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Rachel Gold Mysteries #7
Trophy Widow
Savvy attorney Rachel Gold has had her share of celebrity clients, but none with the stature of her newest client, Angela Green. Angela may well be the most famous former housewife in America, and surely the only one to receive special awards from Ms. magazine and the NAACP while serving time in prison for the brutal murder of her powerful husband.
Her highly publicized murder trial made Angela a media star and a folk hero. And now, with a lucrative book deal and a major motion picture in the works, she finds herself at the center of another legal controversy-this one over the proceeds from the book and movie. To defend her in the lawsuit, Angela retains Rachel Gold, who already has her hands full with a bizarre ostrich lawsuit that's right out of the pages of a supermarket tabloid.
As Rachel prepares to represent Angela in the Son of Sam lawsuit, where proceeds from Angela's book would go to the victim's family, she starts to uncover questions that were never really answered in the murder trial. Is it possible-is it even conceivable-that Angela was framed?
And if Angela's really innocent, then the murderer is still at large-and, as Rachel discovers, ready to kill again.
Her highly publicized murder trial made Angela a media star and a folk hero. And now, with a lucrative book deal and a major motion picture in the works, she finds herself at the center of another legal controversy-this one over the proceeds from the book and movie. To defend her in the lawsuit, Angela retains Rachel Gold, who already has her hands full with a bizarre ostrich lawsuit that's right out of the pages of a supermarket tabloid.
As Rachel prepares to represent Angela in the Son of Sam lawsuit, where proceeds from Angela's book would go to the victim's family, she starts to uncover questions that were never really answered in the murder trial. Is it possible-is it even conceivable-that Angela was framed?
And if Angela's really innocent, then the murderer is still at large-and, as Rachel discovers, ready to kill again.
- GenresMystery
400 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2002
12 people are currently reading
46 people want to read
About the author
Michael A. Kahn
25 books44 followersPseudonym for Michael Baron.
Michael Kahn is a trial lawyer by day and an author at night. He wrote his first novel, GRAVE DESIGNS, on a challenge from his wife Margi, who got tired of listening to the same answer whenever she asked him about a book he was reading. "Not bad," he would say, "but I could write a better book than that." "Then write one," she finally said, "or please shut up." So he shut up for a few months--no easy task for an attorney--but finally wrote one.
Kahn is the award-winning author of 11 Rachel Gold novels, the most recent being BAD TRUST, and three stand-alone novels: the recently published PLAYED!, about which Library Journal wrote, "“Fans of quick reads . . . will be well served by this thriller’s fast pace"; THE SIRENA QUEST, which Publishers Weekly praised as “Equal parts rollicking adventure, existential and spiritual quest, and coming-of-(middle)-age tale”; and THE MOURNING SEXTON, a mystery novel under the pen name Michael Baron. His most recent Rachel Gold novel, THE DEAD HAND, was published last fall.
In addition to his day job as a lawyer, he is an adjunct professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis, where he teaches a class on censorship and free expression. Married to his high school sweetheart, he is the father of five and the grandfather of, so far, five.
Michael Kahn is a trial lawyer by day and an author at night. He wrote his first novel, GRAVE DESIGNS, on a challenge from his wife Margi, who got tired of listening to the same answer whenever she asked him about a book he was reading. "Not bad," he would say, "but I could write a better book than that." "Then write one," she finally said, "or please shut up." So he shut up for a few months--no easy task for an attorney--but finally wrote one.
Kahn is the award-winning author of 11 Rachel Gold novels, the most recent being BAD TRUST, and three stand-alone novels: the recently published PLAYED!, about which Library Journal wrote, "“Fans of quick reads . . . will be well served by this thriller’s fast pace"; THE SIRENA QUEST, which Publishers Weekly praised as “Equal parts rollicking adventure, existential and spiritual quest, and coming-of-(middle)-age tale”; and THE MOURNING SEXTON, a mystery novel under the pen name Michael Baron. His most recent Rachel Gold novel, THE DEAD HAND, was published last fall.
