Proof Positive

Amanda Jaffe #4

by Phillip Margolin

Defense attorney Doug Weaver believes his client, Jacob Cohen, is innocent—but the forensic evidence proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that the meek, mentally ill homeless man killed and dismembered a woman . . .

Hired to defend gangster Art Prochaska against charges that he murdered an informer, lawyer Amanda Jaffe and her father, Frank, have their work cut out for them—because, as improbable as it seems, the forensic clues scream that Prochaska is guilty . . .

And now people are dying inexplicably—as Amanda and Doug join forces to find answers hidden somewhere in the darkest corners of crime scene investigation, where a god-playing madman holds the lethal power to alter the truth.

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

314 pages, Hardcover

First published June 26, 2006

Reviews

[Blondish And Bookish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phillip Margolin's books are generally good, and this is no exception. I like legal thrillers, and this one has lots of twists and an exciting ending. Two attorneys, Doug Weaver and Amanda Jaffe, both have clients that are being charged with crimes that they may not be guilty of. They find that the cases may be connected and they join forces to solve the crimes themselves. The crime scene investigators themselves may be part of the crime.

It's hard to give a lot of details without giving spoilers, so I will just say that the twists were unpredictable, and the books was well-paced, so that there were no slow parts. It also wrapped everything up in a satisfying conclusion (and the ending was great!).

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Proof Positive (Amanda Jaffe, #3) by Phillip Margolin.

This book is by an author I rarely read, but what a pleasant surprise. The author kept me spell bound throughout the entire story. I was aware of the identity of the serial murderer from the start, but that didn't diminish my interest in the least. This was, indeed, a thrilling step-by-step mystery and a series I will be continuing to follow.

Doug Weaver is the defense attorney for Jacob Cohen. He strongly believes in his client's innocence and proceeds to defend him to the best of his ability. While looking into the evidence being presented against his client he is astonished at these findings. The reality of these findings are completely without substance. Unfortunately, he informs the wrong person of his findings and pays for it with his life.

Highly recommended for mystery/thriller enthusiasts.

[Will Byrnes · Rating 2 out of 5]

What if a CSI person, a criminalist, wanted to frame suspects for crimes they did not commit? That is the central notion of this thriller. I was of two minds about the book. First, there was an overwhelming number of characters, something like 28 in the first 30 pages. Also, there were times when the writing struck me as amateurish. But I found that there was enough going on in the meat of the story to hold my interest. A defender, whose client had been victimized buy the evil CSI, wound up being executed. The guilt weighed heavily. Action picks up at the back end when those who have discovered what is going on find themselves in danger. It was a fast read, but I would not rush out to grab all this guy’s stuff from the shelves.

[Doug Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Proof Positive is the third in a series of legal thrillers featuring defense attorney, Amanda Jaffe written by Phillip Margolin. She currently is a lawyer in her father’s firm in Portland OR. The novel opens with defense attorney, Doug Weaver, watching his client, Raymond Hayes, being put to death. Doug is haunted by what he believes is the execution of an innocent man. However, with Ray’s fingerprints on the hammer that was used to kill his mother, Ray’s conviction was all but assured.

Fast forward several years, and now Doug Weaver is defending another man for the brutal murder of a woman. He enlists the aid of Amanda Jaffe, and she agrees to help. Meanwhile, the right-hand man, Art Prochaska, of the Portland crimelord Martin Breach, is being defended by Amanda’s father, Frank, for the execution-style slaying of a drug addict. The cases move along their separate paths tied together by Amanda and her father and the forsenic criminalist, Bernard Cashman. To no surprise, everything is related.

Since the novel is more of a legal/forensic procedural, no attempt is made to hide the villain of the story. The mystery is in how he will be caught. Unfortunately, as people begin to figure out what’s been happening, they wind up dead. The tension is whether the murderer can be caught before he can escape.

