Devil's Corner
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
When prosecutor Vicki Allegretti arrives at a rowhouse to meet a confidential informant, she finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time. She's almost shot to death, and two others are gunned down before her disbelieving eyes. How did a routine investigation become a double homicide?
She can identify the killers, now all she has to do is to find them. The deeper she probes, the more she realizes that she's dealing with ruthless killers. Her suspicions take her to Devil's Corner, a place on the brink of ruin - thick with broken souls, innocent youth and a scourge that plays on both. Sadly, her delectable colleague Dan Molloy is too married to give her the kind of support she really needs, but when she teams up with an unlikely ally, she buckles up for a wild ride down a dangerous street. And into the crossfire of a powerful and relentless conspiracy.
Set against the pulsing backdrop of Philadelphia, with a storyline driven by strong female characters and the breakneck pace that has become her trademark, Devil's Corner is Lisa Scottoline's most satisfying novel yet.
'Lisa Scottoline has been added to my list of must-read authors. Her stories are filled with teeth-gnashing suspense, her characters are compelling, and her humor cuts to the heart of the issue with laserlike accuracy' - Janet Evanovich
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Scottoline's 12th novel was inspired by a real-life jury trial for crack-cocaine trafficking of members of one of the most violent gangs in Philadelphia history (in her acknowledgments, the former trial lawyer admits she watches cases like these "for fun"). Such inspiration lends a tough, uncompromising realism to this stand-alone legal thriller. Scottoline (Killer Smile; Dead Ringer; etc.) sets the book in Philly, of course, and her lead this time is assistant U.S. Attorney Vicki Alegretti, whose petite frame belies her gutsy, unbridled determination on the job. While conducting a routine interview with a confidential informant on a straightforward matter, things go awry, and Vicki's partner along with the informant is shot. Resolved to find the killer, Vicki takes on the case (unbeknownst to her boss), and that's when the twists begin. In short chapters with cliffhanger endings, Scottoline spins a tale that finds Vicki joining forces with Reheema, a gorgeous black woman from the drug-ridden West Philly neighborhood of Devil's Corner. Reheema wants to find the person responsible for murdering her crack-addicted mother, and as she and Vicki play detective, they realize the murders may be connected and that they're getting increasingly closer to bringing down a sizable drug ring. Scottoline's ability to mix humor with serious subject matter, combined with her intense research of inner city drug trafficking and a side plot involving Vicki's love life, make for compelling entertainment.
