The Enemy Inside: a Paul Madriani Novel - Paul Madriani

Brief Description: Defending an innocent young man, defense attorney Paul Madriani uncovers a morass of corruption and greed that leads to the highest levels of political power in this electrifying tale of suspense from New York Times bestselling author Steve Martini. One of the most successful lawyers in the country, Olinda Serna is a master at managing money as well as her influential clients. After years of fierce combat in the political trenches, Serna knows all the dirty secrets, where the bodies are buried, and how deeply they are stacked. When she's killed in a roadside crash in the high desert of Southern California, powerful heads in Washington begin to panic, worried that their secrets may not be safe anymore. Alex Ives, a friend of Paul Madriani's daughter, is accused of vehicular manslaughter in Serna's death. Ives claims he had only one drink on the night of the accident, yet he can't remember anything between the time he left for a party north of San Diego and the moment he woke up in a hospital the next morning. He's still dazed and a little bruised, but also obviously very afraid. After all, a woman is dead, and he's sure he didn't kill her. To save an innocent young man's life, the brilliant defense attorney must uncover everything he can about Serna and her clients--no matter how unsavory--a search that will lead him into a vortex of corruption, and at its center, a devious killer poised to strike again. Review Quotes: Praise for Steve Martini: "Action-packed fun."--Oklahoma City OklahomanReview Quotes: "You like Law & Order? Or, even a John Grisham novel? Well, Steve Martini is one of the best of the best when it comes to crime thrillers."--Asbury Park PressReview Quotes: "A terrific series. . . . Steve Martini is an expert at good old-fashioned, gimmick-free storytelling."--Steve BerryReview Quotes: "Martini's proven formula for best-seller success combines the appeal of the legal thriller (Martini is a former prosecutor) with the high-concept adventure of, say, Vince Flynn and James Rollins."--BooklistReview Quotes: "Entertaining... Intriguing premise... Compelling courtroom scenes display a sophisticated knowledge of legal trench warfare."--Publishers WeeklyReview Quotes: "One of the most charismatic defense attorneys in thriller fiction. Madriani is a guy who won't quit. . . . Best of all, he's got the heart of a lion: protective, humane, courageous-that makes him such great fun to watch."--Linda FairsteinReview Quotes: "Steve Martini writes first-rate legal thrillers. His plotting is expert, his characters vivid and alive. His courtroom scenes are rich and credible, and so are his villains. . . . Paul Madriani makes a likable and convincing David among the goliaths of crime, corporations and government."--Associated PressReview Quotes: "Martini expertly pulls all the threads together as Madriani navigates an assortment of physical and professional challenges."--Publishers WeeklyPublisher Marketing: In this riveting new novel in the New York Times bestselling series, defense attorney Paul Madriani uncovers a morass of double-dealing and murder that leads him to the very highest levels of American political powerWhen a friend, Alex Ives, is implicated in a deadly motor collision on a deserted Southern California highway, Paul Madriani joins a case as tangled as any he's ever taken. Alex swears he had only one drink the night of the crash, but he also can't remember the events of the evening beyond the fact that he was to meet a sexy, mysterious woman at an elegant house party. The next morning he woke up in the hospital in police custody, charged with drunk driving and manslaughter. When Paul discovers that Alex knew the deceased, a connected, hard-charging Washington, D. C., lawyer named Olinda Serna, Madriani realizes the potential penalties for his client could include a death sentence. Across the country in Washington, D. C., attorney Cletus Proffit learns that his law firm nemesis, Ms. Serna, has died in California. Proffit knows that Serna protected dangerous secrets involving players moving in the highest reaches of national politics, and he will go to any lengths to ensure that that knowledge has died with her. Senator Maya Grimes also hears of the fatal crash, and begins crafting her own web of deceit to suffocate anything that might come back to bite her. In the meantime, a vicious, highly effective mercenary--a woman whose calling card is the ability to kill her victims in horrifying, utterly untraceable accidents--begins to panic when she gets word of Serna's death in Southern California and the manner in which it occurred. Now the only way to save a young man from imprisonment is for Madriani, his partner, Harry Hinds, and investigator Herman Diggs to uncover the corruption and dark deeds that surround Ms. Serna's friends and find her killer--before he or she can strike again. Review Citations:

Publishers Weekly 03/30/2015 (EAN 9780062328939, Hardcover)

Contributor Bio:  Martini, Steve Steve Martini was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay area. An honors graduate of the University of California at Santa Cruz, he holds a law degree from the University of the Pacific's McGeorge School of Law. During his legal career, he worked as a legislative representative for the State Bar of California, served as special counsel to the California Victims of Violent Crimes Program, and was an administrative law judge and supervising hearing officer. In 1984 Martini turned his talents to fiction, and became a "New York Times" bestselling author of twelve novels, including eight featuring his popular lawyer alter ego, Paul Madriani.