Richard North Patterson

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BOOKS BY THIS AUTHOR


Title: Dark Lady: Description:
Dashiell Hammett, a master of big-city crime fiction, would have enjoyed Richard North Patterson's latest thriller, set in a fictional Midwestern city called Steelton. This burnt-out burg is located on the shores of Lake Erie, and is a place bitterly divided by politics. The construction of a $275 million baseball stadium threatens to be Steelton's downfall, rather than its redemption. Arthur Bright is Prosecutor of Erie County, but wants to become mayor. His campaign attacks the new ballpark as a sham, "a shameful diversion of public financing from such pressing needs as better schools, better housing, and safer streets." His protégé, Assistant County Prosecutor Stella Marz, is 38, ambitious and has been dubbed "the dark lady" by various defence lawyers. If Arthur wins the mayoral race, she intends to become Prosecutor herself. But two murders involving drugs and twisted sex threaten her future. First, Tommy Fielding, the project manager for Steelton 2000 (as the new home of the Steelton Blues will be called), is found dead in the company of a hooker--both apparently overdosed on heroin. The fact that Fielding was gay and had never used drugs before bothers Stella and Chief of Detectives Nathaniel Dance. Their worries are soon pushed aside by another, more shocking murder--Jack Novak, a defence lawyer is discovered hanging from his closet door, castrated and dressed in drag. Jack was once Stella's lover--and was also one of Bright's largest contributors. For Stella, the murders are too close to home. "Maybe this is about me. But I have to see it through." Dark Lady is shrouded by the clouds of deceit and greed, and the sleek structure of Steelton 2000 dominates the landscape like a Dr.Frankenstein's Castle with luxury boxes. --Dick Adler

Title: Silent Witness: Description:
At the peak of his legal career, Tony Lord is suddenly called to defend his friend, Sam Robb, who is charged with murder. However, Lord has regrets about returning to Lake City, Ohio, where he too, was suspected of murder. Yet, knowing the pain of unjust accusation, he feels compelled to help Sam.

Title: No Safe Place: Description:
A political thriller raising questions about abortion politics, the gun culture in America, and the degree to which the press should expose the private lives of political leaders. By the author of "Degrees of Guilt" and "Silent Witness".

Title: Degree Of Guilt: Description:
An American courtroom drama in which the defendant's claim of self-defence is slowly undermined and the truth is gradually revealed. The defence attorney is faced with an inescapable dilemma of ethics and emotion, as the secrets of his own life become intertwined with the murder trial itself.

Title: The Final Judgement: Description:
A family-revenge story and courtroom drama. A young man is brutally murdered and his distraught girlfriend is charged and brought to trial. Her aunt, about to take up a top job in the US Court of Appeals, decides to defend her, but it is the girl's first contact with her family for 20 years.

Title: The Lasko Tangent: Description:
William Lasko is a self-made millionaire with an eye for wealth and influence, the ear of the president, and a talent for using both to get what he wants. Now the Economic Crime Commission wants Lasko brought down, and US Attorney Christopher Paget is tipped to take on the job.

Title: Balance Of Power: Description:
From the courtrooms to the White House, an epic novel which confronts the terrible toll of gun violence and reveals the political manoeuvring behind this inflammatory issue...Five months into his term, President Kilcannon and his fiancee, television journalist Lara Costello, have decided to marry. But the occasion is followed by a terrible tragedy: a massacre of innocents in a lethal burst of gunfire. It is a shattering event that consumes Kilcannon and his wife, challenging both their marriage, and his Presidency in such a personal way that Kilcannon vows to eradicate gun violence throughout the US. In a high-stakes game of politics and legal manoeuvring where ideals collide in the Senate, the courtroom and across the the country, President Kilcannon is determined to win at any cost. But in the clash over gun rights and violence, the cost to both Kilcannons may be even higher than the President imagined.

Title: Exile: Description:
David Wolfe is an ambitious former homicide prosecutor who is planning to run for Congress. A political dinner for the Israeli Prime Minister is hosted by his current girlfriend, Carole Shorr, a liberal supporter of both the Palestinian and Israeli causes. But when David receives a call from Hana Ashawi, a Palestinian woman who was David's classmate at Harvard Law School, he is rattled. Hana was more than a peer - she was his lover. When, furthermore, the Israeli Prime Minister is assassinated, apparently by Hana's partner, David finds himself thrown into a situation with enormous global, political and emotional implications. "An astonishing book, ahugely entertaining human drama that also offers remarkable insight into the lethal conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Richard North Patterson has outdone himself - "Exile" is his best novel yet." - Bill Clinton. "If you like political thrillers with a legal dimension this is a fine example of the genre: a strong story about a real dilemma with colourful characters" - "Daily Mail"."Every now and then - but a lot more rarely than that implies - you come across a thriller so important that it absolutely demands to be read. This is one..." - "The Times".