I’ve enjoyed Margolin’s novels for many years. This is no different. Even though the reader early on knows who the villain is, we are kept intrigued by the ins and outs of both the legal system and forensic science. I found the book to be difficult to put down. If one is a fan of Margolin’s work, this will not disappoint. If you like legal/forensic procedurals, this is a good one. If one interested in starting at the beginning of Amanda Jaffe’s story, then one will want to pick up Wild Justice and Ties That Bind.

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was one of the worst books I ever waded through. Margolin takes an interesting real-world idea (how to fake a fingerprint in a crime lab and frame someone) and weaves it into an idiotic, mundane, pitiful, coincidence- nonsense mystery that has nothing mysterious about it. We know who the bad guy is, we don't know EXACTLY how he did it, but we know he did it because Margolin forces us to follow him.

Margolin introduces a peripheral character and spends several paragraphs discussing the reason he has to exercise, his regimine, etc. just to tell us that the guy found a body in a local park while jogging. What a colossal waste of time.

When it all comes together, it is like pancake batter with too much water--- so thin that it barely holds together and isn't really all that easy to swallow.

If this is the sort of stuff Margolin writes, I cannot understand how he can be a best-selling author. In fact, I wonder how he ever sold a book to an editor in the first place. I can only guess that some of his other stuff is much better. I'm just glad I picked this one up cheap at a library sale or I would be very disappointed if I had paid full cover price.

[Dara S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

You cannot go wrong with Philip Margolin and this is no exception. A criminalist who fakes evidence to frame those he believes are guilty. He is then threatened with exposure when a colleague discovers his dirty deeds, then things get really interesting.

[Michelle Bacon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, I have one thing to say to Mr. Margolin about this story: Your investigators suck at their job! I just had so many questions even when Jacob was arrested for the murder of Mary. Why convict him when there was no blood from the victim on him? The brutal way that she was murdered should have easily had blood spatter and yet there were no traces on him. Plus, he's homeless. He would not have been able to clean up before the police arrived at the scene. The rain would not have washed all of it away. Another thing, the only evidence that was found in the car was a bloody t-shirt? Hello!! Red flag!! (no pun intended) Again, with the brutal way she was murdered, if Jacob went back to his car to change, there would be traces of blood in the car, not just on a shirt. It would be on the bag, the door handle of the car, and on other clothing besides a t-shirt.

Now, I'm no investigator or forensics expert or anything like that but I did stay at a Holiday Inn once and while I was there I watched plenty of NCIS and Dexter episodes,(plus, I was in the military where they tell you to pay attention to detail) and all of this popped into my tiny little sponge of a brain as I was reading this. Don't get me wrong, I was highly entertained by this book and stayed up all hours of the night trying to finish it and find out if maybe the investigators had a Eureka! moment. I was so let down.

So, with all of that being said, I gave it only 3 stars because I did like the book but just had so many things come up as I was reading and was just like: "But wait a minute...". If you haven't read it, check it out and get back with me. I'm curious to see if you ask the same questions I did.

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

The handling - and mishandling - of forensic evidence take center stage in Proof Positive. Evidence tampering, wrongful convictions and executions, and flagrant cover-ups converge to destroy lives, and the perpetrator of all this mayhem is supposed to be one of the good guys. When a co-worker becomes suspicious, he stops at nothing to preserve his own reputation and career.

Author Margolin fields a huge cast of characters in this novel, which occasionally causes confusion. The pace is brisk, but some of the feats accomplished by the antagonist verge on the implausible. None of the characters are particularly well developed, but if you enjoy plot-driven legal thrillers, Proof Positive is entertaining enough.

[Loretta Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best Amanda Jaffe book so far. Yes, we know who the bad guy is in the first few pages, but that's where the suspense comes in. What's he going to do to get caught....who's going to catch him. Margolin's books have lots of characters, some new, some reoccurring but always interesting.

