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Trish Maguire #8
Evil Is Done: A Trish Maguire Mystery
Trish Maguire, secure in her job as a top corporate lawyer, has almost forgotten the harshness of her early career defending abused children. But when Sam Foundling, her first client, comes back into her life as an adult, she's forced to revisit those painful times. Now a brilliant sculptor, married to Trish's colleague Cecilia and expecting his first child, Sam seems to have gotten over the abuse he suffered as an adolescent.
When Cecilia is found beaten to death in Sam's art studio, the police, including Trish's best friend Caroline, are sure that Sam is to blame. Trish, however, is not so quick to believe it. Is Sam merely a distraught husband, trying to hold it together for his newborn daughter, or was the horror of his past too much for him to overcome? Or did Cecilia's murder have something to do with the seemingly cursed London Arrow building, built on the mass grave of plague victims?
In her eighth Trish Maguire mystery, Natasha Cooper shows all the emotional intelligence, strong characterization, and sense of place that have won her acclaim from both readers and critics.
When Cecilia is found beaten to death in Sam's art studio, the police, including Trish's best friend Caroline, are sure that Sam is to blame. Trish, however, is not so quick to believe it. Is Sam merely a distraught husband, trying to hold it together for his newborn daughter, or was the horror of his past too much for him to overcome? Or did Cecilia's murder have something to do with the seemingly cursed London Arrow building, built on the mass grave of plague victims?
In her eighth Trish Maguire mystery, Natasha Cooper shows all the emotional intelligence, strong characterization, and sense of place that have won her acclaim from both readers and critics.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published December 1, 2006
3 people are currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Natasha Cooper
62 books17 followersaka N.J. Cooper, Kate Hatfield, Clare Layton, Daphne Wright.
Natasha Cooper was Chairman of the Crime Writers' Association in 2000/2001. She reviews books in THE TIMES, THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT and the NEW LAW JOURNAL. She is the author of, among others, FAULT LINES and PREY TO ALL.
Natasha Cooper was Chairman of the Crime Writers' Association in 2000/2001. She reviews books in THE TIMES, THE TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT and the NEW LAW JOURNAL. She is the author of, among others, FAULT LINES and PREY TO ALL.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
May 28, 2014
I'm aware that the author is an integral part of British mystery circles. I feel bad giving the book such a low rating. I couldn't help it. It wasn't the plot so much as the characters--especially what they think. In short, most drove me crazy--including Trish. I'll leave others to discover how they react. I'm going to try not to meet Trish again.
January 17, 2025
When one of barrister Trish Maguire's first child clients comes back into her life as an adult she has no idea of the chain of coincidence and horror that will be revealed. Now a brilliant sculptor, Sam is married to one of Trish's fellow professionals on an insurance case involving the London Arrow, a ravishing new building that has shown sinister cracks since the day it was unveiled. Violent death is followed by psychological torment and a painful revisiting of the past by everyone involved. If Trish did not have the security of her life with solicitor George and her young half brother, David, she too might be dangerously destabilised...
I found this book a bit bland and I couldn’t really connect with any of the characters. The reason being I think is that the book is part of a series and the characters are established. Not reading the series from the beginning I fell I don’t know the characters and what has happened to them in previous books. The story itself for me wasn’t pacy enough and I was becoming rather bored with it. Towards the end I was skipping pages and just read the last few to see who had committed the crime. I think I would be inclined not to read anymore by this author at the moment.
I found this book a bit bland and I couldn’t really connect with any of the characters. The reason being I think is that the book is part of a series and the characters are established. Not reading the series from the beginning I fell I don’t know the characters and what has happened to them in previous books. The story itself for me wasn’t pacy enough and I was becoming rather bored with it. Towards the end I was skipping pages and just read the last few to see who had committed the crime. I think I would be inclined not to read anymore by this author at the moment.
December 16, 2020
Great story
I loved the plot and the characters. Trish is an interesting heroine, stubborn & tough while being principled and sensitive.
Copper's writing is much more readable and assured in this Trish Maguire series than earlier novels.
I loved the plot and the characters. Trish is an interesting heroine, stubborn & tough while being principled and sensitive.
Copper's writing is much more readable and assured in this Trish Maguire series than earlier novels.
May 26, 2018
Just too slow moving and repetitious- after half way I skimmed to the end. Won’t read any more in this series.
