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Tatum
Graham is a successful, wealthy defense attorney who has never
lost a case. Discovering his newly acquitted client really
was truly guilty of murder sends Tatum off on the road from
Miami without an apparent destination in mind. Or was there
when he ends up in the small Utah town of his birth. There
he finds a father dying of cancer, and an old girlfriend,
now the town's sheriff, and himself the prosecutor in the
murder trial of a young girl.
One can't always judge a character by the opening. Just when
one thinks one has a bead on him, he surprises you. And isn't
it nice when that happens?
Tatum is something of a study in contrasts. On one hand, he
is the no-holds-barred attorney; abrasive, egotistical, even
rude. Then the man within the shell shows up and draws one
in to see what a well-constructed, fully developed character
he is. The excerpts from "The Art of Jury Trial as War,"
a book only being written in Tatum's head so far, are interesting
and thought-provoking. The occasional flashes of humor, and
the dog, are a lovely diversion.
Methos
really knows how to twist a plot. The best part is that the
protagonist is as surprised as are we. And twists and turns
there are galore. Yet there is also an excellent balance between
the legal information, which is fascinating, and the personal
aspects of the story, which is relatable and can touch one's
heart.
The
Hallows is an excellent legal mystery filled with great
characters who make one almost wish this wasn't a standalone.
However, it also proves Thomas Wolfe wrong. One can go home
again.
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