Review of "Gone Again: A Jack Swyteck Mystery" by James Grippando

The Freedom Institute in Miami, Florida works to get wrongly convicted prisoners off death row. Attorney Jack Swyteck worked at The Freedom Institute for four years before he struck out on his own as a criminal defense lawyer. Ten years later Jack is back at The Freedom Institute, but only to rent office space, not for death penalty work.



Jack is alone at The Freedom Institute one morning when a woman called Debra Burgette comes in seeking help.



Debra explains that her 17-year-old daughter Sashi disappeared on her way to school three years ago.



Sashi was never found, dead or alive, but her semen-stained underpants turned up in the car of an ex-con called Dylan Reeves. Reeves was convicted of murdering Sashi, and the ex-con is now on death row in Florida State Prison, with his execution set to occur in a few weeks.



Debra Burgette contends that Reeves deserves to be prison for assaulting Sashi, but he shouldn't be executed for murder because Sashi is still alive. Debra says she gets a phone call every year on Sashi's birthday, and though no one speaks, Debra is sure it's her daughter. Ultimately, Debra's agenda is to get the police to re-open the missing persons case and re-start the search for Sashi.



Though Jack doesn't do death penalty work anymore, he agrees to help. So Jack and The Freedom Institute lawyers re-investigate Sashi's disappearance. This leads to several hearings before Judge Frederick, during which the prosecution argues to go ahead with 'the needle'. Jack, on the other hand, argues to delay delay delay, so The Freedom Institute can (attempt to) find evidence to get Reeves off death row.



Swytek's inquiries reveal that Debra and her (now divorced) husband Gavin adopted Sashi and her little brother Alexander from Russia when Sashi was a young girl.



Sashi was a problem child from the get-go, and was diagnosed with Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) - an inability to form an emotional bond with her caretakers. Debra's flashbacks detail the Burgette family's struggles with Sashi, which escalated over time. Nevertheless, Debra dearly loves Sashi and is desperate to find her still alive.



In the course of the story, more and more secrets emerge, and additional persons of interest come to light. The end result is that Jack believes death row resident Dylan Reeves IS a scumbag rapist, but that he didn't kill Sashi.



While all this is happening, Jack's wife Andie, an FBI agent, is pregnant. Andie has had two miscarriages, and she and Jack are anxious about the pregnancy going well this time.



There's plenty of angst for everyone involved in the story, and Dylan Reeves is on tenterhooks in his death row cell, circling around and around until his feet are rubbed raw.



In the end, the truth about everything emerges, and it's a doozie.

I'm a fan of detective stories and courtroom dramas, and this book contains elements of both. I was interested to see the regulations (or lack thereof) related to international adoptions, and it was informative to observe the legal arguments used by The Freedom Institute.

The story is engaging, and I liked the Miami ambiance, but I do have some grumbles. In my view, the 'new information' discovered by The Freedom Institute would have been found by the cops when they initially investigated Sashi's disappearance (unless they were complete incompetents). Thus I had a hard time suspending disbelief. Also, when I learned about Dylan Reeves crimes against women I would have left him on death row (murderer or not).



My final verdict: Good book. Recommended to fans of legal thrillers.

 Rating: 3.5 stars

Review of "Shadow of the Son ( Eye of the Moon Trilogy # 2)" by Ivan Obolensky

This is the second book in 'The Eye of the Moon' trilogy, set in the late 1970s. The setting for each book is a weekend party at Rhinebeck, an opulent country estate in upstate New York.

 

The lifestyle at Rhinebeck is old-fashioned and upscale. For instance, the dinners are black tie (or white tie) events, after which the ladies retire to the drawing room for coffee and the men enjoy brandy and cigars in the library.

'Shadow of the Son' picks up right after Eye of the Moon. As a reminder:

Rhinebeck has supernatural connections, abetted by its former owner Lady Alice. Alice was a wayfaring Egyptologist who collected mystical artifacts and occult books, all of which are locked away in her personal library.

Thirty-year-old Percy inherits Rhinebeck, which costs a fortune to keep up. As it happens, two men - villainous Lord Bromley and wealthy Baron von Hofmanstal - each agree to pay £1.5 million for access to Alice's mystical collection. This influx of cash is just what Rhinebeck needs.

Percy discovers that Lord Bromley - whom Percy never met - is his biological father, a SHOCKING revelation. In the midst of this discovery, Percy stipulates that Lord Bromley and Baron von Hofmanstal can pay their £1.5 million each, and study Lady Alice's mystical artifacts and books, but they CANNOT remove the collection from the house.

In the course of the story, Percy and his friend Johnny use Lady Alice's idol and demonology book to summon a demon. This experience magnifies Percy's intuition and strengthens his connection to Rhinebeck.

At the end of book one, Percy is engaged to beautiful Brunhilde (Bruni) von Hofmanstal and is planning a business partnership with his lifelong friend Johnny. As Percy is leaving Rhinebeck for New York City, he 'feels' a paranormal entity calling him back.

*****

In book two, there's another weekend house party at Rhinebeck. The guests include:

⚫ Percy and Johnny: The young men grew up together in New York City and spent their childhood summers at Rhinebeck. Now that Percy owns the estate, he's hosting a house party to get the £1.5 million each from Lord Bromley and Baron von Hofmanstal.





