Execution Day

The Broken Doll #3

by Jeffery Deaver, Christina Traister (Narrator)

When justice is on the line, the courtroom becomes a battleground for a prosecutor obsessed with victory, a defense attorney hired to thwart it and a wily defendant making a bid for freedom.

Steven Ross, a family man from a small midwestern town, has been arrested for murder. Evidence suggests he’s an accomplice of the sadistic killer Paul Offenbach. County district attorney Evan Quill believes in his heart that Ross is guilty, but as the trial unfolds, doubts emerge. He presses forward anyway, in a legal fencing match against a brilliant big-city defense attorney. Will Quill’s uncompromising beliefs put an innocent man in jail? Or will a misstep let a killer go free?

From internationally bestselling master of suspense Jeffery Deaver comes Execution Day, part of The Broken Doll collection, a series of interconnected short stories about killers and prey, justice and revenge, that can be read or listened to in a single breathless experience.

Genres: Thriller, Fiction, Short Stories, Mystery, Crime, Audiobook, Suspense

2 pages, Audible Audio

First published December 13, 2022

About the author

#1 international bestselling author of over thirty novels and three collections of short stories. His books are sold in 150 countries and translated into 25 languages. His first novel featuring Lincoln Rhyme, The Bone Collector, was made into a major motion picture starring Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie. He's received or been shortlisted for a number of awards around the world.

Reviews

[Deb]

Great detective read

On to the 4th book in this series. I'm really enjoying them. Here again, one character has a surprising entrance and remains elusive until the end of the court trial.

Must read for detective book lovers.

[Shannon Moeser]

I think this is the best of the four-part series. It focuses on Evan Quill, the county prosecutor, who is the primary state attorney in the trial of Steven Ross—on trial for helping Paul Offenbach torture and murder Deputy Cynthia Hooper. But the case relies on flimsy evidence and Quill has doubts about Ross’s guilt while he is prosecuting him. Ross may be an innocent family man who was in the general vicinity when the crime took place.

In addition to the proceedings taking place in the courtroom, we discover the relationship between Quill and Constant Marlowe. Although Constant plays a relatively minor role in Book 3, we learn about her actions before and after the events described in Book 2, and why she is so intent on killing Paul Offenbach.

There is also a section of this book devoted to following the actions of Kevin Rawling, who is trying to find evidence that will help his cousin. It is during Kevin’s search that we find out the origin of the title of Book 3–“Execution Day”. It comes from a movie he remembers while frantically searching for video proof.

And yes, again, several twists that I didn’t expect.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My review for the first two novellas in the series:
 The Pain Hunter (The Broken Doll, Book 1)
 Dodge (The Broken Doll, Book 2)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


[Bill]

Deaver's third short story in The Broken Doll collection zips along just as fast as the first two instalments. There's good characterisation & more Deaver twists to entertain the reader once again.

[Matt]

Wanting to fill my reading time with a mix of novels and short stories, I came upon a collection of short stories by Jeffrey Deaver. This is the third story of four. packing quite a punch and showing the interconnectedness of all short stories. The trial of Steven Ross is heating up, as both sides try to juggle the charge of murder. All the local whispers tie Ross to being an accomplice of powerful killer Paul Offenbach, but nothing has yet been confirmed. While the county DA tries to put Ross away, the evidence of alternate possibilities begins surfacing at the least opportune time. As the jury is handed the case, the question remains, will a killer see justice or walk free? Deaver builds up more with this latest short story.

I enjoy short stories and Jeffrey Deaver was the ideal choice. I have enjoyed some of his short stories before and still need to delve into his full-length work. The narrative presents many crossroads in the piece, leaving the reader guessing how it will all turn out. Character development builds a little on the past stories and adds layers from this one. The plot points effectively keep the reader unsure what is to come and how it all fits together. Deaver has perfected this type of story and impresses again. I am eager to see where things go from here!

Kudos, Mr. Deaver, for more in this larger story!

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

[Marlene]

This book is #3 in the Broken Doll Series. Although it begins before the other two, the author cleverly tied to them. The prosecutor and defense attorney battle it out at the murder trial of Steven Ross for his part in the torture and murder of a sheriff deputy. Each lawyer is using all they can to win the case. Can the Illinois prosecutor prove that the defendant is guilty beyond reasonable doubt? The question remains, can doubts about the case bring justice or will they end up freeing a killer?

[Moon Light Amethyst]

I need more of Quil🤩

[Dean]

So far, the best installment for me!!!
Love it very much indeed...

If you are following the story in all the four installments, then you can see how the pieces begin to fall into the right places!!!

PS:
I'm reading and simultaneously hearing the audio book from Audible.
Great job done by the narrator; it does upgrade the novels!!!

[Nicola Nunney]

This installment was full of twists and turns, I didn't know which way the trial would go!

So dramatic!

I can't wait to read what happens in the last installment!

[Jennifer M.]

Oh the tangled webs we weave. A thrilling little court room novella with a nice twist. A great way to kill an hour or two.

[Richard]

Court room drama.

The third episode in The Broken Doll series which throws more background onto the horrific crime that gives impetus to all the writing so far across this mini series.

Although each can be read as a standalone, it is their interplay with different angles on these events that brings it all together as a unique piece of story telling. It also brings it into the perfect place for a brilliant conclusion, and with that hoped for justice.

