DEAD LAWYERS DON'T LIE
by
Mark Nolan
Genre: Mystery Thriller
A mysterious killer who calls himself The Artist is assassinating wealthy lawyers in San Francisco. When photo-journalist Jake Wolfe accidentally takes his picture during a murder, The Artist adds Jake to his kill list and he becomes a target in a deadly game of cat and mouse that only one of them can survive. How far would you go to protect your family and friends from a killer? How many laws would you break? Jake is a veteran who wants to leave his past life behind him, but the reluctant, flawed hero finds that he can't ignore his duty and his personal moral compass.
This gripping thriller is full of suspense, plot twists and surprises. It features a cast of interesting characters, including several strong-willed women, two wise-cracking San Francisco Police Homicide Inspectors, one highly intelligent dog, and a philosophical killer who shares Jake's admiration for Van Gogh paintings but still plans to kill him anyway. As Jake gets closer to unraveling a merciless conspiracy, his life gets turned upside down and the danger level increases, adding to the growing suspense. This entertaining page-turner starts out as a murder mystery and then shifts gears into a high-speed action thriller that takes you on a roller-coaster ride to the riveting ending.
As Jake observed the four lawyers playing golf, and recorded them on video, he felt a weird sense of impending danger and a tingling at the back of his neck. It was something he’d felt a few times while deployed in the military. He checked his car mirrors and looked around the area. But didn’t see anything unusual, so he turned his attention back to the golf foursome.
The lawyers were drinking their beers when they heard a strange muffled sound that seemed to come from the nearby trees. An area known to golfers as “the woods.” That noise was immediately followed by a dull thud that sounded like somebody getting punched hard in the chest by a fist.
Richard Caxton staggered backward several steps, dropped his beer and cigar, and fell flat on his back. The other lawyers gathered around him and they gasped in shock as they saw their friend groaning in agony and bleeding heavily from a sucking chest wound. In a split second, the once wealthy and seemingly invincible lawyer was suddenly dying on the lush green lawn with a look of total surprise on his face.
“Help me,” Caxton said in a hoarse voice, as foamy blood bubbled from his lips and from the hole in his chest.
“He must have been shot by a sniper,” one of the lawyers said, looking around in panic. “I think the shot came from the woods.”
The lawyers glanced at the woods and came to the realization that they could be shot next. Each of them had plenty of enemies and now they felt what it was like to be on the receiving end of an unstoppable power that could destroy their lives. One of the lawyers took off running towards the nearby clubhouse, and the other two quickly ran after him. None of the men tried to help Caxton. It was every lawyer for himself.
As Caxton was dying, he wondered if one of his law firm’s many victims might have sought justice through revenge. So many people hated him; it made a long list. At 12:18 pm Pacific Time, Caxton let out a final gasp of breath, his dishonest heart stopped beating, and his days of lying for a living came to an end.
✯✯✯✯✯Exciting, thrilling, suspense, romance and laughter all rolled into one amazing book.
ByWeather-Woman Verified Purchase
I wish I could have given this book 10 stars--it is that good. It is an amazing book that I will not soon forget. You can't help but fall in love with Jake and Cody. What an incredible pair they are. Jake has a unique way of bringing humor and light-heartedness to serious situations. I found myself bursting into laughter at some of the “play-on-words” Jake expresses.
The book took so many twists and turns it had me on the edge of my seat practically the whole time I was reading. The detail in the book is exquisite. It is a hard book to put down. It definitely kept me wondering what came next and what was going to happen to Jake and Cody. The book definitely leaves one wanting more.
If you like playing detective, you will love this book.
He skillfully introduced all the characters throughout the book and what a cast it is. My emotions were all over the place as I read. I'm so looking forward to the next book.
✯✯✯✯✯Something for every crime reader
ByPortalice Verified Purchase
The title didn't lie - this is a gripping thriller. Author Nolan's book encompasses everything a reader of crime stories could want - a Russian assassin, a hero and his service dog, both with incredible military training, the San Francisco PD with a roster of intriguing characters, the FBI, the Secret Service, even the President of the US. Beside many sidebar stories that kept me reading, the hero and the assassin wage war in unlikely places like the ductwork of a hospital and from pleasure boats in San Francisco Bay to the bay itself. The very first car chase had me holding my breath; the climax, with one surprise after another, had me gasping. Often I am turned off by the language in crime thrillers but Nolan achieves this without profanity. He also achieves passionate, but tasteful love scenes. Nolan left me wanting more. I,as I assume many readers, hope there will be a series of exciting novels about Jake Wolfe and his dog Cody.
Mark Nolan began his writing career as a successful entrepreneur who created news stories for businesses that were featured in The Wall Street Journal, National Geographic, Parade, Readers Digest and Associated Press. Nolan was born in San Francisco, grew up in the Bay Area of California and has also lived in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii.
