Under Oath
Margaret McLean
(Reviewer - Narayan Radhakrishnan)
2004 Hot House Press
ISBN: 0970047681

A fast-paced murder & conspiracy trial set against a city's code of silence & its notorious crime syndicate.

Senior Associate Reviewer Narayan Radhakrishnan writes:

As a lawyer & an aficionado of legal thrillers, I have read hundreds of legal thrillers per year for years, more since becoming the Associate Reviewer for legal thrillers of this marvelous site -- I get the opportunity to read & review the best & latest among legal thrillers, hot off the presses.

Legal thrillers are the “in” thing in the mystery genre, & more & more attorneys are turning to legal thriller writing every year. However, I found that the term “legal thriller” has been used rather expansively: Add a lawyer protagonist to the story & it's a legal thriller seems to be the theme. Courtroom action has become a rarity, &, if at all, it is generally courtroom antics rather than in depth legal action. I have been yearning for a legal thriller that also is a courtroom thriller for quite some time now -- of the like of Robert Traver’s Anatomy Of A Murder, Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird or of the like written by Scott Turow & Richard North Patterson.

So, when Under Oath arrived I felt I'd been blessed. After a long, long drought -- here is a legal thriller that is also a courtroom drama of the first order. Margaret McLean, an erstwhile criminal prosecutor & Assistant District Attorney, puts to excellent use her trial experiences as background in this superb tale about a high profile murder trial.

The town of Charlestown is in frenzy: Billy & Frank Malone, the most notorious criminals Massachusetts has ever known, stand accused of killing an FBI informant, Trevor Shea. There is no doubt that the brothers did it, but is there enough evidence?

Detective Michael Callahan, along with Trevor’s brother & sister join together to collect solid proof that will help bring the guilty to book. Up against them is the crime syndicate of the Malone family that will stop at nothing to destroy evidence, including bribery, intimidating jurors &, of course, murder.

Presenting the case is seasoned prosecutor Anson Mitchell. Up against him is the flamboyant & cunning defense lawyer Buddy Clancy. What follows is fine courtroom action with the detective & the Sheas trying to bring to book the ruthless criminals, beating all odds, & at the same time keeping their lives intact.

Under Oath is without doubt a wonderful read, although I have one complaint: The three protagonists are Michael, Michaela & Mitchell -- & I often got confused. However, Under Oath is a great read. Looking forward to more from this lawyer-cum-author.

Greatly recommended.
(01/02/05)

Narayan
2005©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