Dead Even

by Brad Meltzer

Sara Tate is a prosecuting attorney with the Manhattan DA's office; her husband, Jared Lynch, a rising star in a Wall Street Law firm. They have a wonderful, happy, high-spirited, non-competitive marriage - until they accidentally find themselves on opposite sides of the courtroom, and their relationship starts to fall apart. Worse, they are threatened by interested parties on each side of the case. The result is one of them will lose. The other one will die.

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

512 pages, Paperback

First published May 13, 1998

About the author

Brad Meltzer is the Emmy-nominated, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lightning Rod, The Escape Artist, and eleven other bestselling thrillers. He also writes non-fiction books like The JFK Conspiracy, about a secret plot to kill JFK before he was sworn in – and the Ordinary People Change the World kids book series, which he does with Chris Eliopoulos and inspired the PBS KIDS TV show, Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum. His newest kids books are We are the Beatles, We are the Beatles, and I am Simone Biles. His newest inspirational book is Make Magic, based on his viral commencement address.

In addition to his fiction, Brad is one of the only authors to ever have books on the bestseller list for Non-Fiction (The Nazi Conspiracy), Advice (Heroes for My Son and Heroes for My Daughter), Children’s Books (I Am Amelia Earhart and I Am Abraham Lincoln) and even comic books (Justice League of America), for which he won the prestigious Eisner Award.

He is also the host of Brad Meltzer’s Lost History and Brad Meltzer’s Decoded on the History Channel, and is responsible for helping find the missing 9/11 flag that the firefighters raised at Ground Zero, making national news on the 15th anniversary of 9/11. Meltzer unveiled the flag at the 9/11 Museum in New York, where it is now on display. See the video here. The Hollywood Reporter recently put him on their list of Hollywood’s 25 Most Powerful Authors.

He also recently delivered the commencement address at the University of Michigan, in front of 70,000 people, including his graduating son. Entitled Make Magic and called “one of the best commencement addresses of all time,” it’s been shared millions of times across social media. Do yourself a favor, watch it here and buy the book here.

For sure, it’s tough to find anyone being so successful in so many different mediums of the popular culture. But why does Brad thrive in all these different professions? His belief that ordinary people change the world. It is that core belief that runs through every one of his projects.

His newest thriller, The Lightning Rod, brings back characters Nola and Zig in a setting that will blow your mind (you won't believe where the government let Brad go). For now, we'll say this: What's the one secret no one knows about you? It's about to come out. Nearly 2,000 five-star reviews. Raves by everyone from the Wall Street Journal, to James Patterson, to Brad's mother-in-law. Plus that twist at the end! And yes, the new Zig & Nola thriller is coming soon!

His newest non-fiction book, The JFK Conspiracy: The Secret Plot to Kill Kennedy -- and Why It Failed, which he wrote with Josh Mensch, is a true story about a secret assassination plot to kill JFK at the start of his Presidency and, if successful, would’ve changed history.

His illustrated children’s books I Am Amelia Earhart and I Am Abraham Lincoln, which he does with artist Chris Eliopoulos, were written for his own children, to give them better heroes to look up to. Try them. You won’t believe how inspired you and your family will be. Some of our favorites in the series are I am Mister Rogers and I am Dolly Parton.

His other non-fiction books, Heroes for My Son and Heroes for My Daughter, are collections of heroes – from Jim Henson to Sally Ride — that he’s been working on since the day his kids were born and is on sale now, as well as History Decoded: The 10 Greatest Conspiracies of All Time.

He’s also one of the co-creators of the TV show, Jack & Bobby.

Raised in Brooklyn and Miami, Brad is a graduate of the University of Michigan and Columbia Law School. The Tenth Justice was his first published work and became an instant New York Times bestseller. Dead Even followed a year later and also hit the New York Times bestseller list, as have all thirteen of his novels. The First Counsel came next, which was about a White House lawyer dating the President’s daughter, then The Millionaires, which was about two brothers who

Reviews

[Tulay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting plot.

Husband and wife team, one is ADA, the other is working in big law firm. These educated lawyers acting like emotional teenagers. There dialogue are boring and long. Murder and mayhem, and who to trust or believe from the start to finish.

