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The Night Lawyer
Perfectly composed in a tailored skirt and jacket, Eleanor Porter walks confidently through the lobby of a gleaming skyscraper on London's Isle of Dogs. The newly appointed "night lawyer" for the tabloid Chronicle, Eleanor has been hired to protect her employer from lawsuits. It's a job she can do with her whole heart. After all, she knows what it's like to be vulnerable.
Three years ago, after the violent death of her father and her abandonment by her married lover, Eleanor fell apart. But with determination and courage, and with the newfound discipline of karate, she made her way back to the land of the living: She shed pounds, reshaped her appearance, bought herself a modest home, and kept the memories at bay. Now, with the new job, she hopes to launch herself into happiness.
But one by one, problems emerge: the wayward young neighbor through whose walls Eleanor hears things she does not want to hear; the unsettling reappearance of her former lover; the security expert who catches her on camera in an intimate moment and decides that he is going to keep watching.
Even more disturbing, someone is stalking her, following her on the nighttime streets of London. Whoever it is has gone so far as to break into her house—even to sleep in her bed. Eleanor knows that she is in real trouble, but the danger is even worse than she can imagine. And this time, the damage may be beyond all repair.
Three years ago, after the violent death of her father and her abandonment by her married lover, Eleanor fell apart. But with determination and courage, and with the newfound discipline of karate, she made her way back to the land of the living: She shed pounds, reshaped her appearance, bought herself a modest home, and kept the memories at bay. Now, with the new job, she hopes to launch herself into happiness.
But one by one, problems emerge: the wayward young neighbor through whose walls Eleanor hears things she does not want to hear; the unsettling reappearance of her former lover; the security expert who catches her on camera in an intimate moment and decides that he is going to keep watching.
Even more disturbing, someone is stalking her, following her on the nighttime streets of London. Whoever it is has gone so far as to break into her house—even to sleep in her bed. Eleanor knows that she is in real trouble, but the danger is even worse than she can imagine. And this time, the damage may be beyond all repair.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
29 people want to read
About the author
Michelle Spring
23 books17 followersMichelle Spring was raised on Vancouver Island. She worked for many years as an academic in Cambridge where she lives with her husband and their two children. She has written several academic books and five Laura Principal thrillers.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
May 25, 2008
I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. It's supposed to be a thriller but it's just pretty average overall.
January 12, 2010
Not strongly a mystery or a romance or a thriller. Definitely not 'literature'. Pedestrian
October 24, 2012
I think this is what they call romantic suspense. Sort of.
Whatever it is, it's escape reading, to be tossed aside and forgotten as soon as it is read. Yet I will give a little synopsis here, mainly to remind myself what it was about.
Eleanor Porter ("Ellie") is 30 and just starting to make her life over after a hurtful breakup. After being dumped by a man she had fallen deeply for, she landed in a mental hospital for a while. She pulls herself together, starts caring for herself, and finally lands a job as a "night lawyer".
The night lawyer reviews articles for a newspaper, to reduce the potential for legal troubles. (I wonder how many newspapers have one of these.) She works until about ten at night, then heads home by train and foot. During the day, Ellie runs, works out, does her shopping, goes to karate classes, and so forth. She lives on the Isle of Dogs, a part of London that is a peninsula, not actually an island.
One day Ellie happens upon a man who looks oddly familiar but she can't place him. He even calls her name, but she takes off. She starts to see him everywhere. Then she starts to receive what appear to be threatening notes from him. Alluding to a time in her past. We are treated to several chapters about this man, Carl, presumably intended to build suspense.
Ellie lives with the belief that she killed her father. She tries to talk to her cold mother about it, but her mother refuses. Her father's death, which happened when she was eight years old, haunts her, increases her feelings of self-doubt and guilt. This strange man brings up things from her past that she no longer recalls, however, and she wonders what she may have forgotten about that time so long ago.
Meanwhile, she gets to know her next-door neighbor a little, because the young woman plays music too loud too late at night. When Jessica and her boyfriend Tull get into a fight, it's pretty obvious and Ellie tries to help Jess, causing some resentment in Tull.
Meanwhile, back at the office, Ellie is surprised one day to see her former boyfriend Will. He is there as a consultant on some reporter's series. He takes note of Ellie's new improved look and signals his appreciation. Ellie falls again, never having really gotten over him.
