Bad Blood

Alexandra Cooper #9

by Linda Fairstein

Hundreds of feet below Manhattan, a treacherous tunnel maze is inhabited by the sandhogs, teams of workers who are rebuilding New York City's deteriorating water supply system. Their dark and dangerous world turns deadly when a catastrophic explosion rips through Water Tunnel #3, sending shock waves that are felt throughout the city and inside the courtroom where Alexandra Cooper is dead-set on nailing young businessman Brendan Quillian for the murder of his wealthy wife. The blast sends Alex's case in a shattering new direction -- and pulls her and detectives Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace underground to dig up ancient rivalries and homicidal secrets that may pull Alex in too deep.... Brimming with Linda Fairstein's trademark blend of brilliant detective work, cutting edge forensics, and electrifying legal drama, Bad Blood melds two distinctive and riveting New York domains with seamless authenticity and nerve-jangling suspense.

Genres: Mystery, Crime, Fiction, Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Legal

447 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 16, 2007

About the author

Linda Fairstein (born 1947) is one of America's foremost legal experts on crimes of violence against women and children. She served as head of the sex crimes unit of the Manhattan District Attorney's office from 1976 until 2002 and is the author of a series of novels featuring Manhattan prosecutor Alexandra Cooper.

Like Fairstein, Alex ('Coop') Cooper is in charge of the Special Victims Unit of the Office. She works closely with NYPD detectives Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace. The 17th book in her best-selling series - DEVIL'S BRIDGE - launches in paperback in June, 2016. The 18th novel - KILLER LOOK - debuts on July 26th.

This year, Fairstein will debut a new series for Middle Grade readers - 8-12 years old. Her kid sleuth, Devlin Quick, appears in INTO THE LION'S DEN in November, 2016. The series is an homage to Nancy Drew, whose books inspired Linda's two careers - in crime fiction and in the law.

Ms. Fairstein is an honors graduate of Vassar College (1969) and the University of Virginia School of Law (1972). She joined the Manhattan District Attorney's office in 1972 as an Assistant District Attorney. She was promoted to the head of the sex crimes unit in 1976. During her tenure, she prosecuted several highly publicized cases, including the "Preppy Murder" case against Robert Chambers in 1986.

Linda Fairstein left the District Attorney's office in 2002, and has continued to consult, write, lecture and serve as a sex crimes expert for a wide variety of print and television media outlets, including the major networks, CNN, MSNBC among others. Ms. Fairstein is often called to provide her opinion on high profile prosecutions including: Michael Jackson's molestation charges in 2004, Kobe Bryant's sexual assault charges, and Scott Peterson's trial. She is also a frequent speaker on issues surrounding domestic abuse.

Ms. Fairstein lives in Manhattan and on Martha's Vineyard with her husband, Michael Goldberg. Her novels draw on Ms. Fairstein's legal expertise as well as her knowledge of and affection for the rich history of the city of New York.

Series:
* Alexandra Cooper Mystery

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 2 out of 5]

Prosecutor Alexandra 'Coop' Cooper is struggling in her case against a 'respectable' classy and monied businessman whose accuse of strangling his wife; during the trial there's what is first presume to be a terrorist explosion, but as forensis, research and information come to light, these very distanced events start overlapping. Not the most compelling of crime fiction reads, but one of those books so nicely put together especially with all the hugely interesting detailed information on the tunnels and tunnel builders of New York; anther minus though is the pretty one dimensional (but quite believable, albeit bland) characters across the board. Would I ever read this again, that'd be no, so it has to be a high Two Star, 5 out of 12, read for me. Conversely it's a very well put together book for the ninth volume in a mystery/crime fiction series - Alex Cooper book 9; so reading others in this series is a possibility.

2022 read

[Bibi · Rating 1 out of 5]

#whentheyseeus

[Feyre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mein Trio scheint zurück zu sein 😍 nicht wieder so wie früher, aber die drei sind schon toll. Ich kann eigentlich nicht viel anderes sagen als zu den anderen Büchern der Reihe. Es schweifte wieder sehr vom ursprünglichen Opfer und Fall ab, aber es hatte doch alles seinen Zusammenhang und man verlor den Ursprung nicht aus den Augen. Bin gespannt, was das nächste Buch noch bereit hält.

