Running with the Dead - Hardcover

Brandon, Jay

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0765308932 ISBN 13: 9780765308931

Publisher: Forge Books, 2005

Synopsis

Sexual politics, corruption in high-school athletics, revenge, and a mysterious stalker combine for an explosive new legal thriller by lawyer/author Jay Brandon. Four years ago, San Antonio District Attorney Chris Sinclair faced his first and biggest case as a defense attorney. His friend, teacher Henry Claremont had been accused of rape. Chris won the case, but had to reveal a love affair Henry had with another teacher. Then Henry's body was found, beaten to death.

Fast-forward to the present, when Chris Sinclair receives word that Henry's murder has been solved. The man accused, Hike Grimason, is a high ranking school administrator and high school basketball coach who, Chris discovers, took bribes from parents of his basketball players. During this trial, Chris and his daughter Clarissa are threatened by a man identical to the convicted multiple-murder Malachi Reese.

As events rush to a furious climax, Chris must succeed in the most high-pressure courtroom performance of his career, if he is to save Clarissa and to feel he’s brought justice to his unfairly accused friend Henry, whose death can be avenged only through Grimason’s conviction.

About this title

About the Author

Jay Brandon, a former D.A., is the author of more than a half-dozen Chris Sinclair novels. An Edgar Award finalist for Fade the Heat, Brandon lives in San Antonio, Texas.

Reviews

Edgar finalist Brandon's compelling novel may be low on humor, but it's high on legal twists and turns. Soon after starting his career, San Antonio lawyer Chris Sinclair defended his longtime friend, high school teacher Henry Claremont, against a charge of rape brought by a student—though in doing so, he had to expose an affair Claremont was having with a fellow teacher. When Claremont was acquitted, someone in town disagreed and beat him to death one night at a local park. Four years later, new clues uncovered by the Texas Rangers point to school administrator and basketball coach Hike Grimason as Claremont's killer. After Grimason is indicted, however, Sinclair is unable to focus as directly as he'd like on the coach's upcoming trial, since someone is now stalking him, possibly a convicted multiple murderer he sent to prison or possibly the man's twin. Brandon (Fade the Heat) provides intelligent entertainment for lovers of courtroom drama. (Oct.)
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*Starred Review* Four years ago, in a brief incarnation as a defense attorney, Chris Sinclair, now the San Antonio district attorney, successfully represented Henry Claremont, a teacher accused of raping a student. But it was as hollow a victory as Sinclair would ever experience. Claremont had to reveal the identity of his married lover, and two careers were ruined. In short order, Henry was murdered, the victim of a brutal beating. Now the Texas Rangers say they have Claremont's killer, Hike Grimason, the basketball coach and a candidate for state office. Chris decides to prosecute the politically charged case personally, primarily because of the friendship he developed with Claremont. While he is preparing his case, Sinclair finds his relationship with his longtime lover unraveling, in part because of the attractive special prosecutor with whom he is working. Additionally, there are threats against his daughter's life from a Svengali-like serial killer who seems to be in prison and at large at the same time. The Sinclair series is an outstanding mix of courtroom maneuverings, evolving characters, and razor-sharp plots. Brandon, a former district attorney and Edgar Award finalist for Fade the Heat (1990), has the courtroom down pat, but so do a lot of writers. Brandon gets the people right, too, from Sinclair's too-cool, way-bright daughter to his soon-to-be-former lover, Anne, whose inner conflict pits freedom against love and commitment. A brilliant entry in a series that just keeps getting better. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Forge Books
• Publication date: 2005
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0765308932
• ISBN 13: 9780765308931
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368