Ellie's sheeplike behavior is, of course, the point of the book. We can guess that she eventually gets over it and becomes strong and self-sufficient. Even so, I could hardly stand her, mooning over Will and getting excited about the smallest compliment from her new coworkers.
And yes, the time comes when she is tested, predictably. Honestly, I would have been disappointed if it hadn't happened. Everything is wrapped up rather neatly in a chapter or five (the chapters are very short).
There are a couple of times when I was brought up short by the unusual reactions of the characters. First, Carl is in a bar, meets and talks to a tourist, then leaves. He does not remember going home. This incident is mentioned in a one-liner. Carl has no other thoughts about it, doesn't worry that he forgot some hours of time. I think his lack of reaction is strange indeed.
Later, Ellie comes home to see her house in a wreck. She is, as noted above, so excited about Will, thinking that he wants her, that the fact that her house was broken into and tossed seems to register not at all. Her lack of reaction struck me as strange, too.
The book works as escape reading. After reading several books that took more energy from me, I welcomed the mindlessness of it, even as I was irritated by Ellie and crew.
Whatever it is, it's escape reading, to be tossed aside and forgotten as soon as it is read. Yet I will give a little synopsis here, mainly to remind myself what it was about.
Eleanor Porter ("Ellie") is 30 and just starting to make her life over after a hurtful breakup. After being dumped by a man she had fallen deeply for, she landed in a mental hospital for a while. She pulls herself together, starts caring for herself, and finally lands a job as a "night lawyer".
The night lawyer reviews articles for a newspaper, to reduce the potential for legal troubles. (I wonder how many newspapers have one of these.) She works until about ten at night, then heads home by train and foot. During the day, Ellie runs, works out, does her shopping, goes to karate classes, and so forth. She lives on the Isle of Dogs, a part of London that is a peninsula, not actually an island.
One day Ellie happens upon a man who looks oddly familiar but she can't place him. He even calls her name, but she takes off. She starts to see him everywhere. Then she starts to receive what appear to be threatening notes from him. Alluding to a time in her past. We are treated to several chapters about this man, Carl, presumably intended to build suspense.
Ellie lives with the belief that she killed her father. She tries to talk to her cold mother about it, but her mother refuses. Her father's death, which happened when she was eight years old, haunts her, increases her feelings of self-doubt and guilt. This strange man brings up things from her past that she no longer recalls, however, and she wonders what she may have forgotten about that time so long ago.
Meanwhile, she gets to know her next-door neighbor a little, because the young woman plays music too loud too late at night. When Jessica and her boyfriend Tull get into a fight, it's pretty obvious and Ellie tries to help Jess, causing some resentment in Tull.
Meanwhile, back at the office, Ellie is surprised one day to see her former boyfriend Will. He is there as a consultant on some reporter's series. He takes note of Ellie's new improved look and signals his appreciation. Ellie falls again, never having really gotten over him.
Ellie's sheeplike behavior is, of course, the point of the book. We can guess that she eventually gets over it and becomes strong and self-sufficient. Even so, I could hardly stand her, mooning over Will and getting excited about the smallest compliment from her new coworkers.
And yes, the time comes when she is tested, predictably. Honestly, I would have been disappointed if it hadn't happened. Everything is wrapped up rather neatly in a chapter or five (the chapters are very short).
There are a couple of times when I was brought up short by the unusual reactions of the characters. First, Carl is in a bar, meets and talks to a tourist, then leaves. He does not remember going home. This incident is mentioned in a one-liner. Carl has no other thoughts about it, doesn't worry that he forgot some hours of time. I think his lack of reaction is strange indeed.
Later, Ellie comes home to see her house in a wreck. She is, as noted above, so excited about Will, thinking that he wants her, that the fact that her house was broken into and tossed seems to register not at all. Her lack of reaction struck me as strange, too.
The book works as escape reading. After reading several books that took more energy from me, I welcomed the mindlessness of it, even as I was irritated by Ellie and crew.
January 3, 2015
This is supposed to be a psychological thriller, but ultimately it wasn't so thrilling. Eleanor is haunted by her past (her father's death and her mental breakdown and hospitalization) and is starting to pick up the pieces, including becoming a purple belt in karate and joining a tabloid as their night lawyer. We see how she's filled with self-doubt, punctuated with moments of real confidence and happiness.
