What do you think?
Rate this book
You're the Only One I Can Trust: A Ben Harding Mystery Book 1
The glint of a gun barrel caught his eye - it was the second to last thing wealthy Los Angeles businessman Griffin Gambil would ever see. There is a loud, percussive pop, a spume of red, and the final seconds of his life are spent watching his own bloo
240 pages, Paperback
First published June 28, 2012
2 people are currently reading
8 people want to read
About the author
Michael E. Petrie
3 books11 followersMICHAEL E PETRIE is a surfer, ocean sailor, horseman, musician, and former rodeo cowboy turned attorney and award-winning writer.
His work has appeared in numerous publications and he is a frequent contributor to SAIL - World's Leading Sailing Magazine. He was selected most promising new author by South Bay Writers Guild, has won two Erle Stanley Gardner Mystery Writing awards, Texas Bar Journal fiction writing contest, National Legal Fiction Writing Competition award, and voted Best New Fiction Author at La Jolla Writers Seminar at La Jolla, California.
He is the author of the psychological legal-thrillers YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE I CAN TRUST and THIS GUY'S THE LIMIT, inspired by real-life experiences as a lawyer over a 30-year career span. He lives with his wife, children, dogs, and horses in California.
Videos of his ocean-crossing sailing adventures and samples of his music can be found on YouTube at Michael E Petrie.
His work has appeared in numerous publications and he is a frequent contributor to SAIL - World's Leading Sailing Magazine. He was selected most promising new author by South Bay Writers Guild, has won two Erle Stanley Gardner Mystery Writing awards, Texas Bar Journal fiction writing contest, National Legal Fiction Writing Competition award, and voted Best New Fiction Author at La Jolla Writers Seminar at La Jolla, California.
He is the author of the psychological legal-thrillers YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE I CAN TRUST and THIS GUY'S THE LIMIT, inspired by real-life experiences as a lawyer over a 30-year career span. He lives with his wife, children, dogs, and horses in California.
Videos of his ocean-crossing sailing adventures and samples of his music can be found on YouTube at Michael E Petrie.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 19, 2022
Legal/Mystery/Detective/Thriller/Boomer Lit – YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE I CAN TRUST by Michael E. Petrie should fit quite nicely into all these genres.
The glint of a gun barrel caught his eye – it was the second to last thing Griffin Gambil would ever see. There was a loud, percussive pop, a spume of red. In the time it takes to pull a trigger, the bullet smashes into his skull. Los Angeles real estate mogul Griffin Gambil spends the final seconds of his life watching his own blood spilling onto his Gucci loafers before collapsing in the driveway of his mistress’s house – the ink on his Last Will and Testament still wet.
Meanwhile, in another part of L.A., attorney Benjamin Harding – feeling jilted by the legal system – is turning his back on the practice of law. After decades of devoting himself to building a successful career, he now finds himself divorced, alone, and approaching a certain milestone age. A change is clearly in order and Ben begins looking forward to spending the rest of his days as a carefree, beach dwelling, sun worshiper along one of Southern California’s most fascinating stretches of sand, Venice Beach.
Those plans abruptly change, however, with an invitation to attend a high school reunion, meeting up with his former high school heartthrob, and finding her just as desirable as she ever was – though a lot more complicated than he remembers. Perhaps downright dangerous as well: recently widowed, Samantha Gambil’s wealthy husband died under very suspicious circumstances. Though Ben vowed to never again practice law, he soon finds himself back in a court room and unwittingly swept up in a murder investigation that has him scrambling all over Southern California and as far away as Hawaii looking for clues.
Unrequited love, tropical islands, sailing yachts, nostalgic references to the 60s &70s, Rock-n-Roll, sandy beaches, and a cast of colorfully interesting, mostly boomer-age characters ... YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE I CAN TRUST, by attorney/author Michael E. Petrie is a sardonic, fun, jovial homage to legal/mysteries that will keep you guessing right to the end. For more info, reviews,etc., please visit www.CalWriter.net
The glint of a gun barrel caught his eye – it was the second to last thing Griffin Gambil would ever see. There was a loud, percussive pop, a spume of red. In the time it takes to pull a trigger, the bullet smashes into his skull. Los Angeles real estate mogul Griffin Gambil spends the final seconds of his life watching his own blood spilling onto his Gucci loafers before collapsing in the driveway of his mistress’s house – the ink on his Last Will and Testament still wet.
Meanwhile, in another part of L.A., attorney Benjamin Harding – feeling jilted by the legal system – is turning his back on the practice of law. After decades of devoting himself to building a successful career, he now finds himself divorced, alone, and approaching a certain milestone age. A change is clearly in order and Ben begins looking forward to spending the rest of his days as a carefree, beach dwelling, sun worshiper along one of Southern California’s most fascinating stretches of sand, Venice Beach.
Those plans abruptly change, however, with an invitation to attend a high school reunion, meeting up with his former high school heartthrob, and finding her just as desirable as she ever was – though a lot more complicated than he remembers. Perhaps downright dangerous as well: recently widowed, Samantha Gambil’s wealthy husband died under very suspicious circumstances. Though Ben vowed to never again practice law, he soon finds himself back in a court room and unwittingly swept up in a murder investigation that has him scrambling all over Southern California and as far away as Hawaii looking for clues.
Unrequited love, tropical islands, sailing yachts, nostalgic references to the 60s &70s, Rock-n-Roll, sandy beaches, and a cast of colorfully interesting, mostly boomer-age characters ... YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE I CAN TRUST, by attorney/author Michael E. Petrie is a sardonic, fun, jovial homage to legal/mysteries that will keep you guessing right to the end. For more info, reviews,etc., please visit www.CalWriter.net
December 5, 2023
Absolutely recommend this book and this author! Found this book thru a lit thread I'm following. I'm so-so on murder mystery stories, but decided to give this one a try. Very glad I did.
A fast, fun story. The murder mystery, while very cleverly written and filled with delicious plot twists, is merely the backdrop to a delightful story about a group of people turning a certain age and finding one another (for better or worse) after many years. It's certainly a love story about getting one last chance with that first great love from your past and wondering whether it will sizzle or fizzle. There are tinges of kinky erotica, but not the sort that would turn off any but the utmost puritanical readers. So many twists and turns, since (just like in real life) things are not always what we believe them to be. I completely fell in love with the characters, enjoyed the locales where the story took me, and totally related to the mid-life perspective that was quite wittily and humorously written. The story left me wanting more (in a good way), curious what happens next with these people. I'm really hoping there's a sequel or trilogy using these same characters. This book would make a great movie!
A fast, fun story. The murder mystery, while very cleverly written and filled with delicious plot twists, is merely the backdrop to a delightful story about a group of people turning a certain age and finding one another (for better or worse) after many years. It's certainly a love story about getting one last chance with that first great love from your past and wondering whether it will sizzle or fizzle. There are tinges of kinky erotica, but not the sort that would turn off any but the utmost puritanical readers. So many twists and turns, since (just like in real life) things are not always what we believe them to be. I completely fell in love with the characters, enjoyed the locales where the story took me, and totally related to the mid-life perspective that was quite wittily and humorously written. The story left me wanting more (in a good way), curious what happens next with these people. I'm really hoping there's a sequel or trilogy using these same characters. This book would make a great movie!
January 15, 2013
Page turner! I could not put this book down and finished it over two days on the beach this last summer. It has a fascinating plot, lovable characters, and enough twists and turns to keep you guessing until the very end. I would love the author to turn this book into a series! Happy reading!
August 9, 2013
Ok so this book was between a 2.5 and 3 star rating. I enjoyed the main character, attorney Benjamin Harding. But all of the other characters were very unlikeable.
I think I would enjoy more books featuring Benjamin Harding as he is a very likable character and a pretty cool dude.
I think I would enjoy more books featuring Benjamin Harding as he is a very likable character and a pretty cool dude.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews