The Plinko Bounce

They say write what you know, and Martin Clark does a bang-up job of it. His latest, The Plinko Bounce, gives us a look into the inner workings of the legal system through the eyes of battle-weary public defender Andy Hughes.

For seventeen years, Andy has done his best to provide a zealous defense to the small-time crooks, cons, grifters, and general ne'er-d0-wells of his little corner of Virginia. He's just about ready to hang it up. The ink isn't even dry on his resignation when he is assigned to represent one Damian Bullins, charged with the murder of Alicia Benson, wife of a wealthy businessman. Andy agrees to stay on until the case is complete.

There's a confession. Blood on the defendant's clothes that matches that of the victim. At first Andy reckons it will be a matter of negotiating the best deal he can and having his client plead guilty. But then he realizes that the form from which Bullins was read his Miranda rights was missing a very important sentence. This could make all the difference to Bullins' defense, and whether he likes it or not, Andy is obligated to pursue this possibility.

Andy doesn't come off as a smooth-tongued shyster out to stick it to the man. He struck me as a defense lawyer more along the lines of Matlock – likable, professional, sometimes ill at ease with the path he pursued, but determined to uphold his ethical obligation to defend his client to the best of his ability. (I think Matlock generally had more likable clients, though!) He doesn't promise his client a not guilty verdict, and he doesn't ignore the fact that Bullins is a lowlife who actually committed the crime he's accused of. He just works with the facts handed to him and does it well.

In a former part of my life, I was a prosecutor. I appreciated the way that Clark portrays the relationship between the prosecution and the defense attorneys. It isn't all mudslinging and ugliness, as TV shows might want you to believe. Andy and his colleagues on both sides of the bar were, by and large, professional and respectful to each other, even cordial. That's as it should be, and in most cases, how it really is.

This isn't a fast-paced action thriller, but it doesn't have to be. Even knowing how the system works, even having been a part of it myself, the tension in waiting to see where things went next was enough to keep me turning pages well past my bedtime.

I also liked the fact that the focus wasn't solely on the legal drama (although that was plenty!). Andy had a life, and sometimes life and work butted up against each other. His actions as an attorney, a single dad, and a man newly in love all rang true.

This was my first Martin Clark book, but it won't be my last. If you're looking for a masterfully crafted legal thriller that will keep you hooked from beginning to end, this is it.

Thanks to Kaye Publicity and Rare Bird Books for a review copy. All opinions here are mine, and I don't say nice things about books I don't actually like.