Reasonable Doubt

by Phillip Friedman

Ex-federal prosecutor Michael Ryan has been estranged from his twenty-seven-year-old son Ned for three years when Ned is murdered. His daughter-in-law, wealthy socialite Jennifer Kneeland Ryan, has been indicted for the crime — Ned was bludgeoned to death in the private room of a Soho art gallery. Jennifer insists she’s innocent and begs her father-in-law to defend her. Ryan wants to believe she’s guilty, to bury his grief for the son he hardly knew and get on with his life, but he can’t turn her away. He agrees to take the case.

Teetering on an emotional precipice himself, Michael Ryan dusts off his rusty legal skills in the most sensational New York murder trial in decades. And as his ambivalence about Jennifer intensifies, as the painful truth about his son’s life begins to emerge, Ryan realizes that his own life is also on trial — as a father, as a lawyer, and as a man.

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

424 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Philip Friedman’s novels Reasonable Doubt, Inadmissible Evidence and Grand Jury spent a total of 26 weeks on The New York Times’ bestseller lists, and appeared on bestseller lists around the world. His cold war thriller, Termination Order, called “one of the best of the year,” was a New York Times Notable Book. He is also the co-author of The Pilates Method of Physical and Mental Conditioning, the book that first brought Pilates to a wide audience. Vogue called it “one of our favorite exercise books.”

Writing as Philip Chase, he has written four thrillers about Bill Kendall and Ron Eisenberg and their team, top secret military investigators for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Mr. Friedman has also written for The New York Times, Elle, and The Forward, among others. He is a former member of the National Board of Mystery Writers of America and is a member of the Authors Guild and the Dramatists Guild. He served on the Board of Directors of Learning in Focus, producer of the award-winning American Short Story series. He studied mathematics (and lots of other things) at Princeton University and holds a law degree from NYU.

Reviews

[Bren fall in love with the sea. · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Hey-I'm on your side. I me an, look, I'd be crazy if I want ed to plead this one out. Where else am I going to get a case this big?'
Horray for dedication to the law and the search for justice, Ryan did not say.

Reasonable Doubt by Phillip Friedman



I read a lot of legal thrillers and most of them are by John Grisham. Reasonable doubt is not by John Grisham. It is one of the best legal dramas I’ve ever had the pleasure to read and any fan of legal dramas really should put this one on the list as there’s not a doll moment in the whole book. The writer really did a superb job.

So the story focuses on a woman accused of murdering her husband. They’ve got the evidence and they have a motive. Jennifer however, insists she is innocent.

She asks the father of her husband to represent her. Michael, the above mentioned attorney is grief stricken about having just lost his son and he’s not so sure he believes in Jennifer’s innocence but for his own reasons he agrees to represent her.

To say I enjoyed reasonable doubt is putting it mildly. I loved everything about it. I found the pacing was perfect and the characters believable.

Very often with reading legal thrillers I find some of the court scenes seems boring but that was not an issue here. I really commend the writer since these scenes crackle with energy. They were all very interesting. I also love that it goes into the jury selection process and we get to know some of the jurors. The characters are a mix of both good and bad making them pretty much like everybody else in the world. This is not just a legal story but a story of a fractured family and a father and wife both looking for redemption.

I flew through this book in one night. I love a good legal thriller when it’s done right and Reasonable Doubt is definitely done right. It remains one of my favorite legal thrillers to this day.

[Dawn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kind of boring, pretty dated and very misogynistic.

[Gisela Hafezparast · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting what a difference 25 years can make. I read this one before when I first arrived at these pleasant isles. Read it and thought it was great, which is why it had managed to keep a place in my crime book shelf for such a long time. Last week I needed a quick "new American" read as I seemed to have spend most of my time in Europe or thereabouts bookwise for quite a while or read American classics. So I took this for a quick relaxing read.

I still like it, but now, I can see that it is definately a book of the 1980s (first published in 1988) a time when DNA analysis was still very new and clearly not well understood by the author, although he gives a dumming down version to the jury. Most crime readers could give a better version now, but we can forgive him for that. What is less forgivable is the blatant sexism manifested in the book at every occasion. Plot is very slow and although the actual trial time is down well, which persuaded me to still give it 3 stars. However, can't say I cared for any of the characters and didn't believe the plot could every happen that way.

