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Showing posts with label Legal Thriller. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Legal Thriller. Show all posts
Harper | 5 May 2020 | 400 pgs
Source: Library
© 2021 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
William Morrow | 27 October 2020 | 528 pgs
Source: Publisher via Edelweiss
The book opens with our protagonist, Tabitha Hardy, being held up in a cell and is on remand for the murder of Stuart Rees. Tabitha has recently returned to her old hometown in Okeham to refurbish her house left by her late parents. Stuart's body was first found in her shed by her handyman friend and while Tabitha has a history of depression and traumatic stress which was caused by a sexual abuse when she was fifteen, she has no recollection of murdering Stuart despite he abused her years ago. With no one to turn to for support, Tabitha knows she can only depend on herself to fight the case when her legal counsel advises her to plead guilty for manslaughter with mitigating circumstances. Despite having no knowledge of the law, Tabitha strives on defending for herself for the need to prove her innocence and to find the truth. Together with Michaela, an ex-cellmate and now her McKenzie friend, they attempt to solve the case just when everyone thinks she is insane and that she has no chance of overthrowing the trial.
Truth be told, I'd had a bumpy reading experience initially due to the slow pace and on top of that, Tabitha wasn't a person whom you could warm up to easily given her erratic temperament. However, as the story progresses, I find myself intrigued by Tabitha's story both present and past and not to mention her meticulous findings despite being confined in a small cell. So, while she may not be a likeable character, I still find myself rooting for her eventually.
I'd end this review by saying that Nicci French (pseudonym of English husband-and-wife team) has written quite an engaging thriller with a perfect combination of suspense and courtroom drama. Would recommend if you're a fan of these two genres.
© 2020 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
I'd finished watching these two legal dramas a while back but just haven't got around to writing the reviews. I skipped my usual writing style and did a bullet point format this time round so without further ado, here it is.
Lawless Lawyer (无法律师）
Synopsis (extracted from KoreanDrama.org)
A former gangster turned lawyer uses both his fists and the loopholes in law to fight against those with absolute power. He is driven by the desire to avenge his mother.
Bong Sang Pil (Lee Joon Ki) is a former gang member, but he now works as a lawyer. He also has one of the top win rates as a lawyer. Bong Sang Pil will take advantage of loopholes in the law. He stands before the court for his mother’s revenge, opposing absolute power.
Likes:
- An action, legal drama with a dose of romance in one package.
- Likeable lead characters whom had me rooting for.
- Kick-ass heroine who was not afraid of challenges and not submitting to power and wealth.
- Hero who was protective of the heroine, even if it means putting his life on the line.
Dislikes:
- Bad villains everywhere.
- A prominent judge who took advantage of her position to do all evil things to get her to a higher place, even if it means eliminating her minions along the way.
My thoughts:
I enjoyed watching this drama, even if some scenarios seem to be over the top and implausible at times. But it was overall very entertaining, not to mention satisfying seeing that the murderers were brought to justice in the end. Lee Joon Ki's fighting scenes were another factor which drew me to this drama. He has a kind of charisma in him no matter if he's acting in a modern or a historical drama. His role as a vampire in The Scholar Who Walks the Night has left a deep impression in me. I wonder what role he'll play for his next drama.
(4 stars)
Suits (金装律师）
Synopsis (extracted from AsianWiki)
Choi Kang-Seok (Jang Dong-Gun) is the best lawyer at prestigious Kang & Ham Law Firm. He is promoted to a senior partner.
Go Yeon-Woo (Park Hyung-Sik) has a photographic memory and excellent comprehension skills. He dreamed of becoming a lawyer, but due to his poor background he currently works as a parking valet. To pay for his grandmother's hospital bill, he takes a job to deliver drugs to a hotel room. While in front of the hotel room, Go Yeon-Woo realizes that he is going into a trap. Go Yeon-Woo is then chased by the cops, but he gets into the secretary's office for Lawyer Choi Kang-Seok. At that time, a group of people are waiting to take interviews with Choi Kang-Seok. He is going to select a rookie lawyer for the law firm after conducting the interviews. Go Yeon-Woo is then admitted into Choi Kang-Seok's office. Choi Kang-Seok senses that Go Yeon-Woo is not the applicant they called in for the interview, but he is impressed with Go Yeon-Woo's intelligence & memory. Choi Kang-Seok decides to hire Go Yeon-Woo as a rookie lawyer even though he does not have a license to practice law. Choi Kang-Seok's decision could even place his own career in jeopardy.
