Double Tap: A Paul Madriani Novel - Softcover

Steve Martini

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1594131236 ISBN 13: 9781594131233

Publisher: Large Print Press, 2006

Synopsis

A New York Times Bestselling Author

Paul Madriani's defense of a soldier on trial for murder - and the explosive government secrets it could reveal - propel Steve Martini's latest thriller. Madriani is faced with daunting ballistics evidence: a so-called "double tap" - two bullet wounds tightly grouped in the victim's head, shots that could have been made only by a crack marksman. Paul's client, Emiliano Ruiz, is accused of killing a beautiful businesswoman and guru of a high-tech software empire catering to the military. A key to the case: the murder weapon is one used solely in special operations, where the "double tap" has become the signature of the most skilled assassins. Madriani finds himself in a deadly legal quagmire - with a client who is unwilling to cooperate and prosecutors who stonewall his every question about the victim's shadowy business and his client's past. Justice, and the unvarnished truth, has never been so elusive - or so dangerous.

Martini has authored ten books: The Simeon Chamber, Compelling Evidence, Prime Witness, Undue Influence, The Judge, The List, Critical Mass, The Attorney, The Jury and The Arraignment, as well as numerous news articles and commentary on the law and politics. Steve Martini lives on the West Coast.

About this title

About the Author

Steve Martini is the author of numerous New York Times bestsellers, including The Arraignment, The Jury, The Attorney and other featuring attorney Paul Madriani. He lives in the Pacific Northwest. Please visit his website at www.stevemartini.com.

From Booklist

The "double tap" of the title refers both to ballistics evidence--two shots, only an inch apart, to the victim's head--and to the way wars have of reaching out to veterans, spattering past trauma into the present. Martini's latest legal thriller starring California defense attorney Paul Madriani weaves the theme of the past infiltrating the present throughout a daunting case. The body of an extremely wealthy businesswoman, CEO of a corporation specializing in defense, is found with two tightly grouped bullet wounds to the head, suggesting the work of an expert marksman. Enter the most likely suspect: a career soldier who was on the victim's security detail and with whom she was having an affair. As Madriani attempts to defend the uncooperative soldier, he discovers that the victim's company was involved in a potentially devastating antiterrorist program. The plot progresses in a satisfyingly logical way, from first interview with the suspect through legal machinations and on to a tense, utterly believable courtroom battle. Plot and legal knowledge are Martini's strength. Dialogue, however, is his weakness. Characters continually deliver off-the-cuff, incredibly detailed descriptions of scenes that seem much more writerly than conversational. And Martini is often guilty of overdescription--three pages of the businesswoman handing her keys to a valet parking attendant. Still, in this case, the plot carries the prose. Connie Fletcher
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About this edition

• Publisher: Large Print Press
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 1594131236
• ISBN 13: 9781594131233
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 684