[Linda Isakson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my second disappointing stab at reading a Meltzer novel. I'm simply underwhelmed. The actual story behind "Dead Even" is really quite good, but Meltzer's characters are so utterly annoying that reading about them is the literary equivalent of enduring nails raking down a chalk board. Ugh! In "Dead Even" the female protagonist, Sara, is a complete witch (or think of a rhyming synonym) but we, as readers, are supposed to sympathize with her. Her husband, Jared, in contrast, comes off as a spineless wimp (who needs to discover the word "assertive") instead of portraying the loving and protective husband. The plot: Sara, an unemployed lawyer, finally lands a job at the NYC DA's office. However, major City budget cuts are announced on her first day of work and she fears for her job. As the rookie, she's desperate to prove herself so she takes on a few cases. One of those cases, however, was a home robbery misdemeaner earmarked for a more prestigious and well-regarded Assistant DA, but she takes it anyway. By that small act of legal thievery, Sara becomes entangled in a dangerous cat-and-mouse game full of crooked public employees, psychotic murderers, and heartache as the defendent "hires" Sara's husband to represent him. Both Sara and Jared are told, without each other's knowledge, that they must win the case or the other will die. Thus, the thrilling circus begins. And it is a great story; one that would have been marvelous had the characters been better written. Awful dialogue and irritating characters do not a great book make.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel is too long with too much murder and mayhem. 4 of 10 stars for this less than fulfilling story.

[Lulu Rahman · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is my first Brad Meltzer book. I've actually been looking for it ever since I read an excerpt of it online somewhere and when I saw this at my local bookstore, I didn't think twice and just grabbed it. A mistake actually - I should have at least read the online reviews.

The story started off pretty normal, two lawyers in love and married, hubby is a hotshot defense attorney, wifey is the new ADA. The first few chapters were pretty interesting. Then it reached a plateau for the next 8-10 chapters before eventually spiraling downwards. Wifey started off as likeable but after a few chapters and introduced to the antagonist, she starts getting all whiney and irritating, at times even downright bitchy. Same goes with hubby - too spineless and confused. I usually like at least one of the main characters but with this one, I can't seem to identify or even sympathise with either.

The plot is all over the place and there are times when I can't make heads or tails of it. Almost all of the side characters are made out to be the anatagonists. I suspect that's the author's way of keeping his readers in suspense but what irks me the most is after all those long-winded dialogues & cheesy cliches, there's almost no surprises. The characterization was weak and inconsistent - it's a case of too many suspects, too little time.

However, I'm not giving up on this author. I've read reviews of some of his other books and they seemed encouraging. I might pick up another book of his but it may be a while.

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started off good, then spiraled into a stupid non believable mystery. I'm tired of Meltzer

[The Bursting Bookshelf of a Wallflower · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first Brad Meltzer and I definitively liked it. The plot was great and I couldn't lay the book down. The pace was fast and breathtaking. Maybe the characters could have been a bit better developped, but all in all the story about Jared and Sara was great! 4 stars!

[Spencer Rich · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK pageturner. Almost any of these "NYT best-sellers" make for decent light entertainment. But the sex and romance angles are almost universally atrocious.

[Wendy H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book from the library and it has sat there some time waiting to be read. When I started reading I was sorry I had left it so long. The storyline is well laid out in the book description so I won't go Into it again, but suffice to say the idea of a husband and wife up against each other in the courtroom works well. However, there is so much more to this book than that, it is not only a legal novel, but is a thriller and a murder mystery. It is also about people finding who they are and exactly who they can trust. Reading some of the other reviews I was wondering if we were reading different novels. I found the characters to be both believable and likeable. That's the goodies of course. The greatest part of this book is that you never know who are the good guys and who are the bad guys. The twists and turns we're like a roller coaster and you never knew what was coming next. I thought all along I knew how the story would end but boy, was I wrong. An excellent book, well written with a storyline that draws you in. What more could you ask for in a book.

[Shelley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Summary: Sara Tate starts her job as a New York City assistant district attorney the day before massive budget cuts. To keep her job, she grabs a case slated for one of the DA office's hot shots, thinking it will be the kind of showpiece that'll make her a hero. The next day, she learns that the defense attorney on the case is her husband, Jared Lynch. To make matters worse, what appeared to be a simple breaking and entering is beginning to look more like a murder.

Someone is pitting Sara and Jared against each other and both are being threatened: win the case or your spouse dies. Sara and Jared have struggled and suffered more than your ordinary young lawyers and their desperation to protect one another and their life together is almost palpable. But the more they fight to win the case, the more they put each other's lives in jeopardy.

REVIEW: Interesting plot: Yes Interesting Characters: Uhm, somewhat

The one thing I have learned from reading this author is, his plots are predictable and his characters make silly mistakes. Then again, nobody is perfect. My gripe about this book is that the ending just didn't cut it for me. No matter how you spin things, this book was actually worse than his first novel the Tenth Justice.

