Solomon Vs. Lord

The plotting in this legal offering is sometimes farfetched but almost always amusing. This is problematic for narrator Christopher Lane because he has a clear, formal voice. The humor of the dialogue is sometimes lost in the narration. After getting Victoria Lord, a promising assistant prosecutor, fired, criminal lawyer Steve Solomon teams up with her on two cases, a murder and a custody battle. What begins as an adversarial relationship, ultimately turns into a love affair. There's always a lot going on between Solomon and Lord. Lane's voice is clear and precise, so you don't miss the words, but you often wonder whether a line is serious or banter. A.L.H. (c) AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine

August 1, 2005
Former attorney and reporter Levine delivers a funny, fast-paced legal thriller, his first since 1998's 9 Scorpions
. Circumstances conspire to force two Florida lawyers with opposing personalities—by-the-book Victoria Lord and anything-goes Steve Solomon—into working together as the defense attorneys for Katrina Barksdale, a "grieving" widow who's been charged with murdering her wealthy husband during a kinky sexcapade. This basic plot is nothing new, but Levine keeps things fresh by injecting the story with interesting subplots and a full roster of quirky, lovable characters, perhaps the best of whom is Bobby, Solomon's autistic savant nephew, who has a photographic memory and a penchant for making defaming anagrams out of people's names. While Levine's two protagonists may not be Tracy and Hepburn, the barbed dialogue that flies between them makes for some genuine laugh-out-loud moments. Fans of Carl Hiaasen and Dave Barry (who supplies a blurb) will enjoy this humorous Florida crime romp. Agent, Al Zuckerman at Writers House
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