HEAR NO EVIL by James Grippando
Author James Grippando continues his series of books with attorney Jack Swyteck as the main character. His latest HEAR NO EVIL presents Jack battling one of the toughest cases of his career, and certainly his most personal. Grippando throws the readers one curve after another as he weaves his tale concerning parental love, salacious sex, and ultimately murder.
Jack Swyteck does not plan to take Lindsey Hart's case when she presents it to him. She states that her husband, Oscar Pintado, is dead and that the authorities think she murdered him. She also says their son Brian was at home at the time of his death. Swyteck remains unmoved until Lindsey tells him their son is adopted, and that Jack is the boy's biological father.
Now Jack has a personal interest in the case. Brian, has already lost his adoptive father and if Lindsey is convicted he will lose his adoptive mother as well. Brian doesn't even know he is adopted so obviously he knows nothing about Jack But Jack now feels an allegiance to him and a desire to protect him.
Most of the book concerns the trial, and this is where Grippando is at his best. The duel of the attorneys makes for high drama and the outcome of the trial is never assured. Jack does his best but he is up against a more than capable prosecutor.
The reader gets a sure feel for the characters in this book. This includes not only Jack, but also his co-counsel Sofia, his client Lindsey, and her father-in-law Alejandro Pintado. Pintado is a Cuban refugee who amassed a fortune after he arrived on the shores of America. Now he spends his time and his money attempting to help those who embark upon the open sea in hopes of finding a safe haven in America.
Jack Swyteck is one half Cuban and a lot of this story concerns his Cuban heritage and connections. Since Oscar Pintado was killed at Guantanamo Bay, Jack has to make a trip there as well as to Havana to gain needed information.
James Grippando writes with a flair for the dramatic while keeping his story grounded in realism. He certainly knows how to hold interest in his story and keeps the reader in the dark about key plot elements until it is to his advantage as a storyteller to reveal them.
You will find a clue as to one of the plot surprises in the title of the book, HEAR NO EVIL. The others will just come completely out of the blue. Still they all combine to make this fictional story a work of the highest quality.
HEAR NO EVIL is published by HarperCollins. It contains 308 pages and sells for $23.95.