Sorry Brad, but, this book rates a 2 star on my rating scale.

[Cid Herman · Rating 1 out of 5]

DEAD EVEN was a big disappointment for me. I love legal thrillers and I read reviews carefully before I choose the books I read. I like most of the books I read, but I really did not like Dead Even. I wanted to give up on it soon after starting and again at the halfway point. I plugged on and this story never got better. If anything it got worse.

So what bothered me abbout the book? It is over-the-top ridiculous and completely unrealistic. Real people do not act like this. If you are an attorney and someone is threatening to kill your spouse if you don't win a case, you don't desperately do their bidding and let your spouse go about their business completely unaware of the threat. When they murder someone else close to you and ransack your apartment, you don't pretend you know nothing about it.

Both spouses are in the same situation, but they don't know it. He's defending, she's prosecuting. If either of them loses the case, the spouse dies. And they don't other to mention this little thing to their partner? Really? The threats are coming from different bad guys, with obviously opposite agendas. How likely is that? This bit of nonsense is the just the tip if the iceberg for this story. The characters relate to each other the way bad actors do in a very low budget movie.

Do yourself a favor a skip this one. There is nothing worth reading here.

[Scott Rhee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brad Meltzer's "Dead Even" is a legal thriller in the Grisham/Turow vein, suspenseful and well-paced with some plot twists throughout to keep you reading. It is quite the page-turner. While Meltzer is not an exceptionally gifted writer, he tells a good story and has a clear understanding of the genre and what a reader looks for in a novel like this. Fans of Dennis Lehane, John Grisham, and Harlan Coben should give him a try.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a very suspenseful and paranoid nail biter that kept me interested and worried till the end.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun, fast paced read full of action and intrigue. Worth the time.

[Nolan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! I loved the premise. It may have been a tiny bit long, but I very much enjoyed the plot. If you read it, I will be greatly surprised if you decide not to finish. I could barely put it down.

It's a high-stakes game for Sara Tate and Jared Lynch. The New York City District Attorney's office hired her, and she is grateful to have the job. She experienced a serious employment drought, and she is glad it's over. Her husband, Jared, works for a hotshot Wall Street law firm. His salary kept them afloat while she looked for work. Naturally, she is thrilled to start the new job.

Almost immediately after she arrives at the workplace, she hears rumors that the mayor is imposing budget cuts. That means the most recent people hired will be among the first let go. There might be a way around it though. Sara's irrepressible assistant tells her if she can snag a high-profile case, she might be able to avoid the layoffs. To that end, she goes to the room where someone hands out new cases. She sees one with another attorney's name on the folder. Convinced it is a high-profile case, she surreptitiously removes the name, and she claims it for herself.

Initially, to her disappointment, the case looks like a small-time burglary. But things are never as they seem. As she digs into it, she realizes it is about far deeper things. Across town, her husband also draws a case. He will defend the burglar whom Sara plans to prosecute. The twist is this: Someone separately calls aside both Sara and Jared and warns them that if they lose their respective cases, someone will murder their spouse. Furthermore, they can’t tell each other what they know.

This plot gripped me with everything it had. It was easy for me to put myself in the place of these two people. How desperate would you become if you knew that someone whom you love deeply will die if you lose a case? It seems to me there is almost nothing at which you would stop to ensure the safety of your loved one. The suspense is high enough with that premise, but the author enhances it by making sure the two don't tell one another for a significant amount of the book. At some point, you want to just cry out “please! Talk to one another. Explain what is happening here.” I'm always saddened and fascinated by the number of times in real life and in books in which a tiny bit of communication would make an exponentially large difference in the lives of the non-communicants.

Others who reviewed this book indicated dislike for both characters. I could relate to the husband to some degree; and I found the wife to be pushy, but not obnoxious. Her personality seemed to suit the task at hand. I liked her. The final scenes are memorable and vivid. They involve guns and subway tracks. I need say no more! If you download this, you'll read it; if you read it, you'll more than likely finish it.

[Gina Torn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars!! Lawyer Sara Tate started her new job at the New York City District Attorney’s Office. She wants to make a good impression but she learns there are going to big budget cuts and her job is already on the line. She starts on a case that seems like a simple burglary but turns into much more when threatened that if she loses someone will kill her husband.

Lawyer Jared Lynch desperately wants to make partner at the firm where he works. He’s assigned to be the defense attorney on the same case that Sara is prosecuting. Jared is approached with the same thing: win the case or his wife will be killed.

Without the other knowing the looming danger to their spouse, Sara and Jared work tirelessly to save the other. Things get nasty and sooner or later their trust and marriage begin to break down.

Mr. Meltzer is one of my favorite authors! I’ve met him twice; he’s the nicest man! So sweet to his fans and most of my books and the children’s series I’ve gotten for our nieces and nephews are signed. This was the last book of his I had to read including his non-fiction works.

This book has thrills, murder, plot twists, lies, deceit and a wild scene in the NYC Subway. The chapters were a little long but they go fast. The story never falters or loses it rhythm. Pick up any of his novels and you won’t be disappointed! My favorite is still the Beecher White series that follows a Smithsonian Archivist.

[Shannon · Rating 2 out of 5]

“We had a good thing you stupid son of a bitch! We had a story, we had a decent cast of characters, we had a decent lawyer drama/thriller and it all ran like clockwork. But no! You just had to mess it up. YOU and your irrational villain and your weird action packed shoot-em-up ending that has no pay off as none of the characters would be in that final confrontation and win. If you had worked with your characters, known your place, we’d all be FINE right now…”

- Mike Ehrmantraut if he also read the book I dunno

[Dad · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this novel. It involved two young competitive attorneys at essentially early to midpoints in their legal careers who due to some curious acts, end up pitted against either in court. The author wove some excellent courtroom/legal system tension into a spellbinding romance novel filled with intrigue and plot twists. A real page turner from start to near the end...the ending cost it my fifth star. Enough said...

[Edwina Book Anaconda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Simply an average whodunit, not really *bad*, but, not something I would rush out to recommend to my book buddies either.

[Mercy Sakes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A married couple on different sides of the law are pitted against one another in a crime that appears simple and unimportant. An assistant district attorney and her husband, a defendant lawyer.

[Debbie J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dead Even is a romance-novel-ish legal thriller and a step or two above qualifying as an airport book. It’s not so much a whodunit as a "who'll do it," with the primary question being who's going to bring down whom.

I’m always ready to look askance at female protagonists written by men because in my literary experience such characters are usually stereotypical and shallow. Author Brad Meltzer seems to have tried hard to make heroine Sara extra tough but her internal voice isn’t realistic and comes across as juvenile and flighty.

The story proceeds nicely toward the finale when there’s a massive exposition dump with seemingly endless pages of dialogue to explain and wrap up loose ends. The dump follows a climax which barely amounts to more than a pile-on of guns and absurd coincidences.

Unfortunately, what begins promisingly as a clever nail-biter ultimately finds itself reading as a corny soap opera. Meltzer remains however one of my go-to writers whenever I want a non-challenging read that will hold my interest.

[Jason Brack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brad Meltzer is one on my favorite authors. He writes like I would want to write if I had talent. The story is riveting, you care about the characters. Overall a great read. I made my wife read it & she enjoyed it as well!

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book however; I didn’t think this was as good as The Tenth Justice. Not that I know anything about the inner workings of a New York City ADA’s routine, but I had a hard time accepting that an ADA would be left so unchecked. It took a few chapters for this story to get momentum with me and I almost put the book down. I’m glad I kept reading because the story picked up speed and unraveled an interesting conspiracy.

[Ithlilian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my go to book when the books from the library turned out to be duds. I'd carry it around as backup, until I was finally out of library books and had to exercise extra to finish it up. It's exciting, it's packed full of interesting characters with depth, and there is never a dull moment. It's more thriller than legal, but it's a great mix. I love all of the Melzter books, and these early ones are proving to be no exception, I can't wait to read more!

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

A legal mystery sort of in the style of John Grisham, but not nearly as good. I sort of liked the main characters - a married couple who are set up by some bad guys so that they are going against each other as prosecutor and defense attorney in a murder trial. Each thinks the other will be killed if they lose. At least their relationship remains intact in the end. Just so-so.

[Fran Alsaud · Rating 4 out of 5]

Esta fue mi primera novela de Brad Meltzer y me gustó mucho. La trama fue atrapante y no pude despegarme del libro, se desarrolló de forma rápida e intensa. Me gustaron mucho los protas y realmente desconfié de todos, lamentando el final de Conrad.

[Kaye Mallory · Rating 3 out of 5]

Twisty thriller pits husband against wife. I have to wonder how different this situation would have been if they had communicated with their bosses, or even each other... But I totally would have stolen some files too, if it meant me keeping my job!

BLURB: With his breakout New York Times bestseller, The Tenth Justice, Brad Meltzer asked us to consider a brutal question: How much can you really trust your friends? Now he pits husband against wife in a legal thriller with the most chilling ultimatum of all: Betray the person you love the most or risk losing them forever.Sara Tate, a Manhattan assistant D.A., is about to lose her job.

But the case she nabs to secure her professional future is far more complicated, and deadly, than it first appears. While forces within the D.A.'s office conspire against her, an outside threat looms larger: win the case or her attorney husband, Jared, will die. But Jared has been threatened as well. Strong-armed into defending the opposition, he learns that Sara will be killed should he lose the case. In court and at home, husband and wife go head-to-head while harboring the terrible secret of their motives. In a battle of rollercoaster emotions and shocking betrayals, Jared and Sara must face the unthinkable truth: No matter who wins, one of them will die.

[Morgen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a great book, but a fast read, a twisty mystery- a nice palate cleanser after some heavier, more literary fare that's been taking me longer to finish than I'm used to. New ADA Tate, desperate to prove her skills and avoid impending layoffs, grabs a seemingly simple case- a burglary in which the burglar was caught with engraved objects from the victim's house. Somehow it keeps getting more complicated- first a high priced lawyer from the firm she left (in disgrace) represents the client at arraignment, then her husband is hired to represent him at trial. And some mysterious guy with the fingerprints of a dead man is menacing her, threatening to harm her husband if she doesn't win, pushing her beloved grandfather down subway stairs. Meanwhile, hubby Jared is also receiving threats from his client and his deep pocketed backer- win or his wife dies. So, what's going on? Why is this simple robbery such a hot issue? Some of the dialogue was awkward, Sara's hot headed reactions to just about everything got annoying, and her assistant reminded me of Olaf the snowman with his whimsical comments in the midst of all the threats and violence- and I don't mean that as a compliment. But I'm grateful for an unpredictable page turner .

[Jason Ayer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a good example of why reading Meltzer's work is so disappointing: everyone has the same 'voice'. They all speak the same, have the same sarcastic lilt, the same propensity to make lists when making a point.

(grr, the lists. Think Tommy Lee Jones in the Fugitive. "...a hard-target search of every gas station, residence, warehouse, farmhouse, henhouse, outhouse and doghouse in that area.")

They make the same cultural references, and they all have the same dramatic style when revealing any information.

(I found something.
What?
You're not going to believe this.
What is it?
This is going to blow your mind.
Really? What did you find?
Ready for this?
and so on and so forth..........)

Lots of writers and their characters have this issue but it becomes overbearingly obvious and annoying when the writer is trying too hard to be clever.

The book itself? Not bad but it has too much of the sitcom syndrome; where people always have to act like morons in order for the plot to advance and a 10 minute conversation at any point would unravel all of it.

He's a good writer and this is an early book so I'm hoping some of these rough edges are smoothed out in his later novels.

[Charlotte Ehney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sara Tate is starting a new job as an Assistant District Attorney after a period of being unemployed when she was fired from her position at a law firm. Her husband Jared Lynch is a defense attorney at a prestigious law firm. Things are looking up. Then Sara learns that her new job is at risk due to possible budget cuts. In a desperate attempt to prove her value, Sara grabs an unassigned case file to prosecute. As she aggressively prepares for this case, Jared is hired by the defendant in the case to represent him. The catch - Jared has to win or Sara will be killed. Husband and wife must go head to head in court. Thus begins the race for both of them to win the case at all costs.

I am a huge Brad Meltzer fan but I have to say I did not like this novel. Dead Even was published in 1998 and I believe it was one of his first novels so it is not in the same league as his more recent books. The characters in Dead Even seem flat. The decisions they make during the course of the novel are strange and unrealistic, especially to be made by attorneys. I found myself repeatedly thinking "That would never happen" as I read the book.

[Richard West · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never cease to be amazed at the number of pages Goodreads shows - this is 343, not 400+.....it makes choosing the correct edition very complicated. Oh well.....

Early - as in very early - Brad Meltzer legal thriller which is interesting and keeps your attention, but at the same time you wonder, would people in a real setting be as stupid as some of these people are? Read the book and you'll understand. However, since this is early Meltzer, (he even has hair!!!), it is a writer refining his craft and it shows.

Since this was written, Meltzer has written - or co-authored - three non-fiction works, about 1000 kids books (or so it seems) and the occasional piece of fiction. More pieces of fiction would be welcomed since it's obvious he has come a long way since this one was written 'way back when. There's not a lot of good fiction out there at the moment and more Meltzer works would give those of us who enjoy his writing (even when it involves stupid people) would have something new to read!

If you're a Meltzer fan and haven't read this one - pick it up - it's enjoyable and is most definitely worth your time.