Special edition! Limited time only! HUNT FOR JUSTICE: Judge Willa Carson Books 1-2
Contains the first two #1 Bestselling Willa Carson novels from USA Today and New York Times Bestselling Author Diane Capri
Due Justice — When Judge Willa Carson's "little sister" Carly's in trouble, she's forced to ask Willa for help. Carly knows too much about a powerful Tampa conspiracy. When Carly becomes the number one suspect in the murder of a prominent plastic surgeon, Willa risks everything to uncover the conspiracy and keep Carly alive. Can she do it?
Twisted Justice — War hero General Randall Andrews has been nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court and Willa's husband George Carson leads the fight to defeat him. Until George is arrested for Andrews' murder and Willa pulls out all the stops to free her husband. Can Willa defeat the powerful forces against him or will her beloved George die on death row?
Open this set and you'll agree with fans of Sue Grafton, Margaret Maron, William Kent Krueger, Louise Penny, John Grisham, Lee Child, and more.
Bestselling author Diane Capri is a recovering lawyer. She’s a snowbird who divides her time between Florida and Michigan. An active member of Mystery Writers of America, Author’s Guild, International Thriller Writers, and Sisters in Crime, she loves to hear from readers and is hard at work on her next novel.
Here’s the Long version, if you’re looking for more info:
#1 Amazon Bestselling Author Diane Capri’s work is what the #1 worldwide publishing phenomenon Lee Child calls “Full of thrills and tension, but smart and human, too.” Margaret Maron, Edgar, Anthony, Agatha and Macavity Award-winning MWA Past President, says: “Expertise shines on every page.” And Library Journal raves: “….offers tense legal drama with courtroom overtones, twisty plots, and loads of atmosphere. Recommended.”
Diane’s new Jess Kimball series kicked off with Fatal Distraction, opening as the #3 Bestselling Legal Thriller, behind John Grisham. Diane’s new Hunt for Jack Reacher series began with Don’t Know Jack, which garnered #1 Bestseller spots on Mystery, Hard-boiled Mystery, Police Procedural, Women Sleuths, and Legal Thriller lists both in the U.S. and U.K. Don’t Know Jack was followed by two bestselling short stories in the Hunt for Jack Reacher series, Jack in a Box and Jack and Kill. Diane’s Judge Wilhelmina Carson mysteries were praised by Romantic Times and garnered the coveted “Top Pick.” Diane’s savvy, spunky character, attorney Jennifer Lane, stars in her own romantic suspense series, which kicks off with Annabelle’s Attack.
Diane is the past Executive Vice President of International Thriller Writers, past member of the Board of the Florida Chapter of Mystery Writers of America, and active in Sisters in Crime and other writing organizations. She comes to writing after a successful legal career and is married to her college sweetheart. She loves her nomadic snowbird existence preferring perpetual summer migrating from Florida to Michigan each year.
Diane says she writes mystery and suspense for the same reason she reads: to find out what happens, why people do what they do, and how to bring justice to an unjust world.Her books are translated in twenty territories. Diane loves to hear from readers. Contact her at: DianeCapri.com/Contact to receive notice of new releases, subscribe to Diane’s blog, or simply connect with her.
I have to admit that my initial thoughts of a judge as armchair detective were positive. Willa Carson is smart, fair-minded, and deliberative, even when the case involves her younger, wilder sister. I, myself, could not be so constant in matters of family. However, there are several characters designed to complicate the mystery with selfish motivations, unique perceptions, and red herrings.
Agatha Christie could handle affluent arrogance with deftness, in such a way that you didn't usually detest the characters, and Diane Capri cannot. The characters are overtly white, Floridian, and privileged.
In the first book called Due Justice Judge Willa Carson seems very capable affable and quirky, but in the second book, Twisted Justice, Willa becomes shrill and entitled. Now, I get it that in the second novel her husband is arrested for murder, so she should not be expected to model the heights of decorum, but in this book, she is down-right unlikeable and I can't have a main character I dislike.
Personal response: I do not like Hunt For Justice because it is not that interesting and it always has more than one event going on at a time. The action in this book is very easy for me to lose track of and causes me to have to re-read the same page over again.
Plot: Willa is one of the main characters and lives with her husband George. They have a happy and healthy marriage until Willa’s sister asks for help. Willa’s sister, Carley, comes over to talk to Willa about something but it takes her a while to spill what she wants to say. In the mix of Carley not wanting to tell Willa her problem, Willa is thinking to herself how much Carley frustrates with her. Willa snaps and tells Carley to tell her why she came. Carley says she witnesses the murder of a plastic surgeon and that she did not know what to do. Willa knew she has to do something and not let anything happen to her sister. Willa and her husband talk and she tells George about what Carley sees so he steps in and helps. George gets framed and is charged with the murder. It is up to Willa to help her sister and to show proof that her husband did not kill the surgeon.
Characterization:
Willa seems like the type of person to help get anyone out of tough times and will help them get up if they fall. Also, it seems like she cares more about the person she is helping than her own well being. Willa is a static character throughout this book.
Carley is Willa’s sister that always seems to get herself into trouble and always expects someone to get her out of it. Someone has just always been there to help her get out of her problems. Carley is also a static character in this book.
Setting: This book takes place around Tampa Bay, Florida in a rich neighborhood. The setting impacts the plot because Carley witnesses the murder of a rich plastic surgeon while on the beach. The book takes place in modern times because the police use DNA evidence and surveillance cameras to attempt to find the murderer.
Theme: The theme of this book is an injustice because George gets put into jail for a murder he never commits. George is just trying to help Willa solve the murder and save Willa’s sister from anything happening to her. George being framed for the murder is very unfair which makes this injustice.
Recommendation: I recommend this book to ages 13 and up because of the content of the book and the language that is used at times. I would also recommend this book to both boys and girls because this book has two main characters that are a girl and a boy.
I've read the first of the two stories in this volume and don't feel drawn to read the second.
The lead character is an American Judge and though little of the story takes place in the courtroom, a lot of it is about lawyers and greed and the pursuit of riches through lawsuits. It's also about the medical profession and greed and the pursuit of riches ...
Willa and her restaurateur husband are quite attractive, though relationships between other characters are convoluted to the threshold of disbelief, especially as they are revealed towards the end.
I find the American legal system (as presented through novels and drama) quite repulsive - from plea-bargaining, to putting convicts into open-fronted cages like animals, to millions changing hands (as in this novel) in the pursuit of class action suits. The suit being pursued here concerns women allegedly being made ill by breast implants. The general feeling of the book is that most of the lawyers involved know that this hasn't been proved and don't believe it's true, but, hey, there is a lot of money to be made so let's pull in as many clients as we can. Whilst the suit isn't the main focus of the book, it underpins the whole plot which concerns the murder of a man found floating in the sea, who may or may not be a doctor who performed thousands of breast implants.
Setting aside the plot, it is quite well written, though I didn't care for the way the author rounded off sections with disjointed pronoun-less phrases as if the main character were finishing an entry in her diary.
All in all, it is not a bad book, but it is not to my taste.
Only read 10 pagws so not qualified to be fair. The dedication threw me off, and predjudiced my acceptance. Then the smart-alecky ( to me: I am old) patter turned me off. Then the pause-in-story or action describing lipstick smudgeded, and other "girly" nonsense. I want the story - not the fluff and female interest side descriptions.
I like a good book, well written and in eclectic genres. Had to stop reading, and not waste my time. Too bad, because the author has pur a lot of work into this series of books. I wish them success, but it's not for me
Insomniacs could be cured by this book, it never failed to put me to sleep within thirty minutes. Long winded, I really don't care what the characters eat or the brand of alcoholic beverages they drink. The characters are elitists, narcissistic, arrogant and I could not muster the slightest empathy or compassion for their problems. I usually like the characters in books I choose to read, I will not be reading this series by this author.
This book had a lot of action and suspense. Willa was a judge who demanded honesty from people she knew. When George her husband was accused of murder she went all out to find the murderer.
Previously read book 1 and reviewed it. The second book was as frustrating as the first. Willa is self-absorbed and inquisitive to a fault. The people around her are devious, depraved, unethical and unpleasant. Somehow Diane Capri’s other series’ protagonists seem more altruistic.
The “mysteries” came on more than one front and ultimately dovetailed together nicely, except for the question of the fate of General Andrews’ daughter.
I enjoy Diane Capri’s writing in general, just not this series.
The second story was better than the first. The first story dragged on at the beginning but I stuck with it and it even seemed like her writing became easier as I went along. But her sister was pushing my reading patience. One third through the first book and all through the second book the characters became easier to identify. The second story makes me want to read the third. The plots were refreshing, not the same old mystery.
My first "Judge Carson" story and I found it thoroughly enjoyable. A simple crime becomes more layed as the story adds characters and motives are exposed. Capri throws in a working knowledge of the Tampa area and its upper class citizens. She shows an understated sense of humor writing about the "upper crust" that brought several smiles. Then the story turns and we're involved in a medical malpractice lawsuit. Not from a victims standpoint, but looking at the business aspect of a prosecuting such a legal action. Very interesting and informative. The scene of the big "reveal" at the end was a little anticlimactic but she supplies a twist at the very end of the book that elevates the ending. As I said, a enjoyable book to read. The chapters are very short. It makes it easy to read for five or ten minutes at lunch or during a work break. I'm sure I'll continue in the series
I won these for a review. I have to admit I expected a little more punch to the story. The pace was slow, some of the story line (interactions and relationship stuff) didn't have that ring of true I expected. There was much that I felt wasn't fully fleshed out. I read both, but I felt like it was a chore at times. I wanted to know how the stories ended, but I was left feeling flat at the end. Good writing, just not as exciting as I expect a crime drama to be.
We all like the criminals to be prosecuted, and that's what happened in book 1, but I was disappointed with book 2 when the bad guy went on with his life as nothing ever happened.
I liked the first book better than the second. Obvious copy and paste of location descriptions from the first to the second(which to be fair may have been much more obvious since I read them in sequence).
You certainly get to know the ins and outs of American politics and the legal system! I mean this as a complement to the author. I enjoyed both these stories with the relaxed style of writing and the way you get to feel part of Wila's life.
There are two things I dislike when reading & Ms. Capri commuted both errors. The first is minor...she used identical wording in the Book 1 & Book 2 to proved background information. While it is true that she needed to include the information in Book 2 for those who had not read Book 1 (or as a reminder to those who had forgotten), I expect authors to be able to provide the information in two different ways. Who wants to read the same words twice? A writer of fiction should have the ability to creatively provide the information. If that was the only issue, I'd forgive her. Please stop reading here if you do not want "spoilers".
My son once asked me how I could read about fiction so murders but not true crime, I have him two reasons. 1) Nobody is actually being killed 2) In fiction, the murderer is almost always found & punished.
The murderer was identified & was not punished. This to me is especially egregious when the characters are lawyers, judges & public figures. Why should an investigation be stopped because of the status of the murderer? True, it might have not have been able to convict the murderer "beyond a reasonable doubt" but to just stop the investigation is unforgivable. I will not be reading any other books by this author.
I read a version which contained books 1-3. Judge Willa Carson is the main character in the Justice series. Set in Tampa Florida in a famous Restaurant located on it's own island in the Bay. The restaurant is run by her husband & the couple live in a luxury apartment that's above it. The first book is about a murdered, delicensed, plastic surgeon who was at the forefront of silicone breast implant industry. The second book is about Willa's husband being charged with the murder of a Supreme Court Chief Justice candidate who is a retired Army General that's vocal against LGBT even though he has male sex partners. The third book is about Willa's primary assistant who is charged with her ALS-stricken husband's & her lover's murder during the pirate Mardi Gras-like celebration in Tampa. Willa's nickname is Mighty Mouse, (recall his motto "here I am to save the day!", because she is driven to solve the problems of others that are facing injustice even when they refuse her help. These are interesting reads that have plot twists & reoccurring characters.
i found these books very boring, too much discriptions of places and about people and it is duplicated in the second book. It does not grip the attention of the reader and could have been written in half the pages. After reading the first book I could not handle the second one. Why would I be interrested in every small detail of what everybody is wearing every time they are mentioned and what they look like. One discription of each is enough to form a vision of who they are. i was very disapointed because I used to like Diane Capri's books
This was my first introduction to the Willa Carson series. I found the first two novels enjoyable but not as engaging as I expected. The storylines were interesting, but there was something missing that novels but this author almost always has. Perhaps best.described as a pull that has me reading straight through.
I do recommend this series, and will read the next novel to see.if they develop further, but also recommend Jess Kimball or other Hunt for Jack series and would read the Willa series.on a.rainy day or as a beach read.
I thought it keeps me wanting to know who did it and I couldn't put my kindle down before I knew it ,I had read almost the hole book and I could do book report as if I was in high school again.I'm not a good reader my level of reading is about 4 or 5grade.your rating is 5because for the first time that I have read other books I finely liked reading comprehension of what I read was excited.thank you can't wait to read more...
Rating for the second book Twisted Justice. While the plot was very clever and took many twists, the attitude and actions of the main character Judge Willa was disappointing. She was so very selfish and self absorbed that challenges faced by her husband were always reduced to how it would upset her or change her life. Very like immediate empathy to her loved partner. I almost abandoned ship and don’t plan to read anymore in the series. Not a comfortable Character to hang out with!
What a waste of time. Endless details about clothes and furniture and scenery of the FL rich. Most of the plot was akin to the horror movies where you watch as the main character does one stupid thing after another all the while saying "I shouldn't be doing this." At only a couple of hundred pages it felt like War and Peace as it dragged on endlessly. I read one of her other books and found it ok. This? Dreck!
These books were amazing. I loved both of them. I really liked the way the author introduced the characters and the way they interacted with each other. The stories in both books were very interesting and even though very judicial(Willa is a judge after all) Diane explained the American judicial process very well, even to an old only high school grad. I can't wait to read another one of her books, I'm sure I must have at least one more in my tbr pile.
I hadn't read any of the Judge Willa Carson books until now. And what an engaging new series this has turned out to be! Smartly written with depth to the characters and enough twists and turns in the plots that you'll be hard pressed to put these books down. Looking forward to the next book in this excellent series.
Adoro narrativas de detetives, e quando a principal personagem é uma mulher madura, gosto mais ainda. Neste livro - na verdade, dois livros - uma juiza resolve assumir a função de detetive quando vê sua família envolvida em crimes hediondos. Gostei da leitura, achei bastante interessante. Recomendo.
I read these two stories back to back and really liked them. The stories were captivating and filled with humor and surprises. That added to great story lines and characters that felt like family was a pleasant experience. I will read more books authored by Diane.
The second book of this series was a mystery until the end. You could guess the direction and the coverup but you probably would have a hard time accepting the nonsolution of the end. To me, there was way too much male domination for the story. George was too perfect, Willa was too accepting of her husband.
I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery. I had to force myself sometimes to put the book down. I became Willa's partner in searching for clues and putting the pieces together. I will be reading more of Diane Capri's work. Thank you for nice clean mystery writing without having to fall over profanity every few words.
I like Capri's approach to storytelling. She breaks it down into packets that often heighten tension (not always, some breaks seem unrelated to the plot, just a way to insert another time-stsmp). I really enjoyed these 2 novelettes, and I'm looking forward to the next in the series.
These two factors combine to make this a thoroughly intriguing criminal mystery. I loved it! The story is beautifully told and the various relationships drawn between the families, political allies, lawyers etc., including especially between Willa and her husband George, make this a gripping story.