What Deaver does here again is weave misdirection into the fabric of his narration. Sucks you in as usual and despite previous reading of his books, leaves you open to that sucker punch. Knocked me down and completely bowled me over. When it is done well it is a joy to be caught out and Jeffery Deaver is the master of it.

Dust yourselves down now, book four awaits.

[Gary]

Execution Day, by Jeffery Deaver is a short courtroom thriller that is part of the Broken Doll collection.

County District Attorney Evan Quill, a prosecutor driven less by ego and more by an unshakable belief in guilt and the hefty burden of serving justice. Steven Ross appears to be a normal family man who is accused of being the accomplice to a notorious sadistic killer. The evidence is strong and Quill is convinced Ross is more than just unlucky. Once the trial begins the cracks start to show in the case as well as Quill’s conscience.

The legal battle is intense, which makes very good courtroom drama. This is a decent short story with a good twist. Jeffery Deaver writes very short stories and manages to cram so much into so few pages.

[JJtheBookNerd]

This is book 3 in The Broken Doll series. This is a 4 book series and the author states in the introduction they can be read as standalones, but they are also loosely connected.

In this one we follow County district attorney Evan Quill, who is acting for the prosecution against Steven Ross after evidence indicates he’s an accomplice of Offenbach (the bad guy from the first 2 books).

This whole story revolves around the court case and cross examining etc. and it just wasn't that engaging, apart from the verdict at the end and the slight twist. As with book 2, I'm going to give this a 2.5 but I'm rounding down this time as it wasn't quite as good.

[Sarah (heartfeltthrills)]

Very engaging short novel. Part of the series, but the first one I read and found it easy to follow the characters and story. Excellent account bringing the courtroom to life, depicting the prosecution-defense battle dance in such vivid animation.

[Darcy]

Once again this one is not what it seems at first glance. And sadly the good guys don't win. I hated how things were manipulated!

[William]

Entertaining mystery listening 🎶🔰

This kindle e-book novella is from my Kindle Unlimited account book three of four

A trial is being conducted in a murder case. A great story with interesting characters lots of action and misdirection leading to the unexpected conclusion.

I would recommend this series and author to 👍 readers of relationships novels 👍🔰. 2024 👒😀

[Klare]

Liked the story and the characters.

[Susan]

Good one.

[Dee]

Two-haiku review:

Lawyer prosecutes
Man accused as cop killer
Can he win the case?

Pretty short story
Not long enough for much depth
Not a fan of shorts

[Ben A]

Another excellent entry in the Broken Doll series of novellas. Once again, Deaver expertly misdirects us almost from the beginning. I'm a big fan of putting pieces together like a puzzle and this series is a incredibly enjoyable puzzle.

[Alan (The Lone Librarian) Teder]

Prosecution vs. Defense
Review of the Amazon Original Stories Kindle eBook (December 13, 2022).

The Broken Doll series is not being told in chronological order and it is now clear that #3 Execution Day actually the launching story of the series and takes place before #1 The Pain Hunter & #2 Dodge. The courtroom showdown between a determined prosecutor and a shady defense counsel is the leadup to the getaway & chase which was our opening scene back in #1.
Both sides in the court pull off a few twists and there is yet another bait & switch investigation going on outside of the courtroom which leads to a dramatic conclusion. I'm realizing that the bait & switch seems to be a signature move for this author.

The significance of The Broken Doll title was still not apparent to me in this third entry of the series.

Execution Day is novella #3 of 4 interrelated stories issued in The Broken Doll series.

[Kari]

Book 3 of the Broken Doll series, this book starts before the other two and ends on the same day as The Pain Hunter. This story takes us through the murder trial of Steven Ross, an accomplice and suspected associate of Paul Offenbach, who is being tried for his part in the torture and murder of a sheriff deputy. The prosecutor and defense attorney, each with a point to prove, battle it out, using every trick, available to try and win the case. But can justice be served if you have doubts about your case? Or will those doubts allow a killer to go free.

[Ann-marie]

In this storyline we get to know DA Quill.He is prosecuting the alleged criminal who was there and witness Offenbach killed Agent Cynthia. We get to see the inner workings of the prosecutor and defense attorney. There is a twist in the story that when its revealed you are like wow okay. Let's say Mr. Deaver knows how to keep his readers engage. As previously stated in a previous review of this series they can be read by themselves but its more helpful to read all four a reminder they are novellas so its possible to read in one or two sitting.

[Kathi]

7/10
A few twists but fairly predictable.

[Pats]

Review: see The Broken Doll #4.

[Kieran McAndrew]

An Illinois prosecutor has a calculating killer on trial. With time running out, can he prove that the defendant is guilty beyond reasonable doubt.

Apart from a misleading title, "Execution Day" is a fast paced and absorbing short story, which begins to unravel the mystery of 'The Broken Doll'.

[Jami]

interesting Twist

This is the third in the Broken Doll Collection. I wasn’t sure I was enjoying this, but the end changed my mind. I enjoyed the twist and was surprised, which is always a good thing in my opinion!

[Lee-sa Day]

This is incredibly mind boggling

Again great plot twists and turns like being on a rollercoaster ride. A definite must read. Very interesting and unexpected.

[Patty]

I disagree with whoever stated that you can read these books as stand alone or not in order.

[Ann]

Brilliant twisty short story. Number 3 of 4 in the Broken Doll series
Can be read as a standalone but they all inter weave

[Ron Willoughby]

This brief installment in this 4 part novel was excellent.