The thriller part comes from her having a stalker, someone who has apparently waited 20 years for justice. There's also her relationship with one of her female colleagues, with whom she thinks she can be friends, and a few of her male ones, from whom she desires respect. Finally, her next-door-neighboor has an abusive boyfriend and with the thin walls between their houses... Getting to see glimpses of the others' lives is supposed to immerse us in Eleanor's world, ratcheting up the terror quotient. That doesn't quite happen because those glimpses allow us to make really educated guesses about what's happening or going to happen. There was one real surprise, but even that felt a little like a letdown.
The thriller part comes from her having a stalker, someone who has apparently waited 20 years for justice. There's also her relationship with one of her female colleagues, with whom she thinks she can be friends, and a few of her male ones, from whom she desires respect. Finally, her next-door-neighboor has an abusive boyfriend and with the thin walls between their houses... Getting to see glimpses of the others' lives is supposed to immerse us in Eleanor's world, ratcheting up the terror quotient. That doesn't quite happen because those glimpses allow us to make really educated guesses about what's happening or going to happen. There was one real surprise, but even that felt a little like a letdown.
July 29, 2009
I picked this one up at the library solely on the basis of Nikki's strong recommendation, but I was not as impressed as she was. She called it masterful and not annoying, but I'd quibble with both those descriptors. The main character is so deeply damaged by childhood trauma that I had a hard time sympathizing with her. She repeatedly misreads situations, wanders in stupid-heroine fashion into unnecessary danger, falls again for the guy who already jilted her once. When you learn on page 23 that she has a cute, fuzzy hamster, you know that that poor critter will not survive to the end of the book. There was at least one loose end that didn't get tied up, casting (false) suspicion on one of her karate partners. But the joy of her multiple victories in the last few pages is undeniable, and it was hard for even an old cynic like me not to smile when Fred and Ginger danced off stage in the finale.
January 3, 2024
A standalone story.
I don’t really know what genre to place this book in?
I guess it’s because I expected it to be more than it was.
The blurb says that our heroine, Ellie, is a murderer but theres little reality in that statement.
There is, however, a good deal of pointless side story activity & a large dose of pointless repetition.
Sadly nowhere near the same level of writing Ms Spring generally gave maybe that’s why it was her last book?
I don’t really know what genre to place this book in?
I guess it’s because I expected it to be more than it was.
The blurb says that our heroine, Ellie, is a murderer but theres little reality in that statement.
There is, however, a good deal of pointless side story activity & a large dose of pointless repetition.
Sadly nowhere near the same level of writing Ms Spring generally gave maybe that’s why it was her last book?
September 21, 2011
Nothing special. Took a long time to get "there." Not inclined to read another by her.
February 2, 2013
Too much scene-setting. Yawn.
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December 6, 2021Pah. Anything but a page-turner. I sometimes didn't bother with this for days at a time. Hated the whiny, pathetic, neurotic heroine and kept hoping she'd grow a spine. Managed to slog as far as Chpt 42 before I asked myself why I was wasting my time on this book. The answer was "Damned if I know."
August 8, 2017
Old memories . . . secrets . . . mental breakdowns . . . putting a life back together with what's left . . . successes . . . old married boyfriends . . . one-night stands . . . new boyfriends . . . cruel co-workers . . .life
July 22, 2009
When I spotted on the library's new book shelf a book that had just been reviewed in the local Sunday paper's book page a couple of days before, it seemed a sign that I should read it, although I don't normally find the "thriller" or novel of suspense my favorite.
The "night lawyer" is an attorney who examines the stories in a British morning daily paper before it goes to press, making sure nothing in them makes the paper vulnerable to a lawsuit. As a part-time job, with some responsibility, it seems to suit Eleanor Porter, who is recovering from a nervous breakdown apparently caused by a breakup with her married lover. Eleanor's great secret, which has overshadowed her life, is that she feels responsible for the death of her father twenty years before.
A new job is plenty to cope with for most people, but Eleanor has a lot more to contend with. Her young neighbor has gone Goth and has an abusive boyfriend with a coterie of louts who hang about the neighborhood; a tourist has been found murdered not far from Eleanor's Docklands home; her mother and her best friend have strong ideas about how she should run her life; she's going up for a brown belt in karate; her old boyfriend is back and says his wife has left him; and oh yes, it appears that someone is stalking her.
