5 stars out of 5
Jane's client, wealthy ne'er-do-well Rob Jacobson, is on trial for the murder of an entire family - dad, mom and daughter. Her investigative partner, Jimmy Cunniff, is an ex-cop as well, and the two are determined to get a favorable jury verdict for their client, no matter how unlikable he is (nor, for that matter, whether or not they believe in his innocence). In between, Jane - whose sister Brigid also is fighting terminal cancer - is training for a biathlon. At that point, I have to be honest and say that while I was impressed with both Jane and Jimmy, the thought of wading through a book that's bound to have an unhappy ending no matter which way the trial goes lost a bit of appeal. But I hung in there - if only because I'm a big fan of both the authors - and also honestly, the story itself began to draw me in.
An old friend of Jimmy's asks Jane to investigate a similar case that happened about six months earlier - another dad, mom and daughter who were murdered in a similar fashion. Despite the (ahem) trials and tribulations in the courtroom, Jane decides to take on both cases; and that's when the action really starts to pick up. Apparently, someone out there isn't rooting for Jane and Jimmy to win; they're both threatened, and when they don't heed the warnings, the threats turn all too real.
Scenes shift from the courtroom, where Jane mixes it up with a worthy legal adversary, to what's happening in her personal life to what turns up as Jimmy investigates the relationship, if any, between the two horrific murder cases. Of course, you won't get the details from me, but I will suggest reading it for yourself as I did - even if you're pretty sure in the end you won't like the ending - just because it's a doggone good book. And I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy.
12 Months to Live by James Patterson and Mike Lupika (Little, Brown and Co., September 2023); 401 pp.
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