Likes:
- Engaging plot and two charismatic lead characters.
- The bromance (as well as the mentor and mentee relationship) between Kang-Seok and Yeon-Woo.
- A few heartwarming scenes that portray the other side of Kang-Seok. He was not cold-hearted and ruthless as I'd first thought.
- Yeon-Woo hard at work at solving the cases even though he was a rookie and had no legal experience. That shows one's attitude and determination are essential on top of a paper qualification.
Dislikes:
Hmm... I can't think of anything that bugged me as of writing this. That means it's a good thing, right?
My thoughts:
I understand this drama is based on the American television series of the same name by Aaron Korsh. Although I'd not watched the American version, it has piqued my interest after watching the Korean version.
Onto the topic, I thought it has a great premise and it was inspiring in a way. I was captivated by Dong-Gun and Hyung-Sik's acting skills and thought they had a great onscreen rapport (offscreen too?) with each other. Initially I wasn't too keen with the beginning part as I thought it was slow paced but not giving it up I continued watching it as I hate that half-accomplished feeling (the same goes with books unless they are really bad) and as I kept watching the plot became more interesting and while solving of cases is a must for legal dramas, basically this story revolves around Yeon-Woo's life journey and his working relationship with Kang-Seok. I enjoyed the banter between them; and I thought there are heartwarming moments as well amid the cold atmosphere of the court rooms and the likes.
(4 stars)
Onto the topic, I thought it has a great premise and it was inspiring in a way. I was captivated by Dong-Gun and Hyung-Sik's acting skills and thought they had a great onscreen rapport (offscreen too?) with each other. Initially I wasn't too keen with the beginning part as I thought it was slow paced but not giving it up I continued watching it as I hate that half-accomplished feeling (the same goes with books unless they are really bad) and as I kept watching the plot became more interesting and while solving of cases is a must for legal dramas, basically this story revolves around Yeon-Woo's life journey and his working relationship with Kang-Seok. I enjoyed the banter between them; and I thought there are heartwarming moments as well amid the cold atmosphere of the court rooms and the likes.
(4 stars)
© 2018 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
This legal thriller and melodrama (2015) caught my attention thanks to an entertainment magazine article I read about actor Yoo Seung-ho and his latest work, I'm Not a Robot. Since I'd enjoyed that drama I thought it'd be good to catch up on Yoo's previous work and I'm glad to say I wasn't disappointed. In fact, I've to say his acting skills in this drama was even more impressive due to the intense story plot as it requires (lots of) emotional acting skills.
In a nutshell, this drama is about the relationship between a father and son, power and conspiracies, as well as revenge and justice. There are bits of romance too, but I've to say the romance is a bit too short and bittersweet but a beautiful one. To begin with, Seo Jin-woo (starring Yoo Seung-ho) has Hyperthymesia, a condition which allows him to remember things in detail. When his neighbour's daughter was murdered, Jin-woo's father became a suspect since he was last seen in the woods with the girl's body. The thing is, Jin-woo's father is suffering from Alzheimer's disease and his memory comes and goes at times. Apparently he lost his direction home after buying a mobile phone for Jin-woo (which he had bought a few and has forgotten) and he couldn't recall anything and why he was in the woods.
Secondary characters such as lawyer Park Dong-ho (starring Park Sung-woong) and antagonist Nam Gyu-man (starring Namkoong Min) are this story's "backbone" as both of them played an important part in Jin-woo's story; the former is both an ally and a foe to Jin-woo, considering his father was the indirect cause to the death of Jin-woo's mother and brother when the latter is the real murderer and due to his family's power and wealth, they could easily persuade/bribe others to take on their side. Jin-woo later became a lawyer since he felt he could trust no one and this begins the tug of war between justice and power.
Nam Gyu-man vs Seo Jin-woo
Remember may be too dramatic at times but I enjoyed seeing how the story unfolds and it kept me on edge at most times. I felt for Jin-woo throughout the story; it seemed like his journey was full of bumps and heartbreak. Park Dong-ho is a character who will grow on you as the story progresses. Despite living around gangsters since a teenager, he has his own principles and at some point I was even moved by the things he has done for Jin-woo. As for the antagonist, Nam Gyu-man is a character whom you'd love to kick his butt because he is simply cold-blooded and evil. Due to actor Namkoong Min's outstanding performance in portraying the twisted Gyu-man, this has won him an Excellence Award for Actor in a Miniseries at the 5th APAN Star Awards (2016) as well as nominations for Grand Prize at the year-end SBS Drama Awards and for Best Actor at the 52nd Baeksang Arts Awards (2016) (info from Wikipedia).
