Killer Heat by Linda Fairstein
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Book Reviews of Killer Heat
Book Review: A killer hot legal thriller
Summary: 5 Stars
I love the Alex Cooper books both because they are great legal thriller and because of the New York history lessons Linda Fairstein includes as part of the plot. This one has Governors Island, which I saw every day from the windows of my last apartment in NYC, and a couple other interesting "ghost islands."
I think the book stands on its own pretty well, but if you are new to the Alex Cooper series, I strongly suggest that you resist the temptation to start with this book and instead go back to the beginning of the series. The relationship among Chapman, Mercer and Cooper is a big part of the books and you don't get the full flavor of how it has developed without reading the books in order. Nor do you fully understand why Cooper has such a weak love life. But if you simply can't resist, go ahead and read Killer Heat and then fill in the back story later on. You will still find this a page turner of a thriller.
One thing I was glad about in this book is that Alex is starting to think more about her own self-protection. In past books I wished Mike and/or Mercer didn't always have to come to her rescue.
Great series; must read books.
Book Review: Great Read!
Summary: 4 Stars
I'm so glad that Linda Fairstein is back on track; each of her last several books has been riveting, and Killer Heat is no exception.
It is a brutally hot New York summer, and we can almost feel it as our heroine Alexandra Cooper and her sidekicks Mike and Mercer find themselves on the trail of a particularly brutal serial rapist/killer. As they try desperately for clues, the high-profile case is involving the Mayor, who has to assuage the press, and everyone on down, from the Police Chief to the Homicide Squad to the Sex Crimes Unit. Our three have to battle the unrelenting heat, long hours, and seemingly endless tangled and incomphrehensible clues. Meanwhile, the killer is active.
Wound around the tale is an interesting history of New York's islands, some deserted, some used as historical sites. The only reason I gave this book 4 starts instead of 5 was because, although it is very interesting, it tended to stop the story in its tracks. It is always Mike Chapman who delivers the history, as he is a buff, but no matter how fascinating it is, it is sometimes jarring.
Small criticism. The book is a fast read, and can't-put-down mystery, and I finished it in the shade sitting around a pool. Can't get better than that!
Book Review: killer heat
Summary: 4 Stars
I loved the story. I'm very careful about scary books that I read because I live in the back of beyond. Killer Heat was suspenseful enough to make me want to read it straight through, but I didn't hear noises all night after closing the cover. Also, this is my first large print book and it made reading it easy and relaxed. Thanks for another wonderful book in a great format.Book Review: Series still good but slowing down
Summary: 3 Stars
Fairstein's novels are still better than many books out there. But I have to agree with the reviewer who said the series has gotten a cookie-cutter feel. The characters aren't growing from book to book. Alex hangs out with the cops and a limited group of girl friends. She and her cop friend Mike have the Jeopardy bet. She spends time on crime scenes working with the police.
What Fairstein does instead is introduce us to different parts of New York and we get a sense of history. That's good but as mystery readers, we want character and plot.
The strongest parts of the book take us behind the scenes, so we learn how a prosecutor prepares for trial, how she works with witnesses, and similar background. But Alex has to get out of her own history and show some growth. Maybe it's time to send her off to private practice, so she can capitalize on what she's learned. Or give her a challenging personal life. She's almost too perfect: I want to see how she struggles and grows.
One quibble: Perhaps my sensibilities as a mystery reader have changed since I've become aware of the Innocence Project, the DVDs Capturing the Friedmans and Paradise Lost, and the infamous Duke lacrosse player case. To buy into the mystery (especially police procedurals like this one) you need to accept good guys vs bad guys -- and our heroine is on the side of the angels, of course.
So I was a little dismayed when Alex keeps a witness in the station house. She admits she couldn't legally force the woman to remain but she bluffed. Lacking a lawyer and thoroughly intimidated, the woman believed her.
That's great if you really need to capture a serial killer and the witness really has solid information for you. But from what I've read, the lines often get blurred. Innocent people are afraid to leave and after a long, scary interrogation, they say anything to get food or sleep. Look at the Amanda Knox case, where we've just been told the interrogators even hit her at one point.
Innocent people do confess under these conditions and witnesses tweak their memories. So I was somewhat appalled to see this scene in a popular novel in 2008. It seems to reinforce the negative portrayal of DAs we are getting in the media.
Book Review: This is Fairstein's best
Summary: 5 Stars
"Killer Heat" is Linda Faristein's best novel, yet. Her books just get better and better; and I can hardly wait until the next book is revealed to us.