Rating: 
Summary: Tulsa must be a strange place
Review: This book proceeds along rather conventional legal fiction lines for about the first 80% of the pages. Then there's a real twist in the plot which actually seems quite implausible. Basically, what happens is that a police detective is found murdered and his body is left in a public place more or less on display. His adulteress, a teenage stripper, is arrested and charged with the murder. Mr. Kincaid gets her off, not once but twice, in the face of what seem like insurmountable odds. The young lady even testifies on her own behalf. The detective's widow states under oath that she hates the woman who stole her husband. Kincaid, who is unmarried and lonely, starts to fantasize about having a relationship with the young stripper. She seems so needy, and she's beautiful. Her brother, Kirk, whose presence in the novel seems gratuitous since he doesn't do much but torture himself and then commit suicide, is really strange. All of this takes place in Tulsa, Oklahoma, of course. Well, after convincing a tough jury that his client is innocent, and that the late Kirk is the actual murderer, Kincaid finds out he's been hoodwinked by the stripper and by the ex-wife, who are actually in cahoots, actually lovers. This denouement is unexpected, but it just seems too fantastic. That's why I say, "Tulsa must be a strange place." But nonetheless the book does hold interest somewhat, although Bernhardt tends to repeat himself, first through narrative description then the same material regurgitated during the trial as the characters testify. You can skim those parts, though, and finish the book in a couple of day. Diximus.
Rating: 
Summary: Murder One
Review: This book was excellent! Those of us who like William Bernhardt will like this book. Expecially the ending. Keeps you guessing until the end. Absolutely loved it and have told other friends, that this is a must read
Rating:
Summary: Murder One
Review: This book was excellent! Those of us who like William Bernhardt will like this book. Expecially the ending. Keeps you guessing until the end. Absolutely loved it and have told other friends, that this is a must read
Rating:
Summary: Loved It!
Review: This is one good read. Mr Bernhardt always manages to grab my attention. I've read every Ben Kincaid and crew novel and they get better everytime. The courtroom scenes were really good. Especially Christina. Ben was his usual brilliant self. Even though the stroy went in the direction I thought it would I still enjoyed and I definitely recommend. Keep up the good work Mr Bernhardt, and hurry up with the next Kincaid legal thriller.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: This is the first novel that I read by William Bernhardt and I was very impressed. He has a smooth and enjoyable writing style. All the twists and turns in the plot and the cast of characters made this a book that was never dull. If you like legal thrillers than you'll enjoy this book
Rating: 
Summary: A book is a terrible thing to waste . . .
Review: Tulsa attorney Ben Kincaid is back . . . sort of.Unfortunately, author/creator William Bernhardt doesn't seem to be with him this time around. "Murder One" falls far short, not only of Bernhardt's previous efforts, but shorter still of the minimum standards for adequate storytelling. In order to even halfway believe this overly contrived plot, one must first believe that all big-city cops are as obligingly stupid, ham-handed and clumsy as LAPD's investigation of the O.J. case. (They're not.) One must also be willing to believe that all prosecutors are equally obtuse. (Hah! Good luck!) Then one must be further willing to believe that a medical examiner would be so obliging as to get up on the witness stand without first having determined which (if any) of the numerous stab wounds proved fatal, or whether death was caused by a blow to the head . . . simply so that he could be made to look like a complete clown on cross examination. (Most, if not all, real-life forensic pathologists are a bit more jealous of their professional reputations.) And these issues, alas, are only the tip of the ol' iceberg. Throw in a convenient appellate court that's willing to circumvent double jeopardy on the flimsiest of pretexts (yes, it can be done, but fraud on the part of the defendant or attorney first has to be proved rather than merely insinuated), add scene after scene of courtroom behavior and procedure that wouldn't have gone over in Judge Roy Bean's court, top everything off with a solution that adds whole new lustre to the term 'ludicrous' (think "Witness for the Prosecution" meets "Murder on the Orient Express," with a trace of "Amadeus" thrown in for unintentional comic relief, and you're pretty close). There's a lot more that could be said (where, for example, did Keri's brother, Kirk, get all that money he keeps throwing around?), but let's leave this dead opus to rot in peace. Bottom line: Ben bumbles around, Christina fumes, and everyone --most especially William Bernhardt -- winds up with egg on the face.
Rating:
Summary: William Bernhardt's Back but Not at His Best...
Review: Tulsa, Oklahoma criminal defense attorney, Ben Kincaid, is fighting an uphill battle to keep his client, Keri Dalcanton, a nineteen year old kinky stripper, out of prison. She's charged with the grisly murder and mutilation of her married lover, police detective Joe McNaughton, and even though Ben believes her to be innocent, all the circumstantial evidence points in her direction and he doesn't see much chance of winning this case. That is until a technicality sets her free. The police and D.A.'s office is outraged at what they consider this miscarriage of justice and promise they'll avenge McNaughton's death by other means, if necessary. Ben is just thankful for the lucky legal break and that this media circus of a case is finally over. Unfortunately, he couldn't be more wrong. Within days, incrimminating evidence of the murder is found in Ben's office, Keri's technicality is thrown out and Ben, himself is facing charges for obstruction and murder one..... William Bernhardt has written a fast paced, legal thriller with an interesting premise, but he doesn't always deliver. His plot needs to be tightened up and is more complicated at times, than intricate and compelling. His characters could be better developed and fleshed out and there are so many, you need a scorecard to keep track of who's who and what's what. But it's the implausible and contrived "surprise" ending I found most disappointing. After 288 pages, you shouldn't have to suspend belief to finish the last 29 pages of the book. Murder One is adequate beach reading with decent courtroom scenes, but Mr Bernhardt has written better books.
Rating:
Summary: Rapier sharp
Review: Tulsa, Oklahoma, attorney Ben Kincaid has risen through the ranks to become one of my favorite characters in contemporary fiction. In "Murder One", Ben has been retained to represent teenage stripper Keri Delcanton for the murder of her older, married lover. The victim, police detective Joe McNaughton, was viciously murdered, mutilated, and left hanging from a downtown fountain. Although Ben believes in his client's innocence, the circumstantial evidence against her is so overwhelming that a conviction is almost a foregone conclusion. And then a huge technical error on the part of the police blows the prosecution's case out of the water and Keri is acquitted. The Police Department, District Attorney, and much of the public at large are outraged and it isn't long before the cops raid Ben's office and "find" the knife used to slaughter McNaughton. Ben is quickly arrested and charged with the murder his client was freed for. Enter Christina McCall, Ben's effervescent former legal assistant who has just graduated from law school. Christina ably represents Ben on the bogus charges, which are finally dropped when a way around double jeopardy is found and new charges are filed against Keri. The story moves forward at a staccato pace to its thrilling O Henry-like climax. This one should not be missed by legal thriller fans. It's a definite keeper.
Rating:
Summary: Rapier sharp
Review: Tulsa, Oklahoma, attorney Ben Kincaid has risen through the ranks to become one of my favorite characters in contemporary fiction. In "Murder One", Ben has been retained to represent teenage stripper Keri Delcanton for the murder of her older, married lover. The victim, police detective Joe McNaughton, was viciously murdered, mutilated, and left hanging from a downtown fountain. Although Ben believes in his client's innocence, the circumstantial evidence against her is so overwhelming that a conviction is almost a foregone conclusion. And then a huge technical error on the part of the police blows the prosecution's case out of the water and Keri is acquitted. The Police Department, District Attorney, and much of the public at large are outraged and it isn't long before the cops raid Ben's office and "find" the knife used to slaughter McNaughton. Ben is quickly arrested and charged with the murder his client was freed for. Enter Christina McCall, Ben's effervescent former legal assistant who has just graduated from law school. Christina ably represents Ben on the bogus charges, which are finally dropped when a way around double jeopardy is found and new charges are filed against Keri. The story moves forward at a staccato pace to its thrilling O Henry-like climax. This one should not be missed by legal thriller fans. It's a definite keeper.
Rating:
Summary: The Blue Squeeze, the Cop's Way of Getting Even
Review: Veteran police detective Joe McNaughton was a cop everybody liked, so when he was found murdered, his nude body hanging from a fountain with his privates severed and stuffed in his mouth in downtown Tulsa, his pals are understandably upset. Though married. McNaughton had nineteen-year-old stripper Keri Dalcanton as a main squeeze and the police quickly arrest her. The cops, along without everyone else in town it seems, want her blood and the assistant DA is seeking the death penalty. The book opens in court and good guy attorney Ben Kincaid is looking at a loser. He believes Keri is innocent, but the police just have too much evidence, then he notices a problem with the search warrents used to obtain said evidence and through an intuitive stroke of good luck he gets Keri off on a technicality. The cops, especially McNaughton's partner Arlen Matthews, go nuts. They decide to apply the Blue Squeeze, a term that means something like, damn the law and get even, cop style. They raid Kincaid's office and find the murder weapon, then they arrest the attorney and brutalize him in jail. From this point on the battle lines are drawn, it's the cops verses Kincaid and the police will stop at nothing. Kincaid bails out of jail, but the cops re-arrest Keri and this time the slick DA himself is prosecuting the case. He wants to ride to re-election on the back of the conviction. There is enough tense courtroom drama alone in this legal thriller to keep you tuning the pages at a steady clip, but the struggle leading up to the second trial and the long lead up to a climax straight out of left field will speed your reading like you wouldn't believe. Jeremiah McCain
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