Title: Private Screening: Description:
A Presidential hopeful is shot dead while on stage with his rock-star girlfriend, and the resulting trial becomes the media event of the decade. As America watches the trial, a mysterious, ruthless figure takes to the airwaves in the ultimate act of terror. By the author of "Degree of Guilt".

Title: Escape The Night: Description:
Thirty-year-old Peter Carey's recurring nightmare of his parent's violent death explodes into a real-life nightmare involving a psychotic magnate, a grotesque stranger, and an unknown secret enemy.

Title: The Race: Description:
Corey Grace - a handsome and charismatic Republican senator from Ohio - is plunged by an act of terrorism into a fierce presidential primary battle with the favorite of the party establishment and a magnetic leader of the Christian right. A decorated Gulf War pilot, Grace insists on voting his own conscience rather than the party line, and this stubborn independence - together with his growing romance with Lexie Hart, an African-American movie star - has earned him a reputation as an unpredictable iconoclast. But Grace is still haunted by a tragic mistake buried deep in his past, and now his integrity will be put to the test in this most brutal of political contests, in which nothing in his past or present life is off-limits.A vivid and sometimes frightening depiction of contemporary power politics, "The Race" culminates in a deadlocked and febrile party convention where Grace must resolve the conflict between his feelings for Lexie and his presidential ambitions - and decide just who and what he is willing to sacrifice.

Title: Exile: Description:
'"Exile" is an astonishing book, a hugely entertaining human drama that also offers remarkable insight into the lethal conflict between Israelis and Palestinians. Richard North Patterson has outdone himself - "Exile" is his best novel yet.' - Bill Clinton.David Wolfe is an ambitious former homicide prosecutor who is planning to run for Congress. A political dinner for the Israeli Prime Minister is hosted by his current girlfriend, Carole Shorr, a liberal supporter of both the Palestinian and Israeli causes. But when David receives a call from Hana Ashawi, a Palestinian woman who was David's classmate at Harvard Law School, he is rattled. Hana was more than a peer - she was his lover. Suddenly David finds himself in a situation with enormous global and political implications as well as emotional ones. A new pact between the rival factions in Palestine is planned, and David and Carole decide to watch the historic moment when the parties will all meet. It turns out to be an occasion of desperate, tragic and far reaching consequences...

Title: Balance Of Power: Description:
'A must read for anyone interested in the gun debate' - Bill Clinton. Five months into his term, President Kilcannon and his fiancee, television journalist Lara Costello, have decided to marry. But the occasion is followed by a terrible tragedy: a massacre of innocents in a lethal burst of gunfire. It is a shattering event that consumes Kilcannon and his wife, challenging both their marriage, and his Presidency in such a personal way that Kilcannon vows to eradicate gun violence throughout the US. In a high-stakes game of politics and legal manoeuvring where ideals collide in the Senate, the courtroom and across the country, President Kilcannon is determined to win at any cost. But in the clash over gun rights and violence, the cost to both Kilcannons may be even higher than the President imagined. 'Patterson has the rare gift of enthralling as he informs' - Mark Lawson, "The Guardian".

Title: Protect And Defend: Description:
On a cold day in January President Kerry Kilcannon takes the oath of office-- and within days makes his first, most important move: appointing a new Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Kilcannon's choice is a female judge with a brilliant record. And a secret. While the Senate spars over Caroline Masters' nomination, an inflammatory abortion rights case is making its way toward the judge--and will explode into the headlines. Suddenly, the most divisive issue in America turns the President's nomination into all-out war. And from Judge Masters to a conservative, war-hero senator facing a crisis of conscience and a fifteen-year-old girl battling for her future, no one will be safe. Protect and Defend takes us on a riveting journey between what is legal, what is right . . . and the price of finally knowing the difference.

Title: Eyes Of A Child: Description:
Chris Paget's well ordered world is blown apart by his love for his assistant, Terri, in the sequel to Degree of Guilt. Terri's ex husband, Ricky, is determined to destroy them both and instigates a child custody battle for Terri's four-year old daughter, accusing Terri of neglect and Paget's teenage son of sexual molestation. Then Ricky is murdered and Paget finds himself the principle suspect, on trial for his life. Eyes of a Child demonstrates why North Patterson is an international bestselling author. The pace is superb, the court room scenes unsurpassable, but most importantly the compelling characters, particularly Ricky, Terri's cunning and amoral husband, show North Patterson as one of the strongest storytellers writing today.