Street Legal

In his fourth "Street" mystery, Bill Kent couples his knowledge as a journalist with the skills of a top-notch writer to build a world and a story that captivates the reader. When Andy Cosicki is summoned to the boss's office to describe the murder she discovered, she finds a police lieutenant and Michael McSloan, the paper's lawyer, waiting to hear her story. It requires some effort to not be distracted by McSloan's good looks, even though the scene was unforgettable-attorney Charles Muckler had been trapped in his car while a truckload of wet sand was pumped into it. Good looks are not always matched with good character, however, and it doesn't take Andy long to see beyond McSloan's gorgeous profile. She isn't all that surprised when his body is found at the foot of his high-rise apartment building. He definitely didn't jump; the only question is, which of his many enemies was the one to do the pushing? In trying to put two and two together, Andy gets caught up with her concern for McSloan's disabled young son and for another boy, who wrote to her "Mr. Action" column for help. It takes knowledgeable obituary writer Shep Ladderback to point her down the right path. The oddly matched but delightful pair is just the team to track down a killer with a serious distaste for lawyers.