Mar 27 2011
In the Mail: Afraid of the Dark
Afraid of the Dark (Jack Swyteck) by James Grippando
Publishers Weekly
In Grippando’s rousing ninth Jack Swyteck legal thriller (after Born to Run), Jack successfully defends a supposed Somali prisoner in his mid-20s held at Guantánamo. But then the prisoner is identified as an American, Jamal Wakefield, and is transferred to Miami, Fla., where he’s charged with the fatal stabbing of his ex-girlfriend, McKenna Mays, three years earlier. In his defense, Jamal offers a wild story of kidnapping and covert interrogation. As witnesses who could confirm Jamal’s alibi are eliminated, Jack and his dwindling circle of friends, and not always trustworthy allies, must race to uncover a sadistic killer and his bosses before the conspirators can silence everyone who might speak against them. Working with a cast that includes depraved sexual deviants, corrupt private military contractors, and wannabe jihadis, Grippando transforms what might have been a conventional genre novel in lesser hands into an exciting tale of revenge.
With two new clients, Miami defense attorney Mary Magruder Katz has a full plate. Criminal Court Judge Liz Maxwell is under investigation, reportedly for dismissing drug cases prematurely, and Luis Corona, a young “cousin” of Mary’s sexy boyfriend, real-estate developer Carlos Martin, is spirited away as a possible terrorist because of his behavior on the plane from his native Argentina. In an atmosphere in which informants in a drug-trafficking case are being murdered and even a hint of terrorism brings bad press, Mary is personally threatened and attacked. Then Carlos is sued by buyers of his condo under construction. And, as if that weren’t enough, a dinner is arranged with their parents, who have yet to meet. Nearly overwhelmed both professionally and personally, Mary works and schemes to land on her feet. In this sequel to her debut Fatal February (2009), Levenson, herself a judge, provides a nice sense of place, a feisty protagonist, and a satisfying conclusion.
