Brother

James Fredericks
Bascom Hill Publishing Group (2008)
ISBN 9780980245561
Reviewed by Danielle Feliciano for Reader Views (2/09)

James Fredericks’ “Brother” is the story of twin brothers Chase and Jared Riordan.    Chase is a former prosecutor who is now a defense attorney who, in his latest case, faces off against his former District Attorney boss.  Chase is on his third murder trial as a defense attorney and as his latest client is found not guilty, he begins to wonder about the link between all of his cases.  In addition to this he is dealing with the fact that Jared, after being injured on an Army Special Forces mission, is detained in an Army-run “mental hospital” but is actually a type of prison for those the Army feels are too dangerous to let go of.  Jared is kept drugged and is tortured in the name of treatment, but manages to escape. During his visits, Chase figures out that Jared is more cognizant of what is happening than he lets everyone know so Chase leaves items to help him get free.

When Chase’s fourth murder client contacts him, he is positive that something bigger is going on. This is proven true when he is arrested for the latest murder and is told he may be charged with the prior three as well. The DA holds an obsessive hatred for Chase and will do anything to bring Chase down and see him in jail.  With political and legal corruption playing a part, Chase knows it is up to him to clear his own name.

At the same time, Jared is on the run from the Army and, more specifically, his former superior who finds Jared to be too big of a threat to leave alone.  Chase’s close circle of friends play an important part of the story.  This group of men has been friends for twenty years and they are brothers in all ways but for blood. The challenges that Chase and Jared face will test this friendship in ways nobody could have seen coming.

Fredericks is a supremely talented author whose writing is outstanding.  There were a lot of plots and subplots in “Brother” and in a lesser author’s hands this could have been a disaster. However, Fredericks did such a tremendous job in his writing that not a single plot or character was superfluous.  The plot was intricate and every detail was clearly well thought out.  The characters were so realistic and well developed that it was easy to imagine you knew them.  The plot was suspenseful and intense, yet did not move too quickly.  The author’s writing style allows the reader to truly savor the story without rushing things along.  Fredericks does a fine job of slowly revealing tidbits of information and revelations at just the right time, up to and including the very last page.  I can’t wait to read more by James Fredericks.

 

Make comment on weblog