[Kw · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought it was a good mystery, and I actually found the story of the water system and the sandhogs to be very interesting. I had no idea what it took to supply water to such a huge
metropolis. I can't imagine working 600 feet underground in such a treacherous environment.

[Bec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Cooper has a tough task in front of her to prove that Brendan Quillian had his wife killed. There's little evidence for her to work with, but she's determined to make sure he rots in prison for the crime. However, she's up against a formidable defense attorney she'd rather not be and once the trial starts, she finds her case becoming harder and harder to win. Will she win her case or will things go south enough for Alex to find her life in danger?

I've read this series several times and just realized I've never written a review for any of the books. How bad is that? Anyway, I'll start by saying I absolutely love this series and have from the very first book.

Now, in Bad Blood, Ms. Fairstein takes readers on quite a thrilling, fast-paced, enthralling journey, as Alex does her best to win a case that seems hopeless to win and New York City is thrown into chaos. Will Alex uncover a smoking gun to help her win her case? Will New Yorkers be able to handle the crisis the city is facing?

With the dialogue, it was intense due to the twists and turns the plot takes due to Alex's trial and the crisis New York is facing. However, the plot isn't all intense. There are certainly some moments that made me laugh and smile, especially since homicide detective Mike Chapman has such a barbed tongue and knows just what to say to keep Alex from sinking into despair because of things that happen throughout this story. Certainly, he can be a little rude, but I love how Alex just lets the things he says slide right off her back because they couldn't do the jobs that they do without a little humor.

As for the characters, I always enjoy the dynamics between Alex, Mike and Mercer. Really, Alex couldn't ask for better friends than the two men she works with day in and day out, especially considering the cases they've worked together and the ending of each case that always keeps me on the edge-of-my-seat. Moreover, I loved how Alex handles every challenge she faces throughout this story with what happens during the trial and then what happens towards the end. Really, she's resilient, courageous and I loved that she didn't give up, even when the going gets so tough that she has every reason to want to curl up in a ball and hope that everything that happens didn't.

Overall, Ms. Fairstein has delivered a wonderful read in this book where I loved the plot twists and could not put this story down for even a second because of everything that happens that made me want to know what would happen next. The way this story ended was thrilling, as Alex, Mike and Mercer face an uphill battle against a really bad guy. However, it was the last chapter that wrapped this story up nicely and had me loving the banter between Alex and Mike since Alex is full of surprises. I would recommend Bad Blood by Linda Fairstein, if you enjoy mystery/thriller novels, romantic suspense or books by authors James Patterson, Tess Gerritsen, Harlan Coben and Karin Slaughter.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started a bit slow but turned into an interesting mix of several different storylines. I did feel that there was not a clear explanation as to how the large explosion and death of one of the characters took place. It did keep me reading, though.

[Spencer Rich · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent page turner. Extra points for real NYC history and Jeopardy references.

[Simon Mcleish · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally published on my blog here in August 2007.

The ninth Alex Cooper mystery begins in the courtroom, where Alex is prosecuting businessman Brendan Quilley for arranging the murder of his wife. The case soon becomes swamped in drama, as the first prosecution witness is forced to reveal that she had slept with Quilley, making her testimony seem to be untrustworthy to the jury and effectively ruining Alex's case. Further complications - an explosion on a construction site killing Quilley's brother, possible links between Quilley and a cold case - quickly follow, and before the reader knows it, Alex is once again chasing bad guys through a strange piece of New York architecture. Where in previous books we've had the derelict institutions on Roosevelt Island, sites associated with Edgar Allan Poe, abandoned railways and remodelled theatres, this time it's tunnels.

