From Publishers Weekly
Once again, Parker (Suspicion of Guilt, Suspicion of Innocence?which was a finalist for the 1995 Edgar for Best First Novel) pushes legal eagles to the edge?here, in a morality tale about the fall from grace of a man, a town and a legal system. Prosecutor Sam Hagan is known for being a straight arrow, so he's the perfect choice to investigate a potentially explosive case and dismiss it for lack of evidence. Or so think both his boss, the Miami DA, who has his eye on national office and doesn't want controversy, and the city manager, who's courting the tourist industry. The plaintiff is a young model who claims that several men, including a well-connected local businessman and a football player turned actor, raped her. Hagen believes the girl and, despite political pressure, pursues the case. The stakes are raised when several of the witnesses and participants are murdered. Meanwhile, the prosecutor's marriage is cracking under the strain of his son's recent death, a situation worsened as he learns devastating details about his son's life in the fast lane. Parker intertwines a number of stories as she spins her complicated tale of sex, power and money in South Miami. Some of the coincidences and liaisons reach soap-opera proportions, but the pace never flags from the opening to the knuckle-whitening finale. 50,000 first printing; Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selection; author tour. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Parker shouldered her way into the legal thriller arena on the strength of her best-selling Suspicion of Innocence (LJ 12/93), which narrowly missed winning an Edgar Award. Here, a state attorney investigates the rape of a young model.Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
For readers facing the cruel snows of winter, the sunny Miami setting of Parker's latest will provide vicarious warmth, and the fast-paced action should heat up even the coldest mystery buff. Sam Hagen, who heads the Major Crimes unit of the Florida State Attorney's Office, has it bad: major stresses at work compounded by the emotional fallout from the tragic death of his son. Hagen's difficulties increase when he's assigned to defend 17-year-old model Ali Duncan, a South Beach groupie who is gang-raped by a group of drunken, drug-crazed men, who just happen to be Miami movers and shakers. Then two of the rapists turn up murdered, complicating the case further. Stylish writing, glamorous characters, a glitzy setting, and an intricately constructed plot--there's a formula for success in any genre of popular fiction. Emily Melton

FROM THE PUBLISHER

The girl is beautiful, the crime ugly. A seventeen-year-old model alleges she was sexually attacked in the VIP room of a South Beach nightclub by three men - a drug dealer, a film star, and a wealthy player in the international fashion industry. They say she's lying. It's up to Sam Hagen, head of Major Crimes for Dade County, to decide if they should be put on trial. Hagen's ambition to become the next state attorney outweighs his reluctance to be drawn back into the moral twilight of South Beach, where his son died the year before in a tragic accident. A veteran prosecutor, Hagen knows how to play the odds in a system where reality can be shaded and justice subverted. Still he is unprepared for the quicksand that awaits when he steps into a case that becomes darker at every turn. Nor does he suspect how the case will intersect with his own very vulnerable private life - passion at war with duty, a damaged marriage, and the mistress he gave up but cannot forget.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Once again, Parker (Suspicion of Guilt, Suspicion of Innocence-which was a finalist for the 1995 Edgar for Best First Novel) pushes legal eagles to the edge-here, in a morality tale about the fall from grace of a man, a town and a legal system. Prosecutor Sam Hagan is known for being a straight arrow, so he's the perfect choice to investigate a potentially explosive case and dismiss it for lack of evidence. Or so think both his boss, the Miami DA, who has his eye on national office and doesn't want controversy, and the city manager, who's courting the tourist industry. The plaintiff is a young model who claims that several men, including a well-connected local businessman and a football player turned actor, raped her. Hagen believes the girl and, despite political pressure, pursues the case. The stakes are raised when several of the witnesses and participants are murdered. Meanwhile, the prosecutor's marriage is cracking under the strain of his son's recent death, a situation worsened as he learns devastating details about his son's life in the fast lane. Parker intertwines a number of stories as she spins her complicated tale of sex, power and money in South Miami. Some of the coincidences and liaisons reach soap-opera proportions, but the pace never flags from the opening to the knuckle-whitening finale. 50,000 first printing; Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selection; author tour. (Feb.)

Library Journal

Parker shouldered her way into the legal thriller arena on the strength of her best-selling Suspicion of Innocence (LJ 12/93), which narrowly missed winning an Edgar Award. Here, a state attorney investigates the rape of a young model.

BookList - Emily Melton