Legal Briefs: Short Stories by Today's Best Thriller Writers - Softcover

Bernhardt, William

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0385514433 ISBN 13: 9780385514439

Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, 1998

Synopsis

William Bernhardt, author of seven bestselling novels featuring attorney Ben Kincaid, asked ten of his fellow lawyer/authors to contribute their most fiendishly clever short pieces for this anthology, and told them their imaginations were their only guides.  The result is Legal Briefs, a smorgasbord of stories boasting a wonderful variety of themes and styles.  From John Grisham's exploration of a doctor's guilt in "The Birthday" to Richard North Patterson's story of a lawyer's loyalty to his mentor in "The Client," to Grif Stockley's tale of a divorce lawyer who learns the hard way that things are not always what they seem, these pieces showcase the extraordinary depth and breadth of talent among the new breed of legal thriller writers.

Some of these stories feature twisting and inventive plots; some illuminate the moral dilemmas and psychological complexities faced by the modern-day lawyer; some are good, old-fashioned yarns.  But for all their diversity of approaches and characters, these writers understand that the courtrooms and law firms from which they came offer the raw material for the most dramatic, suspenseful stories you can read.

Legal Briefs will be a delight for fans of all these bestselling authors, and a splendid introduction to their talents for readers new to the genre.  

Author proceeds from the sale of this book are being donated to the Children's Defense Fund.

About this title

Review:

Anthologies often have a way of dulling the senses. The varying styles of the several authors, despite the theme that ties them together, can have the taste and feel of cotton candy: initially sweet, but ultimately cloying and too insubstantial for lasting value. However, William Bernhardt has put together a collection by best-selling author-attorneys that's more engaging than most and that stands the test of being read from cover to cover. Although the two richest stories (John Grisham's "The Birthday" and Richard North Patterson's "The Client") have been printed previously, the remaining nine can be safely recommended and serve as a solid introductions to each of the writers included.

Bernhardt explains in his introduction that the only limitations set on the contributors were those imposed by their own imaginations, and most took the opportunity to write of an intriguing character or plot twist not found in their longer efforts. Steve Martini's "Poetic Justice," for example, is a witty fantasy pushing the limits of the cliche that cheaters never win, while Philip Friedman envisions a much darker world in which the protagonist, en route to argue against the death penalty, finds himself embroiled in random violence that mirrors the crimes of his defendants and evokes ghosts in his past.

Although the stories are a pleasure to read, Bernhardt's introduction to the collection would have been sufficient: the additional prefaces to each story are unnecessary. And while the authors' postscripts provide insights into their motivations for writing, they are the kind that are best saved for talk-show interviews (Grisham wisely lets his story speak for itself). These are, obviously, minor flaws. On the whole, the collection serves its purpose: a broad and diverting introduction to the genre of legal thrillers and their most skillful authors. --K.A. Crouch

From the Publisher:

From an all-star team of legal thriller writers, eleven stories of top-flight suspense:

"What We're Here For" by William Bernhardt
"Stairwell Justice" by Jay Brandon
"Roads" by Philip Friedman
"The Birthday" by John Grisham
"Voir Dire" by Jeremiah Healy
"Cook County Redemption" by Michael A. Kahn
"The Jailhouse Lawyer" by Phillip Margolin
"Poetic Justice" by Steve Martini
"The Client" by Richard North Patterson
"Carrying Concealed" by Lisa Scottoline
"The Divorce" by Grif Stockley

About this edition

• Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0385514433
• ISBN 13: 9780385514439
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304