From Publishers Weekly First introduced in Brandon's Edgar-nominated Fade the Heat , San Antonio district attorney Mark Blackwell has his back to the Alamo when he prosecutes a well-connected attorney for child molestation in this dynamic courtroom drama. In the midst of a stiff reelection campaign, Blackwell's mentor, ex-DA Eliot Quinn, throws his protege a plum. Chris Davis, the accused serial child molester who has had voters on edge, will surrender to Blackwell in front of the media through his attorney, Austin Paley. Although the young victims clearly exhibit fear at court hearings and on viewing photographs of Davis's surrender, they fail to identify Davis's mug shot and what seemed an easy case falls apart. Until, that is, one victim IDs not Davis, but Paley. With other children recognizing Paley from the TV news, Blackwell ignores warnings about Paley's clout. Besieged by powerful politicians and judges, a fickle electorate and the cynical press, Blackwell doggedly keeps on the case, jeopardizing his career to back the small voice of a 10-year-old boy. Blackwell is an appealing and vulnerable protagonist surrounded by brilliantly credible supporting characters. Equally credible is Brandon's painstakingly detailed plot in which he maps out the hurdles involved when a child accuses an adult--especially a well-connected one. Literary Guild main selection; Doubleday Book Club selection. Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. From Booklist In San Antonio, a twisted sexual deviant confesses, then recants. A victim then identifies another player--attorney Austin Paley--as the perpetrator. It falls to DA Mark Blackwell to sort out the highly publicized case. Quick scene shift to the trial, comprising half the text, pitting Austin Paley's word against the victim's and showcasing Brandon's clear talents for the drama of cross-examination. Brandon slowly scales up the tension, producing surprise witnesses and withholding the consequences should Paley be convicted; Paley is a powerful string puller and could tell of the whereabouts of a number of buried bodies. But Brandon drops this plot line, content to skillfully construct his courtroom dialogues, missing in the process an opportunity to portray corruption at city hall. Brandon delivers for his numerous readers by maintaining doubts until the jury's verdict; perhaps he's saving the corruption angle for a more daring plot next time, for his alter ego Blackwell is now his serial protagonist. Brandon has all the props for a legal thriller (see also his Rules of Evidence ), but he needs to swing for the fences to break into legal mysterydom's big leagues. Gilbert Taylor See all Editorial Reviews
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这部作品最让我着迷的地方,在于它对“灰色地带”的探讨,简直是教科书级别的样本。作者拒绝给出任何简单的答案,无论是关于正义、背叛,还是救赎,所有的一切都处于一种持续的、令人不安的摇摆之中。主角团的每一个人,都不是脸谱化的“好人”或“坏蛋”,他们更像是被生活推向绝境的普通人,他们的每一次选择都伴随着巨大的代价和道德上的妥协。这种复杂性使得故事的张力持续保持在高位,因为你永远无法预测角色下一步会做什么,也无法轻易地站在哪一方。我个人非常欣赏这种对人性的深度挖掘,它拒绝简化复杂的人类情感,而是将它们原原本本地呈现出来,让你去品尝那种苦涩、矛盾却又无比真实的味道。这种不加粉饰的真实感,使得最终的结局——无论好坏——都显得无比有力且具有说服力。
评分这部作品的叙事结构简直是一场视觉盛宴,作者似乎对节奏的掌控有着一种近乎本能的理解。故事的开篇,我们被迅速抛入一个错综复杂的人物关系网中,没有冗长的铺垫,直接就是高潮迭起的场景。那种步步紧逼的压迫感,仿佛能透过文字感受到角色的呼吸和心跳。尤其值得称道的是,作者在描绘宏大背景的同时,也精妙地穿插了大量细腻的个人内心独白。这些独白并非简单的情绪宣泄,而是推动情节发展的关键线索,它们像迷雾中的灯塔,引导着读者去解构那些隐藏在表象之下的真相。我尤其欣赏作者在处理时间线时的手法,那种非线性的叙事策略,让整个阅读体验充满了探索的乐趣,每一次翻页都像是打开一个新的谜团,让人欲罢不能。这种对叙事技巧的娴熟运用,远超一般小说所能达到的深度,它要求读者全神贯注,稍有走神,就可能错过一个至关重要的伏笔。整本书读下来,感觉就像完成了一场复杂的智力挑战,回味无穷。
评分这本书的世界观构建,简直是匠心独运,令人叹为观止。作者似乎花费了巨大的精力去设计这个故事发生的“场域”,它不仅仅是一个背景,而是一个有自己内在逻辑和呼吸的有机体。从城市景观的阴暗角落到社会阶层的森严壁垒,每一个细节都被描绘得栩栩如生,充满了历史的厚重感和现实的压迫感。我特别喜欢作者处理社会议题的方式,他没有采用说教式的口吻,而是将那些深刻的哲学思考和道德困境,巧妙地编织进了角色自身的生存挣扎之中。读者不是被告知‘应该’思考什么,而是自然而然地被卷入到那些两难的抉择之中,被迫去审视自己的价值观。这种“不着痕迹”的高级,才是真正文学的魅力所在。读完之后,我感觉自己对现实世界中一些隐秘的权力运作和人性幽暗面有了更深层次的理解,这对于一本虚构作品来说,是非常了不起的成就。
评分从文学性的角度来看,作者在人物塑造上展现了令人惊叹的功力。那些配角,即便是只出场寥寥数笔的角色,也拥有令人难忘的立体感。他们的动机、他们的恐惧,都被刻画得入木三分,仿佛他们也拥有独立于主线剧情之外的完整人生。我尤其关注作者是如何处理角色的“成长”或“堕落”的,这种变化不是突兀的,而是由一系列微小、累积的事件和内心挣扎所促成的。看着主角如何在重压之下,逐渐显露出他/她内心深处最原始的特质,那种感觉是既心痛又着迷。作者通过精准的细节描写,例如一个习惯性的手势,一句未说完的话,就足以让人对角色的内心世界产生共情。这种细致入微的洞察力,使得整本书的人物群像无比丰满,即便是合上书本很久之后,他们依然鲜活地存在于读者的脑海之中。
评分我得说,这部小说的语言风格简直是酣畅淋漓,充满了力量感和一种粗粝的真实。作者似乎不屑于使用那些华丽辞藻来堆砌场景,而是选择了更直接、更具冲击力的表达方式。他的句子结构多变,时而短促有力,如同枪声般震撼人心;时而又拉长,形成一种绵延不绝的内心独白,将那种挥之不去的宿命感烘托得淋漓尽致。读到那些关键的冲突场面时,我甚至能清晰地“听见”对话的张力和肢体碰撞的声音,这无疑是作者高超的文字驾驭能力的体现。更难得的是,在如此强硬的笔触下,作者依然能够精准地捕捉到人物情感的微妙之处。那些潜藏在硬汉外表下的脆弱、那些不经意间流露出的温柔,都被作者用近乎冷酷的冷静笔触勾勒出来,形成了强烈的反差美感。这本书的阅读过程,与其说是阅读,不如说是一种沉浸式的体验,它让你不得不去直面那些生活中的不完美与尖锐。
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