Last Witness

"Last Witness" by Jilliane Hoffman, is either a sequel to her first book, "Retribution", or the second in a series. I say this because the way the book ends, there seems to be room left for a threequel, at least. Hoffman is master of the courtroom drama, with plots that twist and turn until you think you're going to need Dramamine before you can finish reading it. Her books are pretty violent, too. In other words, my cup of tea.

In "Last Witness", cops are being killed at the rate of one per day. It is widely believed that they are being killed by drug dealers, because they cut out their victims' tongues, which is called a "Colombian Necktie." Our heroine, C.J. Townsend suspects that it has nothing to do with drugs.

It seems that, a few years ago, in another life as Chloe Johanna Larson, C.J. was raped and left for dead by a serial rapist who was never caught She moved to Miami, Florida, as C.J. Townsend, took the Florida bar exam, and became a State Attorney, where she was assigned to handle the trial of an accused serial killer called "Cupid". During the course of the trial, the defendant protested, claiming that he was not guilty, and C.J. (Chloe) recognized his voice as that of the man who had raped and almost killed her just a few years earlier in New York.

Then, she found out that he was arrested on the basis of an illegal search, but she was so obsessed with wanting to convict him, she helped the bungling police officer hide the exculpatory evidence. The guy was duly convicted and sent to death row.

Now, cops arre being killed, and, concidentally, they are the same ones who had worked on the "Cupid" case. C.J. realizes that everyone having any knowledge of the trial cover-up is being killed and she is probably next. But, she can't go to the police without 'fessing up about the previous trial's cover-up and her part in it. She is up Sh*t Creek, as we say in the south.

Things get murkier and murkier and C.J. has to stay one step ahead of everyone, so they won't find out what she has done. She especially doesn't want her boyfriend, who is a no-nonsense, by-the-book cop, to find out because she knows he'll have to turn her in.

This was a difficult book review, because to explain this one, I had to ruin the first one for you, so if you haven't read the first one, I'm sorry. I can tell you that both books will definitely keep your attention. And, if her third one turns out to be a threequel, I won't review it at all.