The Alternate

by John Martel

A jury member's secret agenda will tip the scales in a seemingly open-and-shut murder case involving the death of a beautiful San Francisco woman and her husband, who stands accused of the crime. Reprint.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Legal Thriller

544 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[AnonymousReaderPerson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This thing is plotted brilliantly. It's a legal thriller that doesn't get bogged down in legalese. Yet it also wields it in a way that advances the story and teaches you something new about criminal law along the way. Oh, and it weaves in angles about the mob, mental illness, and some degree of political scheming from nearly every party to this drama. It's been a while since I looked at the clock while reading in bed and reminded myself I wanted more than 5 hours of sleep.

I feel obligated to find some kind of fault...I don't sell 5-star ratings cheap. At first, I thought that obligatory flaw would be wondering if anyone would actually yearn to be a juror in a highly-publicized murder trial. But as the story moves along, that desire makes more and more sense.

(To be fair, I'd be terrified, so it's probably presumptuous to assume most people are like me...Though I think there's a reason most people deride their jury summonses.)

So what am I left with? I guess I'm just not prepared to call it the best novel I've ever read because it didn't really yank my heartstrings. But with every inch, I craved the next mile. At the end of the day, that's really all you can ask of a good novel. It doesn't have to move you to tears to respect its genius.

[Nicholas George · Rating 3 out of 5]

What kept this from a higher rating is its length (it's very overwritten) and the over-the-top conclusion, which seemed even more absurd given how well the author depicted the courtroom scenes and judicial process (he's a former lawyer). There are also too many allusions to the O.J. Simpson case, which is understandable given when this came out, and that the author had some connection to that case, but it grew intrusive. There also needed to be a stronger central character. Here we have two--Grace and Dickson--and while they're nicely drawn, they battled for my allegiance.

[Susan Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I tried the first Martel (Partners) and couldn't get in to it, This one, however, was very inviting. Washed up attorney Barrett Dickson gets drawn into the high profile trial of an ex-congressman who's wife was found brutally murdered. The plot is further enhanced by a juror who is very involved in the case. This story has almost too many facets but it was still a good read. I am going to try is next one.

[Don Smallwood]

I liked the read. Second in the series for me after Conflict of Interest. This book held my attention, but got too involved in one of the characters history too much. I struggled through, however, and the rest of the story carried well. Liked the book. Continuing the series.

[Randy Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this story line was pretty good, although fairly implausible. Some books are long and go fast- this book wasn’t that long but seemed to take me along time to read it. The main lawyer character didn’t seem to match his history, so I had a hard time picturing him in my mind.

[Mickey Hoffman · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book should have been shorter, but it still held my interest most of the time. There are twists to the story and the characters are fun.

[JB · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was overly cliched, but the story is good - not a 4 but could be more than a 3.

[Lynne Block · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story/bit of a stretch but from court view instead of police

[Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought I was looking at a movie.......

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a page turner!! Keeps you going, don’t want to stop. Very interesting!!

[Teddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Julian Gold best character, would be 4 stars if there was more Julian, would be 5 stars if the book was ABOUT Julian

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you enjoy watching Law & Order you’ll enjoy this book.

[Bob Ditmer]

Enjoying the book but amazed at the number of typos in the digital version

[Renata]

Too long and a bit boring.

[Jud Hanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is quite possibly one of the best legal thrillers ever written. It begins in a pretty standard way: the wife of socialite Eliot Ashford is discovered butchered in their home and all signs point to the husband. The DA wants a conviction to boost his chances in the upcoming election; the defense team simply wants to save their client's life and engages the help of "Bear" Barrett Dickson, former hotshot lawyer. There is more to this case than meets the eye, however and soon both sides are simply hoping for a hung jury. Dickson soon finds himself torn between his ethical duty as a lawyer and his moral duty as a citizen.

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an ok story. It could've been so much better! It was long, dragged out. DA kept going back & forth as to whether they should plea bargain, dismiss or proceed, all while the trial was going on! No explanation whatsoever about the investigations into the 3 murders. And...no follow up to the missing evidence--where did it go, who may have taken it? Yes the ADA had an idea where it went, but it was never investigated. No cops in this story whatsoever! I did like the main characters, Grace Harris and Dickson Barrett. Too bad they weren't in a better book!

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book started out pretty good, but had a few random chapters, that were very obviously foreshadowing. By about page 250, I had the entire plot and ending figured out and didn't see any need to keep reading for another 200 pages just to have it confirmed. I liked the courtroom scenes and the flawed but good-hearted defense attorney, but overall, I could have skipped this one and been okay.

[Sherri · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author is an attorney so the courtroom information is accurate, which I really like. I hate reading books that you know the person has no idea what they are talking about...some fiction is like that, just thrown together for a quick buck and it's usually obvious. Martel's books are very engrossing and I have a hard time putting them down; this one definitely fit that bill.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up on a whim at a bargain used book place, and I liked it surprisingly much. Not usually a fan of courtroom dramas or anything concerning the Mafia, this had enough suspense and was enough of a psychological thriller, mingled with the courtroom/lawyer/Mafia angle, that it kept the pages turning for me. A great twist about 3/4 of the way through that I did not see coming as well!

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good. Not what I'm use to reading.

[VaughanPL]

click here to find it in the catalogue.

[Nadia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Easy read. Courtroom drama with whacko juror.