Review by Jim McCarthy
Admittedly, this reviewer, a retired attorney, favors reading legal novels, especially thrillers or suspense tales. Scott Turow ventured away from US shores to craft a story about an incident in the very complicated ethnic conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina decades ago. The protagonist is undertaking a new phase of his legal and marital lives to volunteer with the International Court of Criminal Justice to probe the rumored mass killing of a group of Gypsies.
There are a few bad guys and a number of others, including women, who may or may not be bad, two of whom become romantically involved with the novel’s protagonist as he searches for new loves in his life as a mid-life crisis envelops him. Traveling between the US, Bosnia, and The Hague on his investigative journey, William ten Boom discovers strengths and weaknesses within himself that were hidden but serve to inform and educate his understanding of the motives of others who play a role in the mysteries of the wartime conflict.
The primary plot was sufficient to intrigue a reader but the romantic subplots felt distracting, even superfluous at times. Mr. ten Boom, using his investigative skills, unravels hidden secrets about his family’s origins and the depths of deceptions in which others engage for personal gain. Not quite a LeCarre thriller but close enough for treatment on the big screen.
Certainly, Turow fans will not be disappointed and likely pleased at his transition from the Kindle County of Presumed Innocent and many other of his works to an international legal forum. He’s a great wordsmith and story teller.
Categories: Book Review
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