Ah well, definately goes into the charity bag this time.

[Lux]

It was a drone. The story seems to go around in circles. I patiently read it to finish hoping I was wrong and that there will be a twist in the end...but there's none.

I knew who killed Ned right from the start.
I knew Jennifer and Michael have the hots for each other and they'll be together in the end.
I knew all those chasing of evidences were a waste of time because the killer is just right there from the start.

Good thing Jennifer lies a lot. At least there's a change in the plot to look forward to.

And it's annoying how the author refers to the main character Michael Ryan to just "Ryan" while narrating when the victim's name is Ned Ryan, the defendant is Jennifer Ryan and everybody's calling Michael Ryan "Michael" when they talk to him anyway. I mean, why can't we just call him Michael during the narration?

Oh, well.

[Curlyhair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read, years ago.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

[ISBN is for the paperback version, no ISBN in the hardback copy I have.:]
This is a court room drama built around a mystery. Michael Ryan is a Prosecutor turned Defense Lawyer who’s estranged son has just been murdered. His daughter-in-law has been charged with the murder and she requests him to be her defense lawyer. He has mixed feelings about this as he has is doubts about her innocence even though she claims she had nothing to do with it. He finally takes the job and hires a woman criminal defense lawyer to work with him since most of his previous cases were white collar crimes.
The bulk of the books is the progress of the trial as the prosecution brings witness after witness to paint a basically circumstantial case
against their client. As the trial unfolds, so does mystery surrounding the murder and its surprise ending.

ISBN - 9780804107495, Suspense, Pages - 478, Print Size - R, Rating - 4.5
All books reviewed are from the library or purchased by the reviewer.

[Randhir · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book keeps you engrossed throughout. I may have a quibble with its pat ending but otherwise it keeps the drama moving. The characterisation of the main protagonist, with his flaws, is realistic and sympathetically drawn. The court room drama is authentic and one remains ambivalent towards the accused. A book one cant put down

[Janet Suarino · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best courtroom novels that I've read in a long time. Found this book by accident, it was published in 1990. I can't believe it took this long to discover it.

You'll be hooked by page 2 and won't want to put it down. Enjoy.

[Lain Iwakura · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far, the story is like any advocate best seller...will see.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compellingly readable courtroom drama/mystery. Written in 1990 and stands up very well! You never know what you'll find in yard sale book bins!

[Harry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Abraham Lincoln said, “A man who represents himself has a fool for a client.” The premise for this courtroom thriller is just as foolhardy – Michael Ryan, an ex-federal prosecutor, decides to defend his daughter-in-law against the charges of murdering his estranged son. The motive for wanting to defend her, somehow saving his unborn grandchild, does not pass “reasonable doubt.” Ryan has no recent criminal experience, he is emotionally distraught, he has not fared well in legal battles after he lost his wife, and he is a borderline alcoholic. Yet somehow, he thinks he can do a better job than specialists in criminal law. While other lawyers have advised his daughter-in-law, Jennifer, to plead, surely, with her rich daddy’s backing, she could find a criminal defense attorney who would believe in her case. Ryan is doing his client a disservice by handling the case himself. His co-council, Kassia Miller, comes off as a shining light. Jennifer, on the other hand, is impulsive and a habitual liar.
While the writing is compelling, all we get after 400+ pages is a tepid defense of “reasonable doubt.” I would have convicted Jennifer myself. Yet is all comes together at the end in a satisfying conclusion.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitely has its ups and downs. It goes far deeper into the entire trial process than most, and that is not always a good thing. In addition, you don’t have much of a resolution after the main climax, and the climax itself, because it is so brief, isn’t as satisfying as it could have been otherwise.

With that said, this was a very enjoyable book. In many ways, the story was more realistic than most mysteries, where you are given the answer early on if you just look closely enough. The story is sprinkled with twists and turns that don’t become predictable, but slowly lead you to an answer that is both clear once it is given, but not so clear that you could guess the solution in advance. As the trial came to an end, and the fallout became clearer, I couldn’t put the book down. Yes, the book has its weaknesses (as noted above), but it was a very good book.