The Alex Cooper mysteries belong to a subgenre of the police procedural crime novel in which the detective is someone involved with crime but not in a profession which usually undertakes investigation. Other examples include the Kathy Reichs novels which were the basis for the TV series Bones. While prosecutors do have a role in ensuring that police investigations remain within the law and obtain enough evidence to make a conviction possible, and I know that they have more involvement in the US system than in the UK, the amount to which Alex carries out the detecting seems unlikely to me.

I have now alluded to the biggest problems in Fairstein's series of novels. The implausibility of both the way in which Alex gets involved in her cases and of the situations in which she finds herself in the course of each stroy don't really register while reading the novels, as they carry the reader on fast enough and are involving enough to keep him or her from thinking about such things. The other main problem with the series is the similarity in ideas between the various novels - the quirky locations, the confrontations with the killer, the complicated personal life - are all repeated each time. This makes the first Alex Cooper novel, Final Jeopardy, by far the best. For the rest of them, including Bad Blood, the edge that Alex's specialisation in sex crimes gives to them marks them out from the herd, but otherwise they are basically well written but unremarkable.

[Richard Oosse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another solid mystery from Fairstein.

The three main characters in this series have become some of my favorites in contemporary mainstream fiction. Manhattan D.A. Alex Cooper and detectives Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace are much more literate and articulate than the cliched, uncaring NYC cops that usually populate stories in this local.

Mike is an especially interesting creation; a chatty former history major and trivia buff who can't pass a television at 7:25pm without tuning into and betting on that night's final Jeopardy question. Alex herself is a former literature major and the both of them have a keen interest in the history and background of their beloved NYC. In fact, there's so much authentic detail and atmosphere and genuine affection for the city they live and work in, New York City is almost a major character here itself. Along with the side trips into Brooklyn and the Bronx and the occasional detour over the bridge to New Jersey cities such as Hoboken, Hackensack and Newark, the descriptions of these settings in Fairstein's books always feel very real and up to date.

I also find the characters's almost unfailing optimism refreshing. Cooper is a prosecutor in charge of the sex crimes unit and so encounters terrible stories of sadness and injustice in an almost constant stream. The detectives, too, investigate murders and torture on an almost daily basis. This day to day brutality shakes them, of course, but they strive never to take the grim grind personally and never allow themselves to become emotionally involved with their cases. The three of them remind themselves constantly that they can only do the best they can with whatever case is in front of them today before moving on to the next.

Perhas what I find most compelling about this series is the genuine affection the three characters have for another. After working together for more than ten years, they have adapted to each other's strengths and weaknesses like a well-oiled machine or an old married couple.

TBC...

[Diana Nagy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay...Linda Fairstein...have I read a book of hers before? Oh yes, the first book I read of hers was Likely to Die, its actually the 2nd book in her Alexandra Cooper series. I went from 2 to 9! But that's okay because this book, Bad Blood (#9 in Alexandra Cooper series) really showed me what a fantastic author Linda Fairstein is and what she is capable of. Wow did I love this book! I automatically went online and bought a few more of her books in her series (not that I don't already have enough books to read) and can't wait to start reading them! What I love about this author is the characters she writes about and how you just can't stop reading because you just have to know who did it, who's responsible. Was it her, him? Or neither? I just loved it and can't gush enough about it enough! Read it now. But better yet, buy this one and all the 9 before it and the 8 or so after this one. I promise you won't be disappointed!

[Miriam Kahn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This adventure finds Alexandra Cooper embroiled in a long time family feud between sandhogs. For those of you who don't know, sandhogs are the people who dug and dig out tunnels and footings for bridges. They work in the sand and rock below the surface of cities and rivers.

It won't be a surprise that the case Cooper is prosecuting and an explosion in Water Tunnel 3 come together. The past catches up with the present in some very interesting ways and Chapman and Wallace are there to help her solve the crimes.

As always, Fairstein brings in NYC history, particularly about the water tunnels into NYC. I find I'm grabbing my NYC history books and maps to learn more about the facts and events that populate her mysteries.