In addition to his day job as a lawyer, he is an adjunct professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis, where he teaches a class on censorship and free expression. Married to his high school sweetheart, he is the father of five and the grandfather of, so far, five.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
March 20, 2014
It’s always fun to discover new authors, especially prolific ones, and so it seems with Michael Kahn. It’s especially interesting because his protagonist is a female lawyer and he seems to write well from the female perspective (although how I, a male, should have a clue, is problematic.) Excellent legal mystery novel (the courtroom scene in the case of the rampaging ostrich was a hoot.) I liked the way the investigation was spelled out and even learned some real estate law.
This book has a great set of characters and some quite humorous scenes that always makes a read enjoyable.
Rachel Gold: Our heroine, a St. Louis, Harvard lawyer, who’s also rather smashing (of course.) She’s got a hot boyfriend, a widower, who happens to be orthodox Jewish (she’s Reform) so she (and we) get some instruction on the role of the orthodox Jewish wife. Rachel thinks most of the Orthodox rules and rituals are medieval superstitions.
Professor Benny: Rachel’s good friend, foil, and comic relief. My favorite character.
Angela Green: Convicted killer of her husband Michael Green. Rachel is Angela’s attorney in a Son of Sam suit. Rachel is perplexed by some anomalies in the trial record.
Samantha Cummins: Michael’s squeeze and his intended replacement forAngela. She owns and runs the 309 Gallery. She has bizarre connections to many movers and shakers in St. Louis through the sale of paintings by Sebastian Curry, a mediocre artist at best. She is the mother of Trent, party through “equitable adoption” in the Son of Sam suit. “Ellen McNeil had described him as eye candy. That was an understatement. Sebastian Curry was a hot fudge sundae with whipped cream and, well, nuts.”
Sebastian Curry: the aforementioned artist who happens to be a real hunk. His paintings Samantha sold at the gallery for ten times their actual worth.
Millenium Management: a company that seems to exist only on paper and which no one wants to talk about, but which was getting a 40% commission on Sebastian’s paintings.
Oasis Shelter: a battered woman’s shelter, also a client of Rachel’s. Their property is a thorn in the side of Nate Turner, a commissioner trying to bring redevelopment to St. Louis.
Harry Silver: ex-English professor (fired for screwing the wife of the department chair not to mention one of the chair’s students. He’s a big fan of Trollope and now a successful businessman producing porn. “I certainly didn’t earn my degree to enlist as a foot soldier in Jacques Derrida’s poststructuralist/postmodernist deconstructionist brigade. So I finally said fuck it. I tried film criticism for about a year, but there’s no money in that, and most of the films I love date back several decades. Newspaper readers want a review of this year’s version of Pretty Woman, not an essay on the use of irony in The Philadelphia Story. So I decided to quit writing about the latest chick-flick and started making my own versions. I tried the independent film route. That’s a one-way ticket to oblivion. Fade out. Cut to interior—Pinnacle Productions.” He gestured grandly. “And here I am: the Prince of Porn.”
Billy Woodward: One of Harry’s erstwhile actors who just happens to commit suicide in front of Samantha’s house. Just what was his relationship to Samantha? He also happens to be the mysterious “John” who Angela claimed was her alibi for the night of the murder. His nickname was “Rouphe.” (Hint)
Jacki: Rachel’s secretary: “Standing six feet three and weighing close to two hundred and forty pounds, with plenty of steelworker muscles rippling beneath her size 22 shirtwaist dress, she was surely the most intimidating legal secretary in town. And also one of the best. I’d call her my girl Friday, except that anatomically she was still a he—and would so remain until next summer, when she would undergo the surgical…”
Some funny vignettes. For example, she goes to Chicago to meet with the other lawyers hired by the parties to the suit. “I spent two hours watching the alpha dogs take turns marking their territory as their entourages looked on approvingly. Harvey Silverberg staked out the First Amendment high ground, subjecting us to an eye-glazing summary of the three “seminal decisions” in the field, all of which, coincidentally enough, featured Hefty Harvey as lead counsel for the victors. Next came Nelson Liberman, who lifted his hind leg and sprayed us with a discourse on the importance of burying the other side in a blizzard of motions and discovery requests. Then it was Hammerin’ Hank’s turn. He sniffed around the perimeter and spouted a lengthy reenactment of his cross-examination.”
4.75 really
This book has a great set of characters and some quite humorous scenes that always makes a read enjoyable.
Rachel Gold: Our heroine, a St. Louis, Harvard lawyer, who’s also rather smashing (of course.) She’s got a hot boyfriend, a widower, who happens to be orthodox Jewish (she’s Reform) so she (and we) get some instruction on the role of the orthodox Jewish wife. Rachel thinks most of the Orthodox rules and rituals are medieval superstitions.
Professor Benny: Rachel’s good friend, foil, and comic relief. My favorite character.
Angela Green: Convicted killer of her husband Michael Green. Rachel is Angela’s attorney in a Son of Sam suit. Rachel is perplexed by some anomalies in the trial record.
Samantha Cummins: Michael’s squeeze and his intended replacement forAngela. She owns and runs the 309 Gallery. She has bizarre connections to many movers and shakers in St. Louis through the sale of paintings by Sebastian Curry, a mediocre artist at best. She is the mother of Trent, party through “equitable adoption” in the Son of Sam suit. “Ellen McNeil had described him as eye candy. That was an understatement. Sebastian Curry was a hot fudge sundae with whipped cream and, well, nuts.”
Sebastian Curry: the aforementioned artist who happens to be a real hunk. His paintings Samantha sold at the gallery for ten times their actual worth.
Millenium Management: a company that seems to exist only on paper and which no one wants to talk about, but which was getting a 40% commission on Sebastian’s paintings.
Oasis Shelter: a battered woman’s shelter, also a client of Rachel’s. Their property is a thorn in the side of Nate Turner, a commissioner trying to bring redevelopment to St. Louis.
Harry Silver: ex-English professor (fired for screwing the wife of the department chair not to mention one of the chair’s students. He’s a big fan of Trollope and now a successful businessman producing porn. “I certainly didn’t earn my degree to enlist as a foot soldier in Jacques Derrida’s poststructuralist/postmodernist deconstructionist brigade. So I finally said fuck it. I tried film criticism for about a year, but there’s no money in that, and most of the films I love date back several decades. Newspaper readers want a review of this year’s version of Pretty Woman, not an essay on the use of irony in The Philadelphia Story. So I decided to quit writing about the latest chick-flick and started making my own versions. I tried the independent film route. That’s a one-way ticket to oblivion. Fade out. Cut to interior—Pinnacle Productions.” He gestured grandly. “And here I am: the Prince of Porn.”
Billy Woodward: One of Harry’s erstwhile actors who just happens to commit suicide in front of Samantha’s house. Just what was his relationship to Samantha? He also happens to be the mysterious “John” who Angela claimed was her alibi for the night of the murder. His nickname was “Rouphe.” (Hint)
Jacki: Rachel’s secretary: “Standing six feet three and weighing close to two hundred and forty pounds, with plenty of steelworker muscles rippling beneath her size 22 shirtwaist dress, she was surely the most intimidating legal secretary in town. And also one of the best. I’d call her my girl Friday, except that anatomically she was still a he—and would so remain until next summer, when she would undergo the surgical…”
Some funny vignettes. For example, she goes to Chicago to meet with the other lawyers hired by the parties to the suit. “I spent two hours watching the alpha dogs take turns marking their territory as their entourages looked on approvingly. Harvey Silverberg staked out the First Amendment high ground, subjecting us to an eye-glazing summary of the three “seminal decisions” in the field, all of which, coincidentally enough, featured Hefty Harvey as lead counsel for the victors. Next came Nelson Liberman, who lifted his hind leg and sprayed us with a discourse on the importance of burying the other side in a blizzard of motions and discovery requests. Then it was Hammerin’ Hank’s turn. He sniffed around the perimeter and spouted a lengthy reenactment of his cross-examination.”
4.75 really
September 7, 2007
TROPHY WIDOW – G+
Michael A. Kahn – 7th in series
Rachel Gold agrees to represent Angela Green, a convicted murderer who has been offered a lucrative book deal. In gathering background, Rachel discovers some inconsistencies in the murder case that cast doubt on Green's guilt and reveal a multilayered construct of greed, sex, and political finagling that involves some of St. Louis' most prominent citizens. I've read all the books in this series.
