Hot Shot by Sheldon Siegel

First Sentence:  The twinkling Christmas lights strung along the pinewood bar reflected in the gregarious barkeep's eyes.

      

Jeff King is a billionaire, CEO, and founder of the soon-to-go-public high-tech company Y5K and is dead from a hot shot of heroin.  There's no question the shot was injected by Alexa Low.  She admits to administering the shot but claims the heroin had been purchased by King.  Now it's up to Mike to prove Alexa innocent of murder. 

      

It's nice to have a good introduction to each of the characters, in Mike's circle of family and friends.  Even better is the introduction of the suspect Alexa. We learn her background and the circumstances which caused her to be where she is in life.  Siegel makes her a real, three-dimensional person without judging her.  He also paints an ugly, and most likely very realistic, picture of the high-tech wealthy.

      

Although the frequent injections of Mike's thoughts may seem distracting, they also provide a realistic look at the difference between what one, especially an attorney, may say, and what one may think.  Mike is an interesting character; an ex-priest, divorced from Rosie, but with benefits, and a father.  Nady, an associate lawyer, is someone of whom one wants to see more.  She's smart, capable, and no-nonsense.

      

The balance between Mike's personal and professional life is well done.  It makes the characters relatable and provides realism to the story.

     

It's really fascinating to see, step-by-step, the legal process at work.  Siegel makes the process clear and understandable, while still managing to make it exciting.  There is  an interesting observation on our addiction to technology'—"You don't need Google or an iPhone."  "Or ninety-nine percent of the stuff that we buy, Mike.  But we think we do. Technology allows us to do things faster and cheaper, but it hasn't fundamentally changed what we want—things that make our lives easier, enhance our productivity, and entertain us."  And make you a ton of money. In other words, it delights us."

      
"Hot Shot" is a very good legal thriller.  One will appreciate its very satisfactory yet realistic ending.  

HOT SHOT (LegMys-Mike Daley/Rosie Fernandez-San Francisco-Contemp) - VG

      Siegel, Sheldon – 10^th in series

      Sheldon M. Siegel, Inc. – May 2019