Turow’s grandly ambitious achievement: to focus the profoundest struggles of two generations through one sordid, emblematic crime.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review)“Turow once again proves that there is more substance in a single page of one of his novels than in the entire works of John Grisham or any other author in the legal thriller genre.”
— Library Journal“Beneath the layers of deep legal deviousness, Turow never lets you forget that his characters lived and loved before they ever got dragged into court and that they have lives to go back to after the final gavel comes down.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)“Turow, while telling a fascinating crime story, skillfully turns the book into a tale of love and loss, of family and friendship.”
— Booklist" Two words: brain candy. It's an easy read, but gets a little awkward in the transition between past and present. Story jumps the shark at the end. "
— Laura, 2/20/2014" Because I've read other Scott Turow books and liked them, I forced myself to finish this one. But it was drudgery. So much so that the final Turow book I have to read will be put on a shelf for some time to come. I don't think I could stomach two within a few weeks of each other if the other one is like this one. "
— Susan, 2/4/2014" a fine legal story with detailed and captivating characterizations and ver appealing to all those who were or knew of the flower generation. Scott Turow is readable as always and his novels raise several moral questions in my mind as usual. It also is disturbing to read of the cancer of corruption being so widespread in the American judiciary ... though comforting perhaps to Indians!! "
— Ram, 2/1/2014" I started this book and almost gave up on it from the beginning. The first chapter was written in this gangster's tone of voice, and it just pissed me off. But I didn't have anything else to read, so I stuck with it, and a few chapters in it started to get really interesting, and never went back to the gangster's point of view again. Then I got to the last 50 pages or so and completely stopped caring, and consequently stopped reading. Oh well. "
— Sam, 1/25/2014" Read in Italian, a long nice book "
— Nadia, 1/24/2014" Good court drama, with fun flashbacks to the early seventies! "
— Debbie, 1/12/2014" I think Turow was trying to write too many stories at once, and didn't do a very good job with any of them. "
— Jeanette, 11/20/2013" If Turow could figure out a way to tell his story without the first 200 pages and the last 200 pages, he'd have a five-star novel. Those middle 400 pages were golden. "
— Dick, 11/18/2013" 817 pages of very slow-moving prose. I couldn't finish it. "
— Bill, 9/4/2013" This was a legal page turner. Good read for a holiday weekend. "
— Hope, 8/30/2013" This was not one of the better novels by Scott Turow. Too much trying to sound like an ebonic, black perspective by awhite man. "
— Alan, 8/17/2013" A decent mystery/thriller, but Turow was a little self-indulgent in his portrayal of the angst of middle-aged characters facing their own mortality and their shared histories. "
— Gargi, 7/17/2013" Didn't really care for this "
— Mark, 12/27/2012" Got about halfway through it and couldn't finish. I liked it, but not as much as other stuff I was reading and did not want to read 300 more pages of an "ok" book! "
— Kimberly, 8/25/2012" too long in many sections. Liked story line n characterss "
— Mitch, 7/26/2012" Turow gets down and dirty in his books and sometimes he bores me with the detail. But otherwise a good read. "
— Carol, 7/21/2012" Scott Turow is a master. Loved this book. "
— Okralaw, 3/3/2012" I didn't finish this book. I like Scott Turow, but I could not get through the flashbacks to the 70s in Berkeley. I grew up after all that was over, and cannot stand to read yet another Boomer flashback. Sigh. :) "
— Dan, 2/7/2012" Ugh. Couldn't get through the first 30 pages. There are ways to express a character's dialect without actually trying to write in that dialect. Horrid. If I'm missing out on a good story, shame on the author. "
— Jonna, 1/27/2012" Disappointing read. Usually like Scott Turow, but not this book. Should have given up halfway through, very confusing and off-point, didn't think it would ever end. "
— Connie, 1/23/2012" Too much backtracking interwoven into the story to have a cohesive story line. I lost interest by about 30% through. "
— Sara, 11/17/2011" A little slow, but well written. Interesting character development. "
— Karen, 9/28/2011" I had trouble getting through this book. I tried a couple of times and then finally gave up. I don't know if it is the language of the book that didn't appeal to me or the story line....oh well... "
— Marcella, 7/26/2011" Disappointing read. Usually like Scott Turow, but not this book. Should have given up halfway through, very confusing and off-point, didn't think it would ever end. "
— Connie, 5/4/2011" Very riveting book. A very intricate look into relationships, the sixties, street culture, and justice. "
— Stephen, 3/13/2011" Very good but not his best work. "
— Christopher, 2/18/2011" Meh. Not really recommended, but for its genre, it's decent. The problems with book exchanges where all the books are German! "
— Evan, 12/13/2010" Scott Turow is a master. Loved this book. "
— Okralaw, 10/20/2010" This was a well written novel that was thorough in all aspects. I never thought I would come to the end. "
— Clifford, 9/23/2010" Interesting look at the 60's <br/>Be prepared for along read "
— Roger, 9/13/2010" I didn't finish this book. I like Scott Turow, but I could not get through the flashbacks to the 70s in Berkeley. I grew up after all that was over, and cannot stand to read yet another Boomer flashback. Sigh. :) "
— Dan, 8/22/2010" a bit long,but good, didn't like the gangster talk though "
— Janiska, 7/25/2010" A little slow, but well written. Interesting character development. "
— Karen, 7/19/2010" Turow gets down and dirty in his books and sometimes he bores me with the detail. But otherwise a good read. "
— Carol, 4/20/2010" A present-tangled-with-past tale. More (flawed) character driven and less legal than typical Turrow. "
— Bob, 3/15/2010" This was a legal page turner. Good read for a holiday weekend. "
— Hope, 12/28/2009" Got about halfway through it and couldn't finish. I liked it, but not as much as other stuff I was reading and did not want to read 300 more pages of an "ok" book! "
— Kim, 11/12/2009" Ugh. Couldn't get through the first 30 pages. There are ways to express a character's dialect without actually trying to write in that dialect. Horrid. If I'm missing out on a good story, shame on the author. "
— Jonna, 7/24/2009Scott Turow is the author of nonfiction and bestselling works of fiction, including Presumed Innocent and The Burden of Proof, which reached the #1 spot on the New York Times bestsellers list. His books have been translated into more than forty languages, sold more than thirty million copies worldwide and have been adapted into movies and television projects. He has frequently contributed essays and op-ed pieces to publications such as the New York Times, Washington Post, Vanity Fair, New Yorker, and The Atlantic.
Dion Graham is an award-winning narrator named a “Golden Voice” by AudioFile magazine. He has been a recipient of the prestigious Audie Award numerous times, as well as Earphones Awards, the Publishers Weekly Listen Up Awards, IBPA Ben Franklin Awards, and the ALA Odyssey Award. He was nominated in 2015 for a Voice Arts Award for Outstanding Narration. He is also a critically acclaimed actor who has performed on Broadway, off Broadway, internationally, in films, and in several hit television series. He is a graduate of Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts, with an MFA degree in acting.
Kevin T. Collins, an Audie Award–winning audiobook narrator, is an actor, singer, recording artist, and director who can be seen off Broadway, on television, and in films.
Orlagh Cassidy, an American actress of stage, television, and film, is an audiobook narrator who has twice won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration, as well as many AudioFile Earphones Awards. She is a graduate of SUNY at Purchase and a recipient of the Princess Grace Foundation Scholarship. She has been seen on and off Broadway and in films, including Definitely Maybe and Calling It Quits. Her television credits include roles in Law & Order and Sex and the City and as Doris Wolfe on Guiding Light.