[Peter Goodman · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Bad Blood,” by Linda Fairstein (Simon and Schuster, 2007, audiobook performed by Barbara Rosenblatt). This starts well, but ultimately the plot gets so convoluted not only does one lose track, but one loses interest. ADA Alexandra Cooper is prosecuting wealthy Brendan Quillian for the murder of his wife. The defense attorney is outmaneuvering her at every turn. Then there’s an explosion in Water Tunnel #3, and eventually it turns out that Quillian is a black sheep member of one of the tunnel-digging “sand hog” families which traditionally do the underground work in New York. Some interesting history of tunnels and sandhog tradition. Sort of fun.

http://www.lindafairstein.com/#novels

[Chick Marks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fairstein's books sometimes have information that allows readers to gain knowledge about various topics. This book shares information on sandhogs and the tunnels beneath NYC

[Fatma Budak · Rating 1 out of 5]

Please don’t support this monster!! #whentheyseeus

[Patsy · Rating 2 out of 5]

poor writing - difficult to figure out where one is - vs the original murder trial - jumps around too much without laying foundation for switch

"Bad Blood" finds Assistant DA Alexandra Cooper deeply involved in a complicated, high-profile homicide case. Defendant Brendan Quillian, a prominent young businessman, is charged with the brutal strangulation of his beautiful young wife, Amanda. His conviction is not a certainty: Quillian was conveniently out of town on the day of the killing, and he has hired a formidable defense attorney who seems one step ahead of Cooper as the trial opens. But with the help of detectives Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace, she is confident she can prove Quillian paid a hit man to commit the crime.Halfway through the trial, a major catastrophe alters the course of Alex's case. A cataclysmic ex-plosion rips through New York City's Water Tunnel #3, a spectacular feat of modern engineering that will be completed years in the future. Carved through bedrock six hundred feet underground, the tunnel will replace a vital artery in the city's rapidly deteriorating water supply system. Was the blast caused by terrorism? Political retribution? Or was it merely an accident? Cooper is quickly drawn into the trag-edy when she discovers a strange connection linking Brendan Quillian to the tunnel workers killed in the explosion.

At the same time, Alex meets a mysterious, handsome stranger. Should she get to know him better? Before the answer is clear, she is pulled back into the case, which is becoming more dangerous by the hour. She and Chapman descend deep into the earth to penetrate the subterranean universe of the sandhogs, as the brotherhood of tunnel workers are colorfully known. Their probe soon leads to another murder victim, whose blood may hold the key to Cooper's mesmerizingly complex case. One closelyheld secret reveals another, and soon Alex discovers that only by unraveling ancient rivalries among sandhog families will she be able to solve the murder of Amanda Quillian -- and save her own life as well.

[Priscilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Um livro de crimes que ganha espaço justamente por não ser focado em um único aspecto. No correr das páginas, enfrentamos tribunais, preparação em reuniões de promotoria, tiroteios, investigação de suspeitos, ameaças e ataques a residências, viagens ao submundo de Nova Iorque e mais tantas outras que fica difícil citar.

Como pode se prever, a trama é cheia de reviravoltas, embora o tema central seja bem simples: a guerra entre duas famílias tradicionais, mas não necessariamente ricas, de Nova Iorque.

A autora se vale do vasto mundo econômico e social da cidade para enriquecer ainda mais as cenas e abusa das diferenças culturais para demonstrar a dificuldade de se realizar justiça quando a própria definição de Justiça varia entre as diferentes etnias que compõe o núcleo dos personagens.

Embora a descrição seja pobre, provavelmente resultado de tentar manter o texto dinâmico, o cuidado com os diálogos e as explicações de por que certas linhas de investigação são descartadas ou o motivo de certas coisas serem ignoradas durante depoimentos em tribunais, são um dos pontos fortes do livro.

Tal cuidado técnico é possivelmente um chamariz para tentar diferenciar a série de tantas outras que há por aí. E, de certa forma, consegue alcançar seu objetivo já que o estilo que emprega não lhe permite rebuscar demais a escrita.

Minha única ressalva é o fato de que o relacionamento entre alguns dos personagens principais é meio confuso. A linha entre o flerte, a brincadeira e o preconceito se torna tênue em alguns momentos. Talvez tenha sido uma tentativa de Linda F. de deixá-los mais reais, porém o resultado é uma desarmonia que dificulta a empatia.

[Josette Araya Aliaga · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn’t know this was the 9th book about the same character, and maybe it reads different if you’ve read the first 9, but it was not enjoyable. It was slooooow for anything good to happen. About half way through I wasn’t even sure I was going to be able to finish. Too much dialogue between the characters with inside jokes that were never explained. Too much information on the history of NY that added nothing to the plot. Too much emphasis on race of characters for no reason. The main character is a prosecuting attorney but she spends most of her time riding shotgun to her best-friend detective, while he talks down to her, calls her “blondie” for some reason, and makes in appropriate remarks about her personal life and hygiene habits to anyone and everyone for some reason that is never explained. You could guess most of the “plot twists” long before the author was ready to expose them. Overall, boring, slow, and predictable.

Edit: found out the history on this author and now all the racist stuff in the book makes sense. This isn’t even a book I will keep on my shelf.

[John Biddle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book but have mixed feelings. It started off quite well, then switched to an entirely different story, dropping the first one completely and it took forever to get around to tying them together. That I didn't like at all.

The two stories themselves, however, I liked quite a bit, and I am very fond of both ADA Alexandra Cooper and homicide detectives Mike Chapman and Mercer Wallace. The interplay and dialog between them is alone worth the read.

The 1st story is about a guy the trial on trial for the murder of his wife. Cooper is up against the odds as the case gets tougher and tougher to win based on all that happens. The 2nd is about a terror attack on the water system of NYC with a peripheral connection to the trail. In it we get a fascinating history of that water system as well as of the "sand hogs" who build and maintain it.

It's all pulled together well in the end and there's lots of action and suspense. I rate this one a 4.

[Anne Wright]

Bad Blood (Alexandra Cooper #9)
by Linda Fairstein

Alex, Mike and Mercer are working on getting a killer put away, Alex is prosecuting and she is up against Lem Howell for the defence. Branden Quillian is accused of killing or having killed his wife Amanda, she has been strangled and although Branden says he was out of the country he is also accused of having her killed by a third party.

Then there is an explosion in the tunnels under the city where a breed of men work building the tunnels for water and transport etc they are the Sandhogs and there is a whole community working and living in the same areas of New York they have lived in for many years - blood is found that points to Branden Quilliam having a brother - something the prosecutors office is no aware of.

Skeletons and family histories arise out of the dust and rubble and we are taken on a ride around the new tunnels and the old ones - a good read -informative I always learn something when reading these books.

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this one a slightly higher rating because I found the various themes engaging in how they come together. There's marital abuse, socioeconomic divides, family loyalty, loyalty to ones clan, family feuds, and misogyny. There's also, again, an interesting subculture of the Sandhogs - Irish men who dug the tunnels and holes for pilings - and their children and children's children's children who continue in the work.

Granted, we also end up out at Martha's Vineyard again. At least in this story there's a vague parallelism between the haves and the have nots and how Alex is one of the haves - by the fluke of her father creating a heart valve at the right time. The only reason I can figure why Fairstein created her character to have a comfortable amount of wealth was to explain why she could afford to continue to work for the city and not be tempted to go to private practice.

[George Ellington · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the ninth book of the series, assistant DA Alex Cooper seeks a conviction against prominent businessman Brendan Quillian for the brutal strangulation of his wife. That Brendan was conveniently out of town at the time of the murder increases the obstacles in Alex’s way, but fails to convince her of Quillian’s innocence. An explosion deep below the city in the midst of a massive dig to improve the city’s water supply proves to be more than simply a distraction to her case when Quillian’s own family seem to be involved.

The first time I read a Fairstein mystery involving her central character Alexandra Cooper I was mildly entertained. But I have to say, I very much enjoyed this one, Bad Blood, despite my tendency to prefer foreign settings. The characters are compelling, the story was wonderfully complex with enough twists and turns to keep me wanting more. Well done.