All in all this was an intense legal melodrama supported by a cast of interesting characters (not to mention the great performance of the artistes who played their respective roles) and an unforgettable plot which had me glued to the screen unfailingly for the past two weeks. Recommended.
© 2018 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
Defendant (aka Innocent Defendant) is one of the most exciting dramas I have watched to-date this year (most probably will go onto my favourite list in 2017). Defendant will appeal to fans who like crime/legal thrillers, actions and even melodrama and after watching many dramas with a romance genre in it, I was eager for a change and I was so glad Defendant came up timely.
The plot basically centers around prosecutor Park Jung Woo (starring Ji Sung) and his plans to escape from prison before he is sentenced to death for a crime of murdering his wife. However, Jung Woo suffered a temporary amnesia and has no idea what happened to that fateful night his wife was murdered and why he was the murderer. While many evidence points to him as the perpetrator, Jung Woo is sure he is being falsely accused because his last memory tells him otherwise. How he ended up in jail he absolutely has no idea. Adamant to find out the truth and to regain his memory, he began to plan his moves and has suffered numerous punishments and sacrifices before he could attain his goal of escaping. But his biggest challenge is to regain his innocence and finds the real perpetrator before he gets to him first.
As this drama aired only two episodes per week, you can imagine how antsy I was to have to wait for a new week every time the last episode of the week ended. It was that good and I haven't had this kind of anticipation since Descendants of the Sun (totally a different genre, but you get the idea.) What I liked about this drama is aside from the actions and thrills, there was also emphasis on morality and empathy (even the comradeship between Jung Woo and his cellmates are heartwarming. And, no stereotyping. You would be surprised by the baddies here.) Ji Sung's acting was as stellar as his previous work and I always look forward to his new project. The plot and the characterisations are well crafted and every time a new situation (twist) happens, it gave me the thrills and I would anticipate what Jung Woo would do. This was a great thriller with a great cast. Highly recommended!
© 2017 Melody's Reading Corner (https://mel-reading-corner.blogspot.sg/), All Rights Reserved. If you are reading this post from other site(s), please take note that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
ISBN-13: 9780062390486
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Publication Date: January 2016
Format: eBook, 304 pgs
Source: Publisher via Edelweiss
Jack Harris has been framed for murder. It all started when he spotted a beautiful stranger along the Hudson River during his morning run, enjoying her champagne picnic alone and reading his favourite novel. She reminds him of her late wife, Molly, who had died during a mass shooting situation. It should have stayed that way, he reminiscing his wife and go on with his life but his best friend thinks otherwise. He posted a message on a popular website, hoping Jack would find love again and true enough, that same beautiful stranger responds and they agreed to meet in person. Unfortunately things didn't turn out that way; Jack did turn up for their meeting but she is nowhere in sight. And the next thing he knew, he is accused of killing Malcom Neely. He is the father of the shooter who had killed Jack's wife and a few others three years ago.
Olivia Randall is Jack's ex-fiancée. She is also one of New York City’s best criminal defence lawyers. When she heard that Jack has been arrested for murder, she is sure this must have all been a mistake. The Jack she knew is not a person who would kill; and she knew she has to help him as a make up for past regrets and that they had parted ways due to some unfortunate circumstances.
As Olivia begins to work on Jack's case, she realises that things are not as easy as what she has thought. Who and why would someone wants to frame Jack? And then there is this thought: What if she never really knew him? After all, she has not seen him in twenty years.
I have to admit I had a hard time focusing on reading The Ex in the beginning; I think it was the measured pace that put me off reading it quickly but then, December is a busy month so my attention might be on elsewhere, too. That said, I was glad I stuck with the book and towards half of it the pace quickens and the intrigue as well as the intensity build up. What makes this book such an interesting read is the characterisation of Olivia Randall. She is definitely one unforgettable character with a strong voice. All in all, I found The Ex was an engaging legal thriller. The ending wasn't what I had expected and that is a good thing.
(Photo Credit - Google Images)
Wishing you a very Merry Christmas! I hope you have a wonderful holidays with your loved ones!
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