Spring masterfully weaves all the plot points together, using changing points of view in a way that's suspenseful but not annoying. Several plot twists at the end lead to a satisfying conclusion. This is a very good book, with insights into fear, guilt, and victimhood. The characters have a complexity seldom encountered. Strongly recommended.
The "night lawyer" is an attorney who examines the stories in a British morning daily paper before it goes to press, making sure nothing in them makes the paper vulnerable to a lawsuit. As a part-time job, with some responsibility, it seems to suit Eleanor Porter, who is recovering from a nervous breakdown apparently caused by a breakup with her married lover. Eleanor's great secret, which has overshadowed her life, is that she feels responsible for the death of her father twenty years before.
A new job is plenty to cope with for most people, but Eleanor has a lot more to contend with. Her young neighbor has gone Goth and has an abusive boyfriend with a coterie of louts who hang about the neighborhood; a tourist has been found murdered not far from Eleanor's Docklands home; her mother and her best friend have strong ideas about how she should run her life; she's going up for a brown belt in karate; her old boyfriend is back and says his wife has left him; and oh yes, it appears that someone is stalking her.
Spring masterfully weaves all the plot points together, using changing points of view in a way that's suspenseful but not annoying. Several plot twists at the end lead to a satisfying conclusion. This is a very good book, with insights into fear, guilt, and victimhood. The characters have a complexity seldom encountered. Strongly recommended.
December 10, 2015
I had previously read Michelle Spring's Laura Principal mysteries and enjoyed very much. The Night Lawyer is a standalone mystery and it didn't grab me as much. The main character, Eleanor Porter, is recently hired as the night lawyer for a London newspaper, meaning she works the night shift reviewing articles for possible legal issues. Sounds like an interesting job. Ellie has a past, a previous nervous breakdown, something from her childhood that is alluded to throughout the story and also a stalker. Ellie isn't a confident character; she's trying to rebuild her life, from a previous relationship breakup (the reason for her nervous breakdown) and also trying to build her body and character with a karate course. There are things I didn't like at all, her neediness to reconnect with her ex, her constant panic attacks. But I imagine these characteristics are realistic; but the extent of them kind of irritated me. However, the story moved along nicely and ultimately resolved itself to my satisfaction. Not my favourite of her, but nevertheless, a well-paced mystery.
March 24, 2014
Cluttered. Busy. And lost me completely when the main character (lawyer, karate expert) buys a co-working guy who's hitting on her a coffee and he asks if she's a feminist and she says no. But she's "independent".
Which prior generation of women gave you this "independence" Eli? or have you slept under a rock with your law degrees and black belt?
Sheesh.
And I haven't even mentioned her super high heels and her décolletage on display for all to ogle at, have I?
Oops.
Which prior generation of women gave you this "independence" Eli? or have you slept under a rock with your law degrees and black belt?
Sheesh.
And I haven't even mentioned her super high heels and her décolletage on display for all to ogle at, have I?
Oops.
December 30, 2007
I really liked the heroine of this stalker-tale that was full to the brim with a sense of menace. 2 full stars lost for the fact that I end the story feeling confused.... this genre is not supposed to be like that! A few major threads are dropped and the tale would be much more satisfying with the ends securely tied in.
April 20, 2009
Liked the basic story of Ellie regaining control of her life- the setting in the Isle of Dogs is unusual and interesting (London or Cotswolds seem done to death). Her inability to remember the tragic incidents of her childhood seemed a bit odd. But good pacing and characters, nice endings for the secondary characters as well.
September 6, 2011
Only negative in this book was the obviousness of the romantic element, but the mystery itself was good and lots of description of karate, which was interesting as was the Docklands of London background. Also, I didn't know there was such a thing as a night lawyer for newspapers.
September 4, 2008
i read this book a few years ago, and before i read a breif synapsis, i couldn't remeber a darn thing about it. And that doesn't happen very often...
September 3, 2013
Patron Review:
Excellent. Keeps you intrigued through the whole book with a surprise ending. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
Excellent. Keeps you intrigued through the whole book with a surprise ending. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
March 28, 2015
Not a very interesting book. Too much "jumping around" and kind of boring.
I would not recommend this book.
I would not recommend this book.
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December 9, 2012crazy
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews