Lisa Scottoline, Dirty Blonde

Dirty Blonde

Lisa Scottoline

HarperCollins, Mar 2006, $25.95

ISBN 0060742909

Although she is new to the federal bench, Judge Cate Fante presides over a complex intellectual property case in Philadelphia. Former prosecutor Richard Marz sues Hollywood producer Art Simone over who created the concept for the TV series Attorneys@Law. Fante rules in favor of the defense, as she feels the plaintiff failed to prove he provided the theme.

Following her ruling, someone kills Simone as he left a restaurant where he just finished dining with his attorneys. Because of his lost lawsuit, the police suspect Marz as the killer and assume he is gunning for Fante next. However, Marz proves to not be her biggest problem; a sleazy corrupt cop knows her dark nocturnal secret, that if revealed would devastate the reputation of the almost fortyish seemingly pristine judge.

This is an intriguing mystery starring a flawed judge who knows that if her nocturnal wanderings become public, her career on the bench is over, and she and her family humiliated; though she knows the price of exposure, Cate cannot cease her late evening treks. The storyline is action-packed but driven by the imperfections of the key cast, whose reactions to personal and professional crisis hook the audience, as we wonder what he or she will do next. Though there are some very loose ties to Lisa Scottoline's Rosato & Associates series, DIRTY BLONDE is a stand alone tale that smoothly blends the subplots into a terrific character-driven crime thriller.