Acts of Malice - Hardcover

O'Shaughnessy, Perri

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0385332769 ISBN 13: 9780385332767

Publisher: Delacorte Press, 1999

Synopsis

New York Times bestselling author Perri O'Shaughnessy has created a true American original in the character Nina Reilly, a tough but tenderhearted attorney who has been hailed by readers and critics as one of the most interesting heroines in legal thrillers today. Now, in Acts of Malice, Perri O'Shaughnessy has crafted her most spellbinding novel to date, raising the level of suspense and narrative tension to nail-biting new heights as Nina Reilly takes on a murder case that exposes the dark side of Lake Tahoe's glamorous ski resorts.

With his brother Alex recently killed in a headline-making accident that occurred while they were skiing together, Jim Strong, the scion of one of South Lake Tahoe's most prominent families and the owners of the posh Paradise Ski Resort, fears he may be indicted in his brother's death. When the coroner announces that Alex died from injuries unrelated to the accident, Jim is charged with murder. As Nina prepares to defend her client, she has no idea that the case will lead her to a terrifying confrontation with a psychopath or threaten all that she holds most dear.

She never expects to witness a perplexing and tangled set of loyalties and alliances within the Strong family: a father obsessed with his dead son's ghost and who wants nothing to do with the surviving son; Alex's widow, a mercurial snowboarding champion who still carries a torch for Jim; and Jim's beautiful wife, Heidi, who may have been having an affair with Alex. Further complicating matters is Assistant District Attorney Collier Hallowell, back from sabbatical. Determined to put Jim Strong behind bars, he's equally resolved to pick up romantically where he and Nina left off.

As Nina works a flawed and troubling case and gets involved in an unexpected love affair, the two sides of her life come crashing together...in the ultimate act of malice.

About this title

Review:

Nobody in the exploding field of legal thrillers catches the day-to-day life of a working lawyer better than the O'Shaughnessy sisters--lawyer Pamela and writer Mary, who collaborate under the joint byline of Perri. This is the fifth in their series about lawyer Nina Reilly. O'Shaughnessy expertly balances Reilly's life between the working half and the private half (raising her 16-year-old son as a single mother and finding the time and place for romance). The fact that both parts take place in the heavenly venue of Lake Tahoe only adds to the reading pleasure.

Acts of Malice begins with a jolt: the manager of one of the area's largest ski resorts is charged with the murder of his brother, and hires Nina to defend him. But this will not be an easy case for Nina since the prosecutor, Collier Hallowell, is the man who shook up her life so violently by walking out on her a year before. Also, Nina and her immediate circle find themselves in danger from the very client that they are defending.

Other examples of the O'Shaughnessy expertise include Breach of Promise and Motion to Suppress. --Dick Adler

From the Back Cover:

The New York Times bestselling Nina Reilly novels have dazzled both readers and critics with their crackling blend of raw legal suspense and taut human drama. Now Perri O'Shaughnessy, hailed as "smart" "gripping" and "complex" by the San Francisco Chronicle, brings us her best -- and most explosive -- Nina Reilly novel yet.

Amid the sparkling snow-swept mountains of Lake Tahoe, Nina Reilly has made a home, juggling the demands of her one-woman law practice and raising a teenage son alone. Now Nina has taken on a case that will threaten everything she holds dear, drawing her into a tangled web of loyalties and alliances within one of Lake Tahoe's most prominent families. Her client: a man accused of murdering his own brother -- on the ski slopes of Tahoe. The law says Nina must give Jim Strong the best possible defense. But Strong's family has turned violently against him, and suddenly Nina is at the center of the storm. As she works a flawed and troubling case and gets swept into an unexpected love affair, the two sides of Nina's life come crashing together...in the ultimate act of malice.

About this edition

• Publisher: Delacorte Press
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0385332769
• ISBN 13: 9780385332767
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 321