The Truth about the Devlins by Lisa Scottoline
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Web ID: 203123043 reviews
so good you don't want to put this book down
This riveting page turner is a must read! Lisa Scottoline is so good at weaving together complex plots and colorful characters that you will find yourself enthralled. This book is about family and believing in yourself. Readers will move through a roller coaster of emotions as they careen to the ending. Readers of Karin Slaughter will devour this book.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A Family of Lawyers and Secrets
Devlin & Devlin is a law firm, although it could be called Devlin & Devlin & Devlin & Devlin, which is really Mom & Dad & Oldest Son & Only Daughter. That’s actually missing a Devlin son, TJ, a recovering alcoholic and ex-con. He’s not drinking, long out of jail, and he’s employed as an investigator at the family firm, although his non-supportive family considers the job a “sinecure” — a position without responsibility, labor, or meaningful work. TJ would object to that assumption — he’s doing his best to deserve a paycheck and he’s been two years sober (despite what his family suspects). TJ is the affable narrator and main character, no matter his black sheep status. He’s put in the unusual position of trying to help out his older brother, John (the Most Valuable Devlin), who believes he accidentally killed a client. The case gets more complicated and Top Devlin (John and TJ’s father) is a miserable person who will never give TJ the benefit of the doubt (or any love or trust). It doesn’t help that John throws his brother (who was trying to protect him) under the bus either. Mom keeps turning a blind eye and sister Gabby is in a world of her own. The Devlins are in danger thanks to John, but only TJ realizes it. The author creates such an empathetic character in TJ that you can’t help rooting for him. He’s definitely struggling to stay sober and it’s mainly his family that gets in the way. I so wanted justice for TJ and bad karma for the rest of the Devlins. You’ll have to read this terrific domestic and legal thriller to find out if that happened. 5 stars! Literary Pet Peeve Checklist: Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Both Gabby and Mango (a cat) have green eyes. Another character, Daniel, has “greenish” eyes. Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO The brothers do argue over whether a trained plant is a mountain laurel or an azalea. I’d have sided with TJ since it’s easier to make a laurel into an arch (and mom later confirms that). Thank you to Penguin Group/GP Putnam and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Justice and Responsibility
THE TRUTH ABOUT THE DEVLINS by Lisa Scottoline This was a first for me, wanting to just shake a character for not appreciating himself, not that TJ doesn’t have problems, but he’s so loyal and cares so much about his family that he does deserve more credit. He seems destined to be the scapegoat of the clan, told to GO AWAY by everyone, and yet he has the heart to take on the care of a diabetic cat, Mango, who also acts as if she hates him. Then there are the legal problems, embezzlement, break-ins, murders, attempting to secure justice in a class action suit based on real-life events, all tempered by a bit of Zen wisdom and AA meeting solidarity. I did NOT want to put this book down, and when I finally had to sleep, it woke me back up to finish . . . only the most captivating books can do that, creating characters I care about too much to leave them hanging. Satisfying ending, and meaningful insights in the Author’s Notes make this book a hard act to follow. (March release, but she has many other excellent books you’d like while you wait).
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com