[Brian Monahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am never disappointed in her books, perhaps because I love NY and the details she shares about the city are fascinating. In this case, the subway stations near the Brooklyn Bridge are part of it, including the one under City Hall that is no longer used. I commuted to the area for years.

As usual, the characters are easy to follow. Some many say they are one dimensional--good and bad. That may be true, but I enjoy following them.

You should also note that this book is part of a series. Each stands alone alone quite well. However, if you read several, you get to know these folks and it is a bonus.

Her work my not be great literature, but I always keep reading. I am a professor of English and I could be reading Joyce, but sometimes i like reading her. Both great but different.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

During the coronavirus pandemic I'm backfilling in some series I enjoy, reading the ones I never had a chance to read in order along the way. I had this on my shelf and reading an Alex Cooper novel is like eating comfort food The characters are fun, each book fleshes them out a bit more and the repartee between them is always a joy to read. There's always some historical element to learn about NYC and this one was particularly interesting learning about the water system and underground tunnels. It was a bit of a procedural though with the story clipping right along I thoroughly enjoyed it. Fun book to read.

[Gloria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bad Blood is another gripping addition to Linda Fairstein’s Alexandra Cooper series. The plot masterfully weaves legal drama with forensic detail and a touch of New York City's hidden history, keeping you hooked from start to finish. The courtroom scenes are sharp, the pacing is tight, and Coop remains a strong, smart, and relatable lead. I especially enjoyed how the case unfolded through layers of secrets and misdirection.

My only small critique is that a few side characters felt underdeveloped, but it didn’t take away from the overall experience. Highly recommended for crime thriller lovers!

[Deb · Rating 3 out of 5]

The underground beneath the underground in NYC

Always a good read and a bevy of plot twists, right down to the action- packed ending. Coop, Mike and Mercer uncover the decades old blood feud between two old Irish families who helped to build the city's underground for generations. Laced with a generous helping of the city's history to enjoy, Ms. Fairstein's writing always combines her passion for NYC with that of this dedicated group of professionals, both to the force of the SVU and to each other.

[JoAnne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having worked in Manhattan for years, traveled the subway, walked many of the areas she mentioned in her book, it was very informative. A great history of the subway and other areas that I never thought much about. The crime/mystery part of the book was interesting but not what I expected. Took some time to try and get a grip that a prosecutor would get down with all the gritty crime scene stuff. Ah, too much lawyer show watching on my part. I will probably read another of the Alex Cooper books

[Momma-Bear · Rating 3 out of 5]

First time reading from this author and finally I'm not impressed. There's too much jargon: NYC street oozing in cops, ADAs, business bots and many more. The book starts off slow with tons of NYC history that the reader doesn't need for this type of story, and not until the last third does it pick up speed and intrigue. I realized also that because it's part of a series, alot of questions trail you to try and understand the relationships. All in all I struggled to finish it and it left me unsatisfied.

[Boni · Rating 3 out of 5]

So many good things about this book... great details on this obscure world and culture of tunnel workers, of Sloan-Kettering, of DNA, and of course, crime and NYC. But that being said, I was constantly a little annoyed by the seemingly (at least to me) cocky banter of the detective Mike in the direction of his good buddy, the heroin attorney, Alexandra, who mostly maintained a subserviance or implicit acceptance... My druthers are instead for a 'Thin-Man' type repartee a la Myrna Loy.

[Ling Fu Wylie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another page turner

I really enjoy the bickering and the love the three main characters have for each other...just like any friends that have become family. The author gives you great descriptive insight into places that make you want to visit or stay away from if you ever get to visit NYC. I am happily moving on to book 10 of the series. Thank you Linda for giving me something fun to read when I wake up at 3am!!!

[Jean]

A tangled story uncovered by NYC prosecutor Alexandra Cooper that involved a long-standing feud between the family of a man she was prosecuting for the murder of his wife and another Irish family. Each family had always blamed the other for deaths but Cooper & her team discover the defendant's brother had killed both a sister in the rival family, who was pregnant with the defendant's child, and the defendant's wife, at the request of the defendant. Yikes!