Relentless Hartt
 Monica Donaldson
 (Reviewer - Narayan Radhakrishnan)
 2002 Great Unpublished
  ISBN: 1588987590

Lexi Hartt, a bright young attorney recently in solo practice, defends a young woman accused of murdering her husband.

Sr. Reviewer - Narayan Radhakrishnan writes:

Alexis Hartt, the heroine of this debut legal thriller, reminds me a lot of the character Stephanie Zimbalist played in Remington Steele. Feisty, gutsy & spirited, Hartt is a person all set to prove something in a male dominated world -- hence the title Relentless Hartt.

Daughter of a powerful & rich lawyer, Lexi Hart has given her best for her father's law firm. Denied the respect due her, & the acknowledgement her talent & hard work deserves, Hartt decides to leave for solo practice.

However, her independent practice is nothing to boast about -- as the author puts it -- “Alexis J. Hartt, Attorney at Law...it might as well read, ‘police line -- do not cross,' or ‘danger, condemned building.'”

Then the dream case -- one that would make or break her -- falls into her hands. Her client is Nancy Murphy, & she wants Lexi to defend her daughter, Sheldon McAllister, on charges of poisoning her wealthy husband. Hartt faces an uphill task because all evidence points to Sheldon's guilt. It is up to Lexi to pit her wits against an array of powerful forces including her father, the prosecutor & the villain of the story, Reverend Joy, a cult leader.

What follows is Hartt's investigation into the death, with twists, double- & triple-twists ending in an exciting finish.

Relentless Hartt is an easy read. Though the plot is somewhat quaint by today's mystery standards, I found it cute. It reminded me of some of the Lon Chaney/Bela Lugosi chiller thriller movies of the Forties & Fifties.

Donaldson knows how to keep Readers' attention riveted -- her style is reminiscent of early Lisa Scottoline works. I am sure that the author has in her the stuff to pen more legal thrillers, & I wouldn't be surprised to catch a Lexi Hartt thriller dominating the bestseller shelves in the near future.
(01/05/03)

Narayan
2003©Narayan Radhakrishnan
A RebeccasReads.Com Sr. Associate Reviewer

Reviewer's Bio:
I am a 26 years old lawyer practicing in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. Along with my legal practice, I have finished post-graduate studies for both Business Law & Human Rights. I am a self proclaimed numero-uno legal thriller lover & am the proud owner of all of Grisham's & Turow's novels. I enjoy John Mortimer's Rumpole & relish an occasional Martini & a rare Scot(ch)t-oline with a Patterson on the side.

My work A FICTION OF LAW is now about 500 pages in length & features 500 lawyer authors & 2000 legal thrillers covering a 300 year period - inclusive of entries from the USA, UK, Asia, Europe, China, Middle East etc. Still in search of a publisher.
www.keralatourism.org