Mr. Kahn is a male author who has a very convincing female voice. The plot is well crafted, dialogue excellent and characters credible, and story holds together well. Rachel’s friend, Benny, can be a bit irritating, but her relationship with Jonathan is interesting. I always enjoy the books in this series.
Michael A. Kahn – 7th in series
Rachel Gold agrees to represent Angela Green, a convicted murderer who has been offered a lucrative book deal. In gathering background, Rachel discovers some inconsistencies in the murder case that cast doubt on Green's guilt and reveal a multilayered construct of greed, sex, and political finagling that involves some of St. Louis' most prominent citizens. I've read all the books in this series.
Mr. Kahn is a male author who has a very convincing female voice. The plot is well crafted, dialogue excellent and characters credible, and story holds together well. Rachel’s friend, Benny, can be a bit irritating, but her relationship with Jonathan is interesting. I always enjoy the books in this series.
August 14, 2022
Rachel Gold is hired by a widow who is in prison for the murder of her husband. Rachel is supposed to come up with evidence for a court battle over whether or not her ex-husbands child by his lover will get a part of his inheritance. Beyond that, Rachel is determined to discover the real murderer and to get her client released.
Rachel's thoughts are amusing. I had to keep stopping to read them to my husband.
I enjoyed this novel and would recommend it, especially for fans of mysteries.
Rachel's thoughts are amusing. I had to keep stopping to read them to my husband.
I enjoyed this novel and would recommend it, especially for fans of mysteries.
May 13, 2020
It had been a few years since I read one of Mr. Kahn's "Rachel Gold" mysteries. Rachel and Benny are amongst my favorite characters, as is Rachel's mom.
This story was quite interesting, and I shall continue to read these stories, as long as Mr. Kahn, continues to write them.
This story was quite interesting, and I shall continue to read these stories, as long as Mr. Kahn, continues to write them.
July 6, 2020
Another great Rachel Gold legal mystery. This series is very enjoyable - it offers humor, appealing characters, well-drawn plots, great courtroom scenes, and a strong female lead. An added bonus is the well-described St. Louis setting.
July 10, 2018
As good as any in the series
June 29, 2016
Rachel Gold is a reformed Jewish St Louis attorney always ready to take on the "BIG BOYS" in a personal crusade. With the help of her friend Benny Goldberg, a low professor at Wash. U. this time she is dealing with racism, sexism, genderism, and fraud, graft and even the pornographic film business. All starting with a client being sued for the proceeds of her forthcoming book about serving a long sentence as a convicted murderer. She also is representing a battered women's shelter under fire for urban development, and a couple of lesbian owners of an ostrich farm. Murders, threats, love and lots of human frailties.
August 20, 2013
I enjoyed reading the references to Saint Louis like the Lake Forrest Butter Cake. This is the second Rachel Gold book that I have read. Kahn does like to parody big time lawyers and their firms. The story of the ostrich farm provided humor, even though the case that Rachel tried to discredit did not seem very plausible. It would have been more romantic to have Rachel's lover, Jonathan, come home in the midst of his trial instead of when it ended. Rachel's friend, Benny, does add some humor to the cases. It was not anything spectacular, but a fun read.
August 27, 2012
I didn't care for this particular mystery. I found it somewhat unrealistic, especially the legal scenes (I know I have an advantage), but the characters trite. I also wondered if I was the only one this racist. Maybe it was just me.
September 27, 2012
Read for our mystery book group. Very wordy, and several actions just did not ring true to life. When was the last time an attorney was allowed to bring a 'picnic basket' in to meet with a convicted murderer?
August 31, 2015
A super fun read- a legal mystery that manages to be lighthearted and tense at varying times (better at the former than the latter). Interesting commentary on Orthodox vs Reform Judaism and the porn industry.
November 24, 2014
I liked this book enough that I will read another by this author. The parts about the orthodox religion were interesting along with the legal issues, the main character was engaging.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews