Rating: 
Summary: Offer Of Proof -- A Lead-off Home Run
Review: New author Heilbrun touches all the bases with his first offering. Riveting portrayal of New York's criminal justice system with enough plot twists to keep you guessing until the very end. Can't wait to follow the courtroom adventures of Arch Gold in the sequel. If Heilbrun can mentate filmically, Offer of Proof will be an exciting movie soon.
Rating: 
Summary: great legal thriller
Review: New York legal-aid public defender Arch Gold is assigned the Damon Tucker murder trial. Damon is a poor kid from Harlem accused of killing businesswoman Charlotte King during a mugging incident. Besides the obvious class warfare angle, the media frenzy focuses on the first New York death penalty case since the early 1960s when the state tested the impact of electricity on Wood.Arch believes that his client is innocent and thanks to Damon's persistence, he checks into the background of the victim to see if anyone had a motive. Arch quickly learns that Charlotte had an affair with her employer, James L. Yates of Yates Associates. Feeling he has found the real culprit, Arch tries illegally breaking and entering before turning to former clients in a desperate attempt to free Damon and place Yates on trial. OFFER OF PROOF is sure to be considered by legal thriller fans as one of the top five sub-genre novels of the year. The story line is action packed and loaded with a strong often eccentric cast of characters. Arch is a great protagonist willing to cross the legal line to insure justice occurs. This book offers anecdotal proof that Robert Heilbrun is on his way to the sub-genre supreme court of authors. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: A new anti-hero: Welcome!
Review: Offer of Proof combines the best of Linda Fairstein, John Grisham and Lawrence Block (Matt Scudder series). Unlike Fairstein, Heilbrun actually takes us into the courtroom. We learn how the law really works, a series of bargains and random outcomes -- very scary. Unlike Grisham, Heilbrun delivers realistic characters and challenges that are realistic, not larger than life. And unlike Block in his Scudder series, Heilbrun creates a proactive character who's lost a lot but manages to avoid the down-and-out-detective stereotype. Hero Arch Gold takes chances and sometimes loses. He's smart but he's no super-hero -- a three-dimensional character with depth. And Heilbrun maintains a fast pace. There's no temptation to skip a section or read ahead. We're introduced right away to the black 18-year-old who managed to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, who lacks the maturity to be "managed" to make the jury like him. And we're on edge as the defense experiences one setback after another, up to the nail-biting moment when Gold faces a crackerjack prosecutor. Best of all, the ending seems satisfactory, with a last-minute curve that works. When you go back over the first part of the book you realize Heilbrun didn't miss a detail. He doesn't drop clues but he's totally consistent. So what's not to like? Well, if you start thinking too much about the legal system, you can get scared. Justice depends on luck of the draw. A good lawyer won't protect you from a bad judge and a hanging jury. It's all a game, a dueling match between hired guns. If you've had misgivings about the system before you pick up this up, you may find yourself tossing and turning, just like the hero does.
Rating:
Summary: Mostly fascinating legal mystery
Review: Public defender Arch Gold gets the case of a lifetime dropped into his lap--the first New York death penalty case in recent memory. And unlike most of his clients, this one, an 18-year-old accused of capital murder, is innocent, the victim of mistaken identity. Arch is willing to do just about anything to save this kid's life. And even when the murder victim's prints are found on the suspect's money--a devastating blow to his case--Arch doesn't lost faith. Arch thinks he knows who really killed Charlotte King. But he can't find proof. And the man he suspects, a very powerful private investigator, makes for a formidable foe. This was a fascinating legal mystery, told with utter confidence and all the realistic details that make you believe it's all true. However, the climax felt rushed. There was a gun, and then it was over, literally in one sentence. And the twist at the end was so out of left field that it felt jarring, Given the very realistic tone of the rest of the book. Still, an above-average read by this first-time author, whose mother is mystery writer Amanda Cross. Must be in the blood.
Rating:
Summary: COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN
Review: Rarely does such a suspenseful read so intelligently bring the reader inside the real world of the courts and the law. I was captivated by the original and unpredictable plot, fascinated by how much I learned about the bottom line of how the legal system really works and amused by Arch Gold's clever and insightful take on the world around him....all at the same time. Remarkably, I think this book gives Turow and Grisham a run for their money. Clearly, Heilbrun, a gifted storyteller, knows this world inside out. Not only can't I wait for Arch Gold's next case, but I hope he is available if I ever need crafty and/or courageous defense counsel.
Rating:
Summary: Modern day "To Kill a Mockingbird."
Review: Read and loved John Grisham's first couple of novels, but they quickly got stale for me. The imitators didn't even make it past the bookstore coffee shop.
Picked up "Offer of Proof" and barely put it down til I'd finished. Heilbrun writes both a good plot and character driven novel, which is hard to do for old-timers. As a debut offering, this novel is a stunner.
Ten years ago, Harvard-educated Archibald Gold, the first legit member of his family, walked away from a high-salary corporate law firm and his equally high-maintenance corporate attorney wife to become an underpaid public defender.
Yes, he's gotten guilty people off. To effect, he says anyone who has a problem with defending guilty people needs to find another profession.
What drives him to cross over the line is when he's got an innocent defendant in the first death penalty case in New York State in 50 years.
That's all you need to know. Heilbrun spins a fine yarn and doesn't drop a stitch in the final picture. The only question I'm left with at the end of the book is:
WHEN IS THE NEXT ONE COMING OUT????
Rating:
Summary: Riveting. Can't Wait to See What's Next!
Review: Robert Heilbrun is clearly a new talent to watch for. He takes us into the courtroom for a gripping story of an innocent man in the wrong place at the wrong time, whose life is at stake for a murder he didn't commit. Heilbrun makes you realize that this could happen to anyone - a truly frightening thought. It was such a relief to get away from the tired, cliched stories of John Grisham. I'm looking forward to Arch Gold's next case.
Rating:
Summary: A gripping story with a great protagonist
Review: This is a gripping story, not only because the plot takes some nice twists and turns, but also because you just love Arch Gold, the public defender protagonist. Along the way, you learn a lot about the way the criminal justice system really works in NYC, and how the death penalty is actually applied, although you hardly realize it, since Heilbrun so skillfully weaves his legal knowledge into the narrative. The courtroom scenes fly along. Although the subject is serious, there's also a lot of humor. You really don't see the ending coming at you. Nice job. Can't wait for the next one.
Rating: 
Summary: I Can't Believe It's Not Better
Review: This is the type of novel that SOUNDS as if it should be a good read, a thriller, a nonstop pageturner, but alas.....like the margarine that parades as butter, I can't believe it's not better! Heilbrun should have the background to avoid such triteness, such sadly strung-together unbelievable tripe, but 'tis not the case. When I found it listed on amazon.com, the site it took me to had a long list of numbers, letters, etc., in the web address line, prophetically enough ending in "zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz," which is exactly where this novel brought me. This makes even Grisham's mediocre fluff seem positively genius.
Rating:
Summary: no proof of talent
Review: this turgid tome relies on every cliche in the courtroom drama book -- a yawn from beginning to (finally) the end. arch gold is as dull a protagonist as i've ever come across, recycled from every one-hour tv show. ending is ludicrous and predictable. damon's depiction is offensive to me, as a black man, just another case of a rich white guy trying to get inside the head of a kid from harlem -- gimme a break. and give yourself a break -- don't waste the bucks.
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