[Carole Hardinge · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my favorite Phillip Margolin so far. I really enjoyed his characters, especially Doug and Bernie. When Bernie first testified, I found his character fascinating and was pleased to find his character become so integral to the plot. I also found myself assuming the author was a woman, which when I remembered it was not, I thought that made Amanda’s character all the more impressive. It has been my experience that sometimes that if the gender of the author and the main character are not the same, some aspects of the lead character do not resonate with me as the way a man, or woman, would react to a situation.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely Excellent!!! Started reading the 2nd series and it wasn't my cup of tea, so I moved onto Book 3. The Court Room scenario in this book is what I love, very exciting and very well done. Like I said, Portland, Oregon Author and who lives here also and I am so glad I found his books. Can't wait to read all of them... :-)

[Helen Campbell · Rating 2 out of 5]

With Margolin's talent, this book could have been better. The main problem was that there were too many characters. It was impossible to tell who the leading characters were and difficult to remember who they were and why they were included. Also, parts of the book contained long sections of unnecessary narrative that interfered with the flow of the plot.

[Suzie Weber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amanda Jaffe saves the underdog again.

This is another Amanda Jaffe book and you become better acquainted with all the background people. Her father Frank is in it just enough to add to Amanda vs be her father and senior partner.

The crux of the story, that we as readers learn early, is a criminologist who decides where he finds the evidence, real or planted. Because we know all this as readers I found myself antsy that Amanda, Frank, Mike and others were not putting the pieces together fast enough. Had they, this book would have been shorter and not as good. I especially liked the very end when Mike talks about how this case affects a death sentenced case.

Amanda seems to be past her PTSD from the Surgeon. This book shows us her grit. I'm actually starting to like Martin Breach. He is one of the good bad guys. If you have read Jack Higgins he reminds me of Sean Dillion. Again, I am glad I finally took Wild Justice, the first book of this series off my shelf and dusted it off. I already have the next book downloaded and off I go on Amanda's next case.

[Rich Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

I randomly picked this book off the shelf at the library, because it sounded like a fun easy read. I'd never heard of the author or the series before. Didn't even realize it was a series until I finished it.

I might have enjoyed it better if I'd read some of the previous books in the series, but having gone into it without knowing any of that, I liked it. It's an interweaving story about lawyers, cops, crime lab people and criminals. I did get a bit lost a couple of times remember which name was associated with which lawyer, but overall I was able to follow along.

The writing and the narrating are great. Loved the different stories and how they connected with each other. If you like crime novels, this is a pretty good one.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Before anyone reads this thinking they are going to read a mystery with a "WHOA, I didn't see that coming" kind of ending. Think again. That is what I'm looking for when I read mysteries or thrillers, and I would guess that I'm not alone in this.

Proof Positive is not a who dunnit because the AUTHOR TELLS US WHO DUNNIT AS IT IS HAPPENING!!! This book is therefore more of a legal investigation. If that's your thing, I think you will like this book. If you want to wonder what is going to happen all the way to the last page, choose another book.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was full of action and even though I knew who the killer was, I didn't care because I wanted to see how it all worked out. This one didn't really have that many court scenes, but I sill enjoyed getting to know Amanda a little better.

How the criminalist could make the evidence appear different ways was very interesting to me. Even the cases that were discussed were interesting. I was hoping that Jacob would be found innocent of all charges as he certainly had a lot on his plate.

I am giving this 5 out of 5 stars and can't wait to read the next one.

[Edward Weiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy read and not much of a mystery since the reader is privy to almost everything as it happens. Even the little that is temporarily hidden is fairly obvious to the experienced crime/legal/mystery reader.
In spite of this, my 4-star rating holds as was my attention through a well-written novel.
Further, I did not realize I was reading a book which was part of a series until sometime well into it.

[Garth Slater · Rating 5 out of 5]

Margolin writes a genius thriller. I could hardly put this down. The fun part is trying to figure out The Who's and the why's. Admittedly, with all fiction, there are things that aren't believable though overall, the plot and characters were fun and entertaining.

[Rebecca I · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first book I've read by this author. It was a lively murder case. A bit unbelievable at times. One of those quick and easy books, not great literature, mostly entertainment.

[Ronnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The question was asked without emotion, but Frank could sense rage swimming below Breach's calm surface like a great white shark cruising beneath the placid waters off a beach filled with vacationers.

This was my first Margolin, and it was page-turning enough that it won't be my last. The procedural and behind-the-scenes courtroom aspects were sometimes riveting and always readable, showing unequivocally that lawyers are humans, too. Pretty much every character proves fallible, with the possible exception of Amanda Jaffe (though the course she chooses with Mike seems really sort of night-and-day sudden, so maybe not). The bad guy is really bad, cut from the same cloth as Dostoevsky's Raskolnikov with his idea of being a "superior man" but without the Russian's conscience. One of the main plot points hinges on an attorney giving his client fatally bad advice, and other points depend on another jurist's grave mistakes (poor Hannah comes off looking like a scapegoat for the narrative), but mostly this is a tale of lawyers in love with the legal system and the way it's designed (or supposed) to work.

A few quick observations:
(1) The book jacket's inside flap has this sentence: "Yet Bernard Cashman, a forensic expert at the Oregon State Crime Lab, finds evidence that indisputably connects Cohen with the crime." It's probably intentional, and possibly even a subtle lawyer's trick, but that verb is definitely misleading.
(2) I was reading along just fine and enjoying things when I read this sentence: "There were more weeds than grass in most yards and plenty of BEWARE OF THE DOG signs." Now, I realize this is no big thing, and possibly the song by the Griswolds has shaped my thoughts, but don't those signs usually say just "BEWARE DOG" or "BEWARE THE DOG"? That "OF" just stopped me cold, for some reason.
(3) The same thing happened a little later when I read this sentence: "He had been walking on eggs since Amanda had agreed to go out with him again." Possibly--just possibly--this is a regional thing, but the only way I've ever heard that idiom is "walking on eggshells," so again I was stopped with thoughts of how any editor would let that go, convincing myself that surely future editions had it corrected.
(4) The cast of characters, especially the seedy denizens peopling the subplot, is sort of large, but I had to flip back to keep things straight only a couple times.
(5) I had no idea when I picked this up that it was officially #3 in a series; it stands alone just fine by itself, but perhaps it'd be even richer if one were already a fan of Amanda Jaffe going in.

First line:
"Doug Weaver had experienced his fair share of bad days during his legal career, but the day Oregon executed Raymond Hayes was one of the worst."

[Susan Beamon · Rating 5 out of 5]

What kind of trouble can a man cause when he thinks the ends justify the means? Here we have a forensic expert, believing he is putting the evil men away, lying about the evidence he finds at the crime scene.
Doug Weaver, Amanda Jaffe and Frank Jaffe are all lawyers with cases that have dangerous evidence against their clients. Fingerprints and blood that their clients swear can't be there. Evidence that will cause a jury to return guilty verdicts. It is evidence they can't disprove. It is all evidence found by Bernard Cashman, the forensic expert.
Amanda hires a freelance forensic expert to doublecheck the evidence. When he is attacked and evidence is stolen, Amanda has her law office's security expert look into everybody who knew that evidence was in the freelancer's lab. What she finds changes everything.
I've already told you most of the story. The rest is just details. I found the twists and turns in the story very interesting. There was nothing I couldn't believe. I enjoyed the book. I think you will too.

[Barry]

Proof Positive by Philip Margolin is an interesting and engaging book about a forensic scientist who falsifies evidence to put the bad guys behind bars and leave them there. His misguided antics worsen when he's on the verge of getting caught and he takes extreme measures to ensure he can continue doing the work he considers necessary to protect society. The problem is that innocent people are getting hurt or worse.

The book is well written and the plot kept me turning the pages. The method the scientist uses to falsify the evidence is interesting and left me wondering about the controls in place to ensure something like this doesn't happen. The central characters are well developed and believable, in my opinion. I did find that some of the many lesser characters who float in and out of the storyline were difficult to keep track of. Nevertheless, this is a good book to be enjoyed by fans of the genre.

[David H. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my second Phillip Margolin novel and I have been impressed with each one. I appreciate Margolin's conciseness. It is difficult not to compare this book (or both Margolin novels for that matter) to the Dean R. Koontz novel I read prior to this. The Koontz book, "The Bad Place", was a great story bloated with large words and tons of unnecessary descriptions. Those 382 pages would of been much better if condensed into something like 275 or 320 pages. "Proof Positive" was the exact opposite to that book.

Phillip Margolin reminds me alot of John Grisham. Both are excellent writers who specialize in legal fiction. I would recommend both authors. I awarded "Proof Positive" a score of 4 stars or 8/10 on my scale.

[Alison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't often rate a book 5 stars, but this one certainly deserves it. As the story unfolds we become bystanders to several different crimes that have been committed and are in various states of investigation - from a death row inmate put to death when his case was lost, to litigation in process, to several murders that take place and we get to see how the investigations unfold and the suspects identified. The characters are either ones you'd like to know (i.e. Amanda Jaffe) or ones you hope you never run into. The biggest question becomes who killed known drug dealers and who killed a forensic medical examiner and a lawyer. Was it really the homeless man who is crazy or someone else? I couldn't put this book down, read it in two days. A must read.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Philip Margolin is an author I discovered several years ago and I became an immediate fan. His legal thrillers are always page turners and all of his early writings are very good. This Amand Jaffe novel is a quick read that explores the tainting of evidence to obtain convictions. The story centers around Jacob Cohen, a homeless person with mental issues, who gets charged with murder but claims his innocence. His attorney Doug Weaver is a hapless lawyer but one who works hard for his clients. Ms. Jaffe and her father Frank are also key figures in finding how the evidence gets tainted. Published in 2006, this book was still relevant and a most interesting read.

[Lynelle · Rating 1 out of 5]

One star - awarded to me for finishing this book! I just couldn’t start 2019 with a “couldn’t finish this book”. I enjoyed reading “Violent Crimes” last year and thought I’d try some of his earlier novels but this had so many characters, jumped back and forth every chapter with little development of the plot, lots of technical data... Nothing that made me want to pick it up over the course of the 3 days it took for me to read it (unusual for me!) except to say I actually finished it! Maybe I’ll try one more...maybe this was an anomaly?

[Hans Brienesse · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really well written book. It was obvious from early in that the perpatrator was going to get caught, it remained only to find out how. And after several red herrings (or at least the small of them) it was revealed just how he was found out. A rather unique style of writing in that what appeared to be main characters did disappear from the plot. A good read with a different plot and a very satisfying ending. As in most books that have them, the author's end notes are as revealing as the story.

[Missyjohnson1 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Small struggle, since I did not start with the first in the series, I missed out on a bit of the background info that may(?) have made Amanda a more complete character. Others were a bit shallow as well. The plot was just a bit too contrived for my tastes. The forensic scientist piece never was believable in thoughts, words, or deeds. Did not realize that just wearing a baseball cap eliminated potential to leave trace evidence.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Attorney Doug Weaver is going through a trying time - his wife is asking for a divorce, his drinking is worse, and he lost a capital punishment case that he fears he failed to defend properly. Now he is assigned an insane derelict to defend. But the case becomes bigger as he uncovers suspect evidence. When he is paired with Amanda Jaffe, who is in a prestigious practice with her father, they begin to suspect that the crime lab has been framing innocent people.

[John Biddle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started off quite badly and I almost quit reading, a rarity. There were so many characters, so many simultaneous stories, such confusion. Poor writing. Surprisingly I kept at it and it got decidedly better. There were some very serious mistakes with the details but the overall thrust of the story was good and the pace and tension continued to mount. I give it a poor 3 and probably won't be back any time soon for a Margolin refresh.