⚫ John Sr. and Anne Dodge (Johnny's parents): John Sr. was the steward of Rhinebeck until Percy inherited the estate. The Dodges are now happy just to visit Rhinebeck and enjoy the Cristal champagne; fine wines; gourmet food; tennis courts; expansive grounds; etc.



⚫ Bruni von Hofmanstal: Bruni is a crafty business lawyer who's engaged to Percy. Bruni monitors her father's financial interests.



⚫ Baron and Baroness von Hofmanstal: Bruni's parents, and Percy's future in-laws. The von Hofmanstal's own a castle in Austria, and are accustomed to living the high life. The Baron collects mystic artifacts and is very interested in Alice's possessions.



⚫ Mary Leland (aka Maw): Maw is John Sr.'s mother (Johnny's grandmother); she's VERY wealthy and VERY bossy and anticipating the weekend shindig so she can cause a spot of trouble, just for laughs.



⚫ Bonnie - Maw's daughter. Bonnie is a shrewd businesswoman who's looking forward to inheriting Maw's fortune. Bonnie's a playful tease who likes to flirt with Percy.



⚫ Robert the Bruce: Maw's white bull terrier, who loves to play run and chase, especially with Johnny.



⚫ Malcolm Ault: a business facilitator and a friend to both Lord Bromley and Baron von Hofmanstal. Malcolm is an enigmatic fellow with an unknown agenda.



⚫ Lord Bromley: a man who manipulates and takes advantage of other people for his personal gain. Lord Bromley is unwelcome at Rhinebeck, but has invited himself for two reasons: to meet his biological son Percy, and to get his hands on Lady Alice's mystic collection. Lord Bromley wants to take the artifacts to his room, which makes Percy uneasy and suspicious.



⚫Cobb: Lord Bromley's personal physician. Cobb was a boxer in his youth, and has the scars to prove it. Cobb is now a capable physician, dedicated to keeping Bromley in good health.



⚫ Also present at Rhinebeck are Stanley - the caretaker/butler/houseman; and Stanley's wife Dagmar - a 5-star chef who prepares scrumptious food AND supernatural potions.





⚫ There's also a surprise guest at the house party, Percy's mother Mary, who lives in Europe. Lord Bromley was once Mary's lover, and their visiting Rhinebeck at the same time is not fortuitous.



In a nutshell, 'Shadow of the Son' is about the negotiations for the £1.5 million that was promised by Lord Bromley and Baron von Hofmanstal. It seems neither man is prepared to hand over the money yet, for reasons that are revealed in the book. Percy is nervous about confronting his biological father, who has the reputation of being a deceitful snake. Thus Percy seeks the advice of the other characters, which necessitates numerous consultations and conversations, usually on a bench outside the house; or during a walk around the grounds; or relaxing with drinks.

As Percy is chit-chatting with everyone, we also learn more about their backstories. For example:

When Bruni von Hofmanstal was a child in Austria, two of her nannies died in mysterious circumstances. There are rumors that Bruni murdered them, and Percy asks his fiancée for the truth.

Stanley and Dagmar had a rocky start to their marriage. Stanley confides that he was awed by Dagmar's phenomenal knowledge of chemistry and her almost witchlike ability to create potions.

Percy's mother Mary feels indebted to Baron von Hofmanstahl, whom she knew decades ago. Mary confides the reasons to Percy, and reveals why Percy grew up in New York City with Johnny's family.

There are some supernatural occurrences and an unexpected death in the book, but this isn't a thriller. In fact, the story has a lot of talk and very little action. Some of my favorite scenes are the descriptions of life at Rhinebeck: the gorgeous clothes; the expensive jewels; the fabulous meals; the excellent champagne; the rare wines; etc. It's not surprising that the author, Ivan Obolensky, 'grew up in high society, regaled with the mystical ghost stories and fantastic intrigue of his aristocratic and trailblazing ancestors.'

Just for fun, here are some descriptions of ladies dressed for dinner:

'Bruni rustled over in a gown of shimmering silver satin. The fabric glistened like water, emphasizing her blue eyes and jet-black hair. Diamonds flashed on her fingers and ears.'

'Bonnie was in pale blue satin with a necklace of sapphires and diamonds, while Maw wore black with three huge emeralds around her neck that rivaled those at the Topkapi Museum.'



And here's the menu for one of the dinners:

⚫ Caviar with the cocktails



⚫ Scottish smoked salmon paired with a white Haut-Brion

Jellied consommé with a dab of crème fraîche.

⚫ Grilled salmon with a dollop of mousseline sauce.



⚫ Glazed roast duckling slices with applesauce, mashed potatoes, and creamed carrots with a superb chardonnay.





⚫ Balls of pale lime sorbet.



The novel feels a bit like 'Downton Abbey' crossed with 'Grimm', so if you like those programs, you'd probably like the book. I'll go on to read book three, 'Dark of the Earth.'

Thanks to Netgalley, Ivan Obolensky, and Smith-Obolensky Media for a copy of the book.

 Rating: 3.5 stars