The Hamptons Lawyer: A Jane Smith Thriller, James Patterson, Mike Lupica, authors, Eva Kaminsky, narrator
Jane “Effing” Smith is a snarky, sarcastic, former cop. Now she is an accomplished defense attorney in the upscale world of the Hamptons. She is very well known for she has never lost a case. She is also suffering from terminal cancer which is a major emphasis in the book, so beware. Jane works with another former cop, Jimmy Cunniff who has an equal reputation as a tough guy. He is also known for his principles. He owns and operates a “good cop” bar. Jimmy and Jane are very close. He is completely devoted to her and to her dog, Rip. She depends on him for support and friendship. Jane is a no-nonsense tough cookie who makes what she thinks are very witty remarks. She has an answer for everything.
Jane’s current client is not a nice guy. This man, accused of murdering three people, including a child, does not seem to have any redeeming features. Rob Jacobson’s reputation is far from stellar. There are few lawyers who would willingly defend him. Jane, however, has successfully defended him before. Her sister Brigid met him at Duke University. Rob Jacobson, preys on young girls, and although married, he also has mistresses galore, one of whom is Jane’s sister Brigid. For some reason, if you can believe this, he is so likeable and has such a charismatic personality, that he attracts people like bees to honey. To believe that, however, the reader will have to suspend disbelief. I disliked him intensely, as I did most of the characters.
Between the court case defending Rob Jacobson for his murder charge, and Jane’s cancer treatment, there is one bright spot on the horizon. Doctor Ben Kalinsky, a brilliant veterinarian, is wildly in love with her and hopes to marry her, even with her illness. Married once before to Martin Elian, an irresponsible, unrequited gambler, she can’t believe that this kind man worships her, and she won’t say yes. Unbeknownst to her, her ex-husband is in grave danger because of his gambling debts.
So, now you know the whole idea of the book. Bad men, bad behavior, lots of threats of violence followed by real violence. There are lots of cold-hearted, evil characters in this book, but many receive their just rewards, although seemingly just because they had to be removed to give this novel a purpose, no matter how nebulous.
The novel is billed as a thriller, but it dwelt too much on the main character’s life-threatening illness, which seemed to be genetic. It also afflicted her mom and her sister Brigid. Cancer survival is a major emphasis of the novel. Perhaps the author wanted to show that there is always hope and that life is to be lived for as long as we are able, but instead, since so many of the characters were suffering from catastrophic diseases, it was often depressing. Occasionally, I thought it was going to veer into science fiction at some point, or become a novel about another pandemic, this time one far worse if that can be imagined.
There was definitely an over use of trite phrases in this novel. Also, I think this novel could be billed as a romance novel about the odds of beating cancer as an alternative to a novel that is a thriller about cold-blooded killers who exact retribution for gambling debts owed. The thriller theme seemed almost like an afterthought. I usually await Patterson novels with baited breath, but this one, although it was a quick read, seemed to fall short of the mark. The humor fell flat, the dialogue was a bit hackneyed with canned retorts, and the story rambled on a bit. Although most of the loose ends were tied together at the end, there were still some questions remaining, perhaps the next book in the Jane Smith series.
This novel is a classic example of chick lit and would be fine on a beach or perhaps a plane ride. It is a quick read and is certainly not rocket science. \