Mortal Allies
 Brian Haig
 (Reviewer - Narayan Radhakrishnan)
 2002 Warner Books
  ISBN: 0446530263

JAG Lawyer Sean Drummond is called to defend an American soldier accused of the gay rape & murder of a South Korean soldier.

Sr. Reviewer - Narayan Radhakrishnan writes:

JAG lawyer Sean Drummond is back with a BANG in the new Brian Haig military-legal thriller Mortal Allies, following the success of his Secret Sanction.

Drummond is called from vacation to serve as counsel to Captain Thomas Whitehall who has been accused of the gay rape-murder & necrophilia of a Korean soldier.

The murder has its political implications also -- the deceased being the son of the South Korean Defense Minister. On arrival in Korea, Drummond is informed that he is only the co-counsel in the defense team & that civilian lawyer, Katherine Carlson, will be the lead counsel. Drummond & Carlson, though classmates in the law school, never saw eye-to-eye on anything, & their relationship is far from cordial.

While Carlson, who has made a career out of defending homosexuals & arguing gay rights, has had little experience in military law, Drummond is at home in militia-legal procedure, although it is the first time he is defending a client on charges of gay-rape & necrophilia.

Captain Whitehall, while admitting to being a homosexual, denies the other charges. Drummond & Carlson investigate into the matter & find that Whitehall has been made a scapegoat -- that there is a bigger conspiracy that might even involve the break-up of the U.S./South Korean Military Alliance.

Drummond is a street-smart, wise-guy character. He is patriotic, but not a jingoist, & he doesn't hesitate to point out a wrong, reminding me of MASH's Hawkeye. The clashes & constant effort to be “one-up on the otherø between Carlson & Drummond, makes for an interesting & amusing read -- similar to Ruth Gordon's Adam's Rib (yes, the Tracy/Hepburn movie), & in Ivan Reitman's Legal Eagles. However, Haig has presented a really tough question that has found no effective answer -- the question of the rights of gays in the armed forces. Though the author speaks of OGMM (Organization for Gay Military Members), formed to protect the rights of gays, it still remains a vital issue in the armed forces.

Gay rights & homosexuality have been effectively dealt with in many a legal thriller (Authors Michael Nava's series protagonist Henry Rios & Tony Fennelly's Matthew Sinclair are gay lawyers) like Lynn Harris' Abide With Me, Mortal Allies I believe, is the first work that has dealt with the issue of such rights in the armed forces. Strong-themed & devoid of heavy legalese, Mortal Allies keeps the reader riveted.

A couple of months back after reading Haig's Secret Sanction, & Norm Harris' Fruit of a Poisonous Tree, I voiced my thoughts on the possibility of a new sub-genre in popular legal-fiction-the military legal thriller. Now with Haig publishing Mortal Allies, & Norm Harris already at work on his next JAG thriller, I can definitely assure you, a new sub-genre in legal thrillers has been born, & Harris & Haig are its exponents.

A fantastic read! Highly recommended.
(06/30/02)

Narayan
2002©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