Hard Evidence Mass Market Author: Visit Amazon's John Lescroart Page | Language: English | ISBN:
0451206460 | Format: EPUB
Hard Evidence Mass Market Description
From Publishers Weekly
In his third appearance, San Francisco bartender Dismas Hardy returns to the practice of law to star in a gripping courtroom drama that may well be Lescroart's breakthrough novel. After the severed hand of a murdered billionaire is discovered in a dead shark's stomach, Hardy ends up on the DA's team prosecuting the victim's Japanese mistress. She produces an airtight alibi just as the trial begins; Diz loses his job, and, in a bizarre twist, is hired to defend the second person accused of the crime, Andrew Fowler--who is not only his ex-father-in-law but was also the judge in the first trial. Diz's involvement with his beautiful ex-wife and the needs of his very pregnant current wife complicate his life, while doubts about his client's innocence and the antagonism demonstrated toward Fowler from both the prosecution and the bench put him at a disadvantage in court. A seemingly unimportant bit of testimony provides the clue that reveals the killer's identity and motivation. As always, Lescroart ( Dead Irish ; The Vig ) creates compelling, credible characters and, despite one or two unlikely coincidences, holds reader's attention through every step of the plot. 50,000 first printing; Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club selections.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
YA-- From the moment a severed hand wearing a serpentine jade ring is found in the belly of a white shark, this murder case is emotionally, politically, and judicially tainted. Even after junior Assistant D. A. Dismas Hardy is forced into relinquishing the case to his superior, the ambitious Elizabeth Pullios, he finds himself in progressively more complex relationships with a seemingly unlimited string of murder suspects. First, the high-class Japanese mistress of the wealthy victim is caught trying to sneak out of the country with a note in her dead lover's handwriting promising her a million dollars. Then the powerful judge with the impeccable reputation hearing the case is found to be footing the bill for the mistress's defense. Finally, it is revealed that the possessive daughter of the victim had had a very unusual relationship with her father. YAs will devour this hefty book with its short chapters that fluidly move from pointed courtroom dialogue to ongoing investigation to complex personal intrigues, all driven by Hardy's idealism.
- Jessica Lahr, Edison High School, Fairfax County, VACopyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
See all Editorial Reviews
- Mass Market Paperback: 688 pages
- Publisher: Signet (June 1, 2002)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0451206460
- ISBN-13: 978-0451206466
- Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.2 x 1.5 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Dismas Hardy is a renaissance man. Vietnam veteran, bereaved father of a lost child, lawyer, bartender, bar owner, lawyer again, and, championship dart thrower.
Hard Evidence is a play on words, I think, balancing on the fulcrum between lots of circumstantial evidence, individually or piece by piece not compelling, and direct evidence. In a manner of speaking, this Wigmore definition on evidentiary substance mimics life. Hardy's ex-wife, Jane, remains his friend and becomes, inter alia, his current wife's friend. I would think that the first circumstance would be difficult; the second preposterous.
Hardy has joined (again) the San Francisco DA's office as a junior prosecutor, and inherits, almost by accident, a homicide case involving Owen Nash, an enormously wealthy financier. Hardy investigates his partner's status, exponentially more wealthy now that Nash is dead, the sexually obsessive daughter, the Japanese prostitute that Nash fell in love with, all the while drinking a huge amount of alcohol and having a lot of sex.
Lescroart seems to be on the periphery of becoming a "sought after author" like Parker, Crais, and Burke, and to a lesser extent, Lehane and Pelicanos. You can see people ordering up in a bookstore or e-mailing Amazon asking, "when's the release date on the next Lescroart?" Or, if they're fairly young, "when's the release date on the next Lescroart, dude?" But although this is a 1991 novel, even now he seems to be still just on the edge.
The writing is excellent; the plots are intricate and like a form-fitting rug, interwoven. I would say, too interwoven. And that amplifies that the interwoven characters are just, well . . . weird. Unbelievable. To follow the implied legalese, incredible.
Nash, who has 8 gazillion dollars, falls in love with a prostitute.
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