May 18, 2010
PROTAGONIST: Trish McGuire, barrister
SETTING: UK
SERIES: #8 of 8
RATING: 3.0
Trish Maguire is a successful barrister who long ago gave up working with battered children for the less traumatic cases of the commercial court. But when one of those children comes back to her as an adult, she feels tremendous guilt. For all this time, Sam Foundling has idolized Trish. She was the only person in whom he could completely trust. The truth be told, Trish hasn't thought about him in years. As it turns out, he is married to one of her colleagues who is a loss adjuster on insurance cases, Cecilia Mayford. When Cecilia is found brutally beaten to death, the volatile Sam is the prime suspect. He turns to Trish to help, just as he did in the past. Now there is even more at stake; before Cecilia died they were able to deliver the baby girl that was due in a few weeks.
The detective inspector assigned to the case is Trish's best friend, Caroline Lyalt. Caro has just recently been made a chief and feels tremendous pressure to solve the case expeditiously. She really turns the screws on Trish to provide evidence that Sam is the murderer. The result is that their friendship is almost completely destroyed. Trish won't be disloyal to Sam; Caro needs to solve the case and feels that Trish is being stubborn and naïve. Unfortunately, the interactions between Caro and Trish ruined the book for me. It was ridiculous to see Caro hounding Trish to provide information on Sam. And it was almost equally ridiculous for Trish to be supporting Sam so vehemently merely because she felt guilty about having somehow let him down by forgetting about him after 17 years.
The plot was serviceable. Although the ultimate villain was easily identified, it was very difficult to prove him guilty, which led to some suspenseful tension. However, the resolution of the crime as well as the precarious friendship was way too facile.
Initially, I had high hopes for the book. Cooper has a wonderful, free flowing writing style and imbues Trish with warmth and grace, as well as some of the secondary characters such as Sam's mother-in-law. Trish's relationships with her significant other, George, and her half-brother, David, were well portrayed. All in all, I'd say characterization is a strong point for Cooper, which makes the Caro/Trish interaction doubly strange. Having never read any of her other books, I can't say if this is an anomaly or not for the series.
SETTING: UK
SERIES: #8 of 8
RATING: 3.0
Trish Maguire is a successful barrister who long ago gave up working with battered children for the less traumatic cases of the commercial court. But when one of those children comes back to her as an adult, she feels tremendous guilt. For all this time, Sam Foundling has idolized Trish. She was the only person in whom he could completely trust. The truth be told, Trish hasn't thought about him in years. As it turns out, he is married to one of her colleagues who is a loss adjuster on insurance cases, Cecilia Mayford. When Cecilia is found brutally beaten to death, the volatile Sam is the prime suspect. He turns to Trish to help, just as he did in the past. Now there is even more at stake; before Cecilia died they were able to deliver the baby girl that was due in a few weeks.
The detective inspector assigned to the case is Trish's best friend, Caroline Lyalt. Caro has just recently been made a chief and feels tremendous pressure to solve the case expeditiously. She really turns the screws on Trish to provide evidence that Sam is the murderer. The result is that their friendship is almost completely destroyed. Trish won't be disloyal to Sam; Caro needs to solve the case and feels that Trish is being stubborn and naïve. Unfortunately, the interactions between Caro and Trish ruined the book for me. It was ridiculous to see Caro hounding Trish to provide information on Sam. And it was almost equally ridiculous for Trish to be supporting Sam so vehemently merely because she felt guilty about having somehow let him down by forgetting about him after 17 years.
The plot was serviceable. Although the ultimate villain was easily identified, it was very difficult to prove him guilty, which led to some suspenseful tension. However, the resolution of the crime as well as the precarious friendship was way too facile.
Initially, I had high hopes for the book. Cooper has a wonderful, free flowing writing style and imbues Trish with warmth and grace, as well as some of the secondary characters such as Sam's mother-in-law. Trish's relationships with her significant other, George, and her half-brother, David, were well portrayed. All in all, I'd say characterization is a strong point for Cooper, which makes the Caro/Trish interaction doubly strange. Having never read any of her other books, I can't say if this is an anomaly or not for the series.
July 11, 2010
MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS.
Not the first Trish Maguire mystery published, but my own first contact w. author Natasha Cooper.
First rate! I'm looking forward to devouring the rest of the series.
Trish is a British barrister -- corporate lawyer -- who gets involved in a murder case by 2 links: she had liked the murder victim, who is a work acquaintance; the victim's sculptor husband comes to her for aid.
