The HBS Author's Spotlight SHOWCASES Paul Levine's New Book: BUM DEAL .
Author Paul Levine is the award-winning, bestselling Mystery & Thrillers author of the JAKE LASSITER and SOLOMON vs. LORD series.
Bum Deal
Jake Lassiter Legal Thrillers Book 13
Author: Paul Levine
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They don’t call us sharks for our ability to swim.
Second-string linebacker turned disillusioned defense attorney Jake Lassiter finally switches teams. Appointed special prosecutor in a high-profile murder case, he vows to take down a prominent surgeon accused of killing his wife. There’s just one problem…or maybe three: no evidence, no witness, and no body.
But Lassiter’s used to fighting impossible battles on the gridiron and in court. After all, he’s not totally burned-out—just a little scorched.
Standing in Lassiter’s way are the defense lawyers: slick-talking Steve Solomon and blueblood Victoria Lord, who have their own complicated history with the defendant. Not to mention the specter of CTE, the lethal brain disease Lassiter may have contracted banging heads in the NFL. Drained of his mental edge just when he needs it most, Lassiter must do whatever it takes to win this case—even if it costs him his life. Because law is a contact sport, and you don’t get trophies for trying.
Excerpt from BUM DEAL
“They don’t call us sharks for our ability to swim.”
Second-string linebacker turned disillusioned defense attorney Jake Lassiter finally switches teams. Appointed special prosecutor in a high-profile murder case, he vows to take down a prominent surgeon accused of killing his wife. There’s just one problem…or maybe three: no evidence, no witness, and no body.
But Lassiter’s used to fighting impossible battles on the gridiron and in court. After all, he’s not totally burned-out— just a little scorched.
Standing in Lassiter’s way are the defense lawyers: slick-talking Steve Solomon and blueblood Victoria Lord, who have their own complicated history with the defendant. Not to mention the specter of CTE, the lethal brain disease Lassiter may have contracted banging heads in the NFL. Drained of his mental edge just when he needs it most, Lassiter must do whatever it takes to win this case—even if it costs him his life. Because law is a contact sport, and you don’t get trophies for trying.
Author Genre: Mystery & Thrillers, Fiction, Crime
Website: Paul Levine
Author's Blog: Paul Levine
Twitter: @Jake_Lassiter
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Author Description: PAUL LEVINE is pleased to announce that KINDLE UNLIMITED members in the USA, Canada, India, Italy, Spain, Brazil, and several other countries can now read all his novels for FREE.
Eleven of Levine's novels have hit Number One bestseller status on Amazon in their genres, and in June 2015, he was the Number One bestselling author on Amazon Kindle.
BULLETIN: Now available in paperback, ebook and audio: "Bum Luck." Here's what the South Florida Sun-Sentinel had to say: "Paul Levine continues his trademark brisk pacing with timely storytelling and well-placed humor...The trio [Lassiter, Solomon & Lord] make an unstoppable team — concerned about the law but even more about people."
And this, from Bookreporter.com: "BUM LUCK is a one-sit, must-read novel full of memorable characters and unforgettable vignettes Put BUM LUCK at the top of your spring reading list.”
Levine is best known for two series of legal thrillers: "Jake Lassiter" and "Solomon vs. Lord." The national bestseller "Bum Rap" brings together the protagonists of both series in an explosive murder case set on glitzy South Beach.
"The pages fly by and the laughs keep coming in this irresistible South Florida crime romp. A delicious mix of thriller and comic crime caper." - Booklist (starred review)
On June 8, 2015, "Bum Rap" became the Number One bestseller in the Amazon Kindle Store. It was also the Number One bestseller in "legal thrillers" and "mysteries." On the same day, "To Speak for the Dead" was Number One in "heist thrillers" and "Night Vision" Number One in "international crime thrillers."
Levine's first novel, "To Speak for the Dead," introduced the world to Jake Lassiter, an NFL linebacker turned hard-nosed lawyer. Lassiter has been described by Booklist as "one of the most entertaining series characters in contemporary crime fiction."
In "Bum Rap," Lassiter has had it with sleazy clients, shifty prosecutors, and a legal system out of whack. He's about to hang up his shingle when Victoria Lord calls. Solomon has been arrested for murder. What's worse: the only person who can clear him has disappeared. Now it's up to Lassiter and Lord to track down the witness--a stunning Bar girl--before she's roped in by the feds...or eliminated by the Russian mob.
Levine's other series features squabbling lawyers - and lovers - Steve Solomon and Victoria Lord, who duel in and out of court. The Chicago Sun-Times praised "Solomon vs. Lord" as: "Remarkably fresh and original with characters you can't help loving and sparkling dialogue that echoes the Hepburn-Tracy screwball comedies. A hilarious, touching and entertaining twist on the legal thriller."
Levine has won the John D. MacDonald fiction award and has been nominated for an Edgar Allan Poe Award, the Macavity, the International Thriller Writers Award, the Shamus Award, and the James Thurber Humor Prize. A graduate of Penn State and the University of Miami School of Law, he was a trial lawyer before becoming a full-time novelist.
Author's Book List
Bum Luck
- Jake Lassiter Legal Thrillers Book 12Thirty seconds after the jury announced its verdict, I decided to kill my client.
Second-string linebacker turned trial lawyer Jake Lassiter squares off against his toughest, most unpredictable adversary yet: himself.
The downward spiral begins when Jake's client, NFL superstar Thunder Thurston, is cleared of murdering his wife. Jake didn't expect to win, didn't want to win, since he is sure his client is guilty. When Thurston walks free, Lassiter vows to seek his own kind of justice. Street justice. Vigilante justice.
Law partners Steve Solomon and Victoria Lord can't believe their friend has become so inexplicably obsessed with killing his client. Convinced Jake's unhinged behavior is due to repeated concussions suffered during his pro football career, they beg him to seek treatment. But as Lassiter's raging fixation on vengeance grows, Solomon and Lord wonder if they're too late to help. Is it game over for Jake's career...and his life?
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Bum Rap
- Jake Lassiter Legal Thrillers Book 11NFL linebacker-turned-lawyer Jake Lassiter has had it with shifty clients, dirty prosecutors, and a legal system out of whack. It’s enough to make a man want to leave Miami and never look back—until he gets a call from Victoria Lord, the better half of hot local legal team Solomon & Lord. Her partner in life and law has been arrested for murder. What’s worse: the only person who can clear him has fled the city. Now it’s up to Jake and Victoria to track down the witness—a stunning “Bar girl”—before she’s roped in by the feds…or eliminated by the Russian mob. Jake knows that if he doesn’t get to the witness first, his client’s case is lost. Luckily, he’s got some good advice from his college football coach: “Buckle your chin strap and hit somebody.” And sometimes, the only way to win a tough case is to do just that.
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STATE vs. LASSITER
- Jake Lassiter Book 10IS THIS THE END OF JAKE LASSITER?
Jake’s law practice is booming...
He’s crazy about the new woman in his life...
His delinquent nephew Kip is getting A’s in school...
What can go wrong?
Oh...how about a charge of first degree murder?
When money goes missing from client accounts, Jake confronts his banker, Pamela Baylins...who also happens to be his lover. She accuses Jake of skimming client funds; he accuses her of dipping into the till. She threatens to report him to the State Attorney...and within hours is killed. All the evidence points to Jake, who is charged with murder. Is this the end of the linebacker-turned-lawyer?
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LAST CHANCE LASSITER
- Jake Lassiter Book 9This time, the linebacker-turned-lawyer faces overwhelming odds. Lassiter represents Cadillac Johnson, an aging rhythm and blues musician who claims his greatest song was stolen by a top-of-the-charts hip-hop artist.
Lassiter's personal life is in chaos. He loses his job at a deep-carpet law firm and moves to a dumpy office in a Miami Beach parking garage. Then his lawyer-girlfriend, the ambitious Kim Coates, dumps him for not being "partnership material." Not only that, he faces disbarment after punching out his own client.
Only a few years out of law school, Lassiter is already developing his iconoclastic rules. "I will live by no code but my own." This time, that code could leave him disbarred or bankrupt...or worse.
Author's Note: A 25,000 word novella, "Last Chance Lassiter" is the brand-new prequel to "To Speak for the Dead."
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LASSITER
- Jake Lassiter Legal Thrillers Book 8Eighteen years ago, Jake Lassiter crossed paths with a teenage runaway who disappeared into South Florida’s sex trade. Now he traces her steps and runs head-on into a conspiracy of Miami’s rich and powerful who would do anything to keep the past as silent as the grave. In this tale of redemption and revenge, Edgar-nominated author Paul Levine delivers his most powerful thriller yet.
Jake Lassiter, second-string linebacker turned low-rent lawyer, is cynical about the law, but if you hire him, he’ll take a punch for you . . . and maybe a swing at the prosecutor, too.
Amy Larkin—beautiful, angry, and mysterious—accuses Lassiter of involvement in the disappearance of her sister eighteen years earlier. What does Lassiter know about Krista Larkin, the runaway teen turned porn actress? More than he’s saying.
Seeking to atone for his own past, Lassiter follows the cold trail of the missing Krista and butts head with the powerful men who also knew her: a former porn king turned philanthropist, a slick Cuban-born prosecutor, and an aging mobster.
The evidence leads to a long-ago night of kinky sex, designer drugs—and possible murder. But before Lassiter can nail the truth, a gun goes off, a suspect falls dead, and Lassiter has a murder trial to defend. Will the verdict disclose what happened to Krista? The answer, buried under years of deceit and corruption, is revealed in an explosive courtroom finale, proving that rough justice is better than no justice at all.
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FLESH & BONES
- Jake Lassiter Book 7The next thing Jake Lassiter knows, the woman pumps three bullets into the man on the next barstool.
Lassiter, the linebacker-turned-lawyer, has a new client.
She's stunning model Chrissy Bernhardt, and the dead man is her wealthy father. The defense? Chrissy claims that she's recently recovered repressed memories of having been sexually abused by her father. Jake wants to believe her but suspects that the memories were either implanted by a shady psychiatrist or fabricated by Chrissy herself. Complicating the situation, Jake falls for his client, clouding his judgment. Is she an anguished victim or a cold-blooded killer? And what about her brother, who stands to inherit a fortune if Chrissy goes to prison? Jake wades into a quagmire of dirty water deals, big money, and family corruption, all leading to an explosive finale.
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FOOL ME TWICE
- Jake Lassiter Book 6MURDER TO GO: FROM MIAMI TO ASPEN
A witness is dead and linebacker-turned-lawyer Jake Lassiter is the prime suspect. If he doesn't find the killer, he'll face a murder charge. A bloody trail of evidence leads to an abandoned silver mine under the Colorado ski slopes and an explosive finale.
If you enjoy John Grisham, Harlan Coben, Carl Hiaasen, and James Patterson, you'll love "Fool Me Twice" from Paul Levine, winner of the John D. MacDonald fiction award. Levine has also been nominated for the Edgar, Macavity, International Thriller, and James Thurber prizes. A former trial lawyer, he wrote more than 20 episodes of the CBS military drama "JAG."
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RIPTIDE
- Jake Lassiter Book 5Jake Lassiter chases a beautiful woman and stolen bonds from Miami to Maui, where in an explosive finale, he learns lessons never taught on the football field or in the courtroom.
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MORTAL SIN
- Jake Lassiter Book 4Jake Lassiter has a dangerous conflict of interest. He’s sleeping with Nicky Florio’s wife...and defending the mob-connected millionaire in court. Florio has hatched a scheme deep in the Florida Everglades that oozes corruption, blood, and money. One false move, and Jake will be gator bait.
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FALSE DAWN
- Jake Lassiter Book 3Miami lawyer Jake Lassiter has plenty of clients who lie, but usually they deny their guilt. When Francisco Crespo admits killing a fellow warehouse worker with a forklift – speared like an olive on a toothpick – Jake is suspicious and won’t take “guilty” for an answer. Determined to find the truth, Jake follows a trail of priceless Fabergé eggs to an international theft ring involving the CIA, Fidel Castro, and the Russian government. Through twisted revelations, deadly double crosses, and bizarre murders, Jake heads to Havana where he discovers that nothing is as it seems.
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NIGHT VISION
- Jake Lassiter Book 2Linebacker-turned-lawyer Jake Lassiter is appointed a special prosecutor when women in a sex-charged Internet chat room are targeted by a serial killer. Enlisting a brilliant female psychiatrist and assisted by retired coroner Doc Charlie Riggs, Lassiter wades into a maze of lies and corruption to uncover the murderer. Soon, Lassiter finds himself on the trail of a psychopath from the mean streets of Miami to an insane asylum in London and the very streets where Jack the Ripper once stalked his prey.
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TO SPEAK FOR THE DEAD
- Jake Lassiter Book 1A doctor in love with his patient's wife...
A fatal mistake during surgery...
Accident? Malpractice? Or murder?
Defending a surgeon in a malpractice case, Jake Lassiter begins to suspect that his client is innocent of negligence...but guilty of murder. Add a sexy widow, a deadly drug, and a grave robbery to the stew, and you have the recipe for Miami's trial of the century.
"To Speak for the Dead" introduced the world to Jake Lassiter, the linebacker-turned-lawyer with a hard bark and a tender heart. An international bestseller, Paul Levine's debut novel was named by the Los Angeles Times as one of the best mysteries of the year.
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KILL ALL THE LAWYERS
- Solomon vs. Lord Book 3It all starts with a 300-pound marlin stuck in Solomon’s front door. Prank? Threat? High tide? Even by South Florida standards, this registers as weird.
Soon, celebrity shrink “Dr. Bill” shows up. Just out of prison, he blames Solomon for his manslaughter conviction involving the death of a patient. Victoria Lord is used to her law partner and lover cutting corners to win. But Dr. Bill claims Solomon tried to lose!
As a lawyer who always follows the rules, Victoria is appalled by one of Solomon’s Laws: “Thou shalt not screw thy own client...unless thou hast a damn good reason.”
With Dr. Bill on the loose, neither Steve nor Victoria are safe, and their relationship – both personal and professional – is on the rocks. Will this be the end of Solomon and Lord?
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THE DEEP BLUE ALIBI
- Solomon vs.Lord Series Book 2Florida’s most mismatched law partners are back in this Edgar-nominated tale. A Coral Gables blueblood, Victoria Lord plays by the rules. A Coconut Grove beach bum, Steve Solomon makes up his own, starting with: “When the law doesn’t work, work the law.” The action starts when a boat runs aground in the Florida Keys. Aboard are a thousand hundred-dollar bills and two men, one shot by a speargun. The other man is Victoria’s “Uncle Grif,” who desperately needs a lawyer...or two. But Grif, charged with murder, is a lawyer’s worst nightmare, a client who keeps secrets. Just what is he planning in the Florida Keys and why would he kill an investigator for the Environmental Protection Agency? The tale roams from the streets of Miami to a waterfront nudist colony to a Key West courtroom with Solomon and Lord – squabblers extraordinaire – fighting all the way. Will they succeed in defending Grif? Will they learn the truth? And will they end the case as partners and lovers or enemies and litigants?
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ILLEGAL
A down-and-out L.A. lawyer with nothing to lose...
A beautiful Mexican woman who disappears crossing the border... And the powerful and corrupt rancher who would destroy them both.
Haunted by a personal tragedy and wanted by the cops, lawyer Jimmy (Royal) Payne wants to skip town. That's when he crosses paths with 12-year-old Tino Perez, newly arrived from Mexico, looking for his mother Marisol, who went missing after crossing the border with a vicious coyote.
Before long, the cynical lawyer and the savvy kid are bonding and tracing Marisol's path, battling predators on both sides of the border. Most dangerous of all is Simeon Rutledge, a wealthy rancher, and the biggest employer of farm workers in California. Just why is Rutledge willing to kill Payne to keep Marisol under wraps?
It's a story of human trafficking and sex slavery, a mother's love for her son, and the redemption of a man intent on escaping his past. From the shadows of migrant stash houses to the fertile fields of the San Joaquin Valley, 'Illegal' delivers a searing mix of live-wire prose, shattering violence, and rich characterization. Set against larger social issues, this is a masterful tale from one of the most skillful practitioners of the modern thriller.
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IMPACT
A Jetliner Crashes in the Everglades.
A Billion-Dollar Lawsuit: Negligence or Terrorism?
The Defense: Kill Anyone, Even a Supreme Court Justice, to Win the Case.
Supreme Court Justice Sam Truitt takes the bench with high ideals, lofty intentions...and a troubled marriage. Lisa Fremont, his stunning and brilliant law clerk, has a dark secret in her past. If Lisa doesn't get Truitt's vote in multi-million dollar case involving a catastrophic airplane crash, she'll be killed. The Justice, too. IMPACT is a tale of seduction and betrayal, of passion and greed. Truitt, who has always followed the rules, and Lisa, who never has, join together to battle those who live by no law at all.
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BALLISTIC
A Nuclear Missile...
A Band of Terrorists...
And Only Two People Who Can Prevent Armageddon.
When a doomsday cult captures an U.S. Air Force missile base, it's up to a lowly sergeant and a female psychiatrist to prevent a nuclear holocaust. That's the setup of BALLISTIC, the chilling new thriller from the Edgar-nominated author.
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PAYDIRT
Bobby Gallagher has it all...a great job, a loving wife, and an adoring son... Then he's fired; his wife divorces him; and he goes bankrupt... Now, to reclaim his life, all he has to do is rig the Super Bowl, win a huge bet, and avoid getting killed.
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