[Mate Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reasonably slow

The plot is actually pretty good. The characters are pretty well developed, except one. I still have trouble reconciling the character’s behavior with what the plot said she was at the end of the story. It was a slow read through the first part, but became interesting during the trial section. It was a great short course on courtroom practices and the law.
The pace picked up after that point, but then got bogged down discussing things that were not relevant to advancing the plot line.
Still, I was looking forward to reading it by the time I got to trial section. So, good read. But not a great one.

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a particularly good novel as the premise is poorly done. Friedman never adequately explains why a lawyer would want to defend the woman accused of murdering his son. There are other illogical problems with the storyline, although the courtroom setting is well done. Recommended only for real Friedman fans.

[Genia Albre · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is probably the first detective I've read, and i am grateful I found this old book on the vacation place bookshelf. It's 30 years old!
What a story. :)
Only sad that I knew way before the author ;) who was guilty.

[Cynthia J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Real page turner and lots of great legal detail and compelling evidence. Enjoyed this one!

[Mark Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second of his that I read- much better than Grand Jury was.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good summer read.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

Started sort of slowly, but overall a very good courtroom drama. 3.75+

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love courtroom drama, this one is for you.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

really good, very wordy.

[Mikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was by far one of my best acquisitions from the local library cheap books outlet following its removal from the lending shelves. It languished on a home shelf for quite a while. Published in 1990, it was written pre-modern technology, although computers and the internet were making inroads in homes and offices. Therefore it was possible to include these elements to some degree in the solving of the murder of the husband of the woman accused of the crime, whose trial was the main focus of the book. Most of the story was taken up with excellent descriptions of the procedural investigation, the gathering of evidence, and the trial itself. The twist in the tale after the trial concluded gave an added piquancy and a much more satisfying conclusion. A little bit of romance towards the end lightened what could have seemed a heavy-going read. An extremely well-written book. The author knows how to write a gripping courtroom drama. It's nice to know he has written more since this debut novel. Five stars! 😊

[M.L. Bushman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story sucked me right in from page one. I wasn't even sure I'd like it, now I can't put it down.

Now that I've finished it, I feel I can comment further on the story. It's a very good tale, very engrossing, and I'd definitely read another book by this author.

Some of the plot twists I saw coming a mile away, however, which is why I only gave it four stars. But outside of that little nitpick, I recommend this book for anyone who likes lawyerly stories.

[LuAnn · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't finish this book. Loved the premise but it move way too slow and focused mostly on the technicalities of preparing for a trial. I also had a hard time following the timing of the story - one minute it goes into detail about an entire day and the next minute it's weeks later. What? I also couldn't get behind any of the characters. It's not that I disliked them, just never felt like they were developed enough to care about any of them.

[Mitch Holsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very well constructed tale. For a change I liked the ending, although got slightly bored once the courtroom scenes came into play. I know it added to the story, just felt whole sections could have been left out. Jennifer Ryan, accused of murder; hires the father of the husband she supposedly killed. Thought the author used this story line very well. I did not like the gratuitous relationship developed between the two defense lawyers. Why? Too cliché. Overall, a solid 3 on 5

[Erika · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not horrible, but really not worth the time. A freebie that's been on my shelf a while. It's way too long for too little a plot. It was hard to keep all the small, insignificant characters straight, who were introduced to keep the mystery alive. I wasn't the least bit surprised by the ending, which was a shame because I kept reading in the hopes it would pay off on the end.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This is a great story. Keeps you engaged the entire way through. A few surprising twists in the narrative too, which were totally unexpected and added to the suspense. If you like books about legal matters and courtroom drama, you will really enjoy this book.

[Martha Sargent · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a grab-a-paperback selection for a camping trip and it fit my mood. A good legal thriller--perfect when you don't want a serious read. Pretty sure I read this years ago, but read it again anyway because it is enjoyable.

[Tiana Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novel. The characters were well thought out and at times infuriating. I loved trying to figure out who did what. This time, I got it right. I even liked the ending for the most part!

[AnonymousReaderPerson · Rating 4 out of 5]

While it tries a bit too hard to be true-to-life, it works. It employs a few cliches of the legal thriller genre, but turns a few on their head, too. I think the main plot twist was also telegraphed...Wait, did I give this thing four stars?