Turns out, Trish had represented a decade-plus ago, when she was new in her law career, and working in domestic court. He had been placed as an infant in foster care (abandoned by his mom at birth), and become the helpless victim of his foster parents' abuse.
When he comes into majority, he sets aside his foster parents' surname, and takes on "Foundling" as his last name.
The abuse history sets him to have a known violent temper, which makes him a prime suspect in his pregnant wife's death (the baby does survive, which creates another layer of conflict).
To add to the agony, his wife's mom is a judge, who's not sure Foundling has the stability and temperament to raise the infant in a healthy manner.
Crux of the mystery -- a striking city skyscraper with a serious design flaw.
The wife -- an insurance adjuster -- turns out to have been killed by an ex-lover from many moons before, who had become an engineer and was responsible for the expensive defect lawsuit that results. This lawsuit is Trish's 3rd tie to the mystery, as she's representing one of the corporate parties in the dispute over the building, which is gorgeous but has developed dangerous cracks.
Interesting relationships abound (besides Trish w. the sculptor):
Trish and the judge whose daughter was killed
Trish and her attorney boyfriend
Trish and her orphaned half brother
Trish and her best friend, a female police detective (who's on the opposite side of the case, and mad at Trish, for most of the story)
Trish is so insightful about relationships, not just a savvy legal thinker. e.g., She understands what drew Foundling and his adjuster wife to each other, even when the wife's mom cannot understand.
Another crime series based on a protagonist who is not an official detective.
Not the first Trish Maguire mystery published, but my own first contact w. author Natasha Cooper.
First rate! I'm looking forward to devouring the rest of the series.
Trish is a British barrister -- corporate lawyer -- who gets involved in a murder case by 2 links: she had liked the murder victim, who is a work acquaintance; the victim's sculptor husband comes to her for aid.
Turns out, Trish had represented a decade-plus ago, when she was new in her law career, and working in domestic court. He had been placed as an infant in foster care (abandoned by his mom at birth), and become the helpless victim of his foster parents' abuse.
When he comes into majority, he sets aside his foster parents' surname, and takes on "Foundling" as his last name.
The abuse history sets him to have a known violent temper, which makes him a prime suspect in his pregnant wife's death (the baby does survive, which creates another layer of conflict).
To add to the agony, his wife's mom is a judge, who's not sure Foundling has the stability and temperament to raise the infant in a healthy manner.
Crux of the mystery -- a striking city skyscraper with a serious design flaw.
The wife -- an insurance adjuster -- turns out to have been killed by an ex-lover from many moons before, who had become an engineer and was responsible for the expensive defect lawsuit that results. This lawsuit is Trish's 3rd tie to the mystery, as she's representing one of the corporate parties in the dispute over the building, which is gorgeous but has developed dangerous cracks.
Interesting relationships abound (besides Trish w. the sculptor):
Trish and the judge whose daughter was killed
Trish and her attorney boyfriend
Trish and her orphaned half brother
Trish and her best friend, a female police detective (who's on the opposite side of the case, and mad at Trish, for most of the story)
Trish is so insightful about relationships, not just a savvy legal thinker. e.g., She understands what drew Foundling and his adjuster wife to each other, even when the wife's mom cannot understand.
Another crime series based on a protagonist who is not an official detective.
September 11, 2016
Trish Maguire is neck deep in an insurance case involving a building with serious structural flaws. Also working the case is a loss adjuster, Cecilia Mayford. Trish respects Cecilia's work and feels they have formed a basis for a continuing friendship once the case is over. But that is not to be. Eight month pregnant Cecilia is murdered and her husband, Sam Foundling, is the prime suspect. The startling piece is that Trish was Foundling's lawyer when she worked in Child Welfare and he was an abuse victim entangled in the foster care system. Trish can't believe that Sam is the perpetrator and searches for alternative suspects.
This was a decent mystery with good character development leading to an engaging read. First Natasha Cooper book for me, but I'll be checking out her back catalogue.
This was a decent mystery with good character development leading to an engaging read. First Natasha Cooper book for me, but I'll be checking out her back catalogue.
March 26, 2008
Love this series of English mysteries!
Want to read
September 11, 2010aka A Greater Evil
December 13, 2012
The book was great and well written. It dragged a bit but all in all it was well done.
June 29, 2014
Somewhat needlessly divided between different points of view but a relatively good read for the train.
October 4, 2015
Enjoyable read.
June 28, 2011
3 1/2. Well-drawn protagonist and an interesting plot. I liked this series a lot.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews