Jerry Kennedy has been aptly described by his ex-wife as "the classiest sleazy criminal lawyer in Boston." Now, Jerry must defend the man that no one else will: Billy Ryan. The longtime commissioner of Public Works has cut one shady deal too many. Even Jerry harbors no illusions about the man's corruption. "If they didn't have Billy for selling the apple to the serpent who peddled it to Eve," he figured, "it was because the serpent refused to testify against him. Professional courtesy and all that." Jerry also knows that the government can always get a public official if it really wants to-particularly when a plea-bargaining crooked state legislator named Jack Bonaventre is in good voice. The drama that follows in and around the courthouse is vintage Higgins, suffused with the stylish prose and sparkling dialogue for which he is known.
"[Kennedy's] speech is wonderful-he's a crackling, supple raconteur....Higgins's subtle examination of Boston Irish society is as acute as any by John O'Hara or Louis Auchincloss, but funnier."-Publishers Weekly
A dead body discovered in a rural Massachusetts wetland turns out to belong to a woman with a past: Sandra Nichols, missing for seven months. Wrongful death? Murder one? We'll leave that to Jerry Kennedy.
Judge Henry Lawler has his own reasons for appointing classmate Jerry Kennedy to try the case of the Estate of Sandra Nichols v. Peter Wade, on behalf of Sandra's three orphaned children. An old hand at criminal cases, Jerry makes an exception for Judge Henry to try this civil case; after all, what are friends for if not to impose on a guy?
Inasmuch as Sandra was murdered several months before her body was found, alibis are fairly easy to come by-even for Peter Wade, her ex, who is the most likely suspect. Since the evidence is too elusive to establish Wade's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, wrongful death is the easier verdict; Jerry just needs to make Wade's guilt 51% certain.
"Face it: Higgins isn't a novelist, he's a magician."-Booklist
Beginning in 1946, a then eight-year-old George Higgins, accompanied by father and grandfather, began taking the long train ride out to Fenway Park to find some truth in immortals like Doerr, DiMaggio, York, and Williams, and later, Yastremski, Marty Barrett, and many more. This is a book about baseball and about the Boston Red Sox; but that is only part of the story. Beyond the games, the book turns on thoughts about family and continuity and, of course, the progress of the seasons. There's a magical moment when Higgins calls on his own mythic Emily to check the all-time lineup with his deceased forebears. By then, you've come to know what the author's values have in common with those in Our Town, and why certain professional athletes achieve immortality and others don't. The Progress of the Seasons confirms what admirers of the author's sparkling accurate prose already know: Higgins is to writing what Ted Williams was to baseball, an all-star.
"George V. Higgins is a writer of genius."-Washington Post
Beginning in 1946, a then eight-year-old George Higgins, accompanied by father and grandfather, began taking the long train ride out to Fenway Park to find some truth in immortals like Doerr, DiMaggio, York, and Williams, and later, Yastremski, Marty Barrett, and many more. This is a book about baseball and about the Boston Red Sox; but that is only part of the story. Beyond the games, the book turns on thoughts about family and continuity and, of course, the progress of the seasons. There's a magical moment when Higgins calls on his own mythic Emily to check the all-time lineup with his deceased forebears. By then, you've come to know what the author's values have in common with those in Our Town, and why certain professional athletes achieve immortality and others don't. The Progress of the Seasons confirms what admirers of the author's sparkling accurate prose already know: Higgins is to writing what Ted Williams was to baseball, an all-star.
Sizzling with betrayal and murder, Higgins' tale is sprinkled with earthy dialogue and savvy characters. When Sandra Nichols, the wife of a wealthy businessman, is found dead in a Massachusetts wetland, respected criminal defense attorney Jerry Kennedy sheds his reclusive life to become her children's legal guardian. He digs for evidence and turns up a missing clue that begins a domino effect-exposing the killer.
George V. Higgins, the internationally-acclaimed grand master of crime fiction, returns to thrill listeners with this riveting tale of cops, robbers, and big city low life. An expertly crafted story of loyalty and betrayal, it is peppered with wonderfully authentic dialogue and seedy black market atmosphere. Eddie Coyle is a small-time gun dealer with a big-time problem: who to sell out to avoid going to prison. While mob bosses, cops, hoods, gunmen, thieves, and executioners give Eddie plenty of choices, he has few options. Any decision could cost him his life. Shady deals and accusations fly as fast and deadly as bullets in this riveting audiobook. The combination of Higgins and narrator Mark Hammer will leave you with mental images of crime and justice that you never thought possible before.
For court clerk Ambrose Merrion, life was about people taking care of one another. For Danny Hilliard, politics was a matter of acquiring the power to make sure that society did just that. With Merrion shrewdly managing Hilliard's campaigns as a rising politician, the two friends made an excellent team.
But trouble starts brewing when Merrion unexpectedly inherits ill-gotten gains from a corrupt predecessor, enabling him to indulge with Danny in the finer luxuries. To Merrion's dismay, Hilliard begins to show a streak of mischief that quickly flares into a scandal. And a federal prosecutor on a mission believes he has found an the perfect way to put Hilliard in jail-forcing Merrion to incriminate him. For the rules have changed while the friends weren't looking, and what was once just common wickedness has become a felony.
"The story unfolds...through superb dialogue that reveals character in a far more complex and interesting way than does an omniscient narrator....As always, his characters are so real they spare us the task of willingly suspending disbelief."-New York Times Book Review
Internationally-acclaimed author George V. Higgins-a master of action and suspense-continues his gripping series in Bomber's Law. Higgins' riveting style enlivens this tale of cops and mobsters set in a world of fast-talking wise guys and heavily-armed exiles from Palookaville. When Brian Dennison succeeds "Bomber" Lawrence as head detective in the Massachusetts State Police Department, he soon realizes that Boston's upwardly-mobile mobsters aren't going to let him hang around until retirement age. Can Dennison out-smart the mob, or will Bomber's Law claim him as another victim? Higgins' critically-acclaimed books-including Sandra Nichols Found Dead (RB# 94789) and The Friends of Eddie Coyle (RB# 94820)-are filled with rich characters and gut-wrenching dialogue. Veteran narrator Mark Hammer's resonant and gravelly voice brings each character to life with an intensity that only Higgins' writing can match.
