Cover Image: The Advocate's Daughter

The Advocate's Daughter

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Member Reviews

I love Alex Finlay. I've read all of his books and this one did not disappoint! I was hooked from the beginning and couldn't put it down!

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What an introduction to this author.
I almost read this in 2 sittings which for me is extremely unusual.m
Loved the plot, the pace and could not put it down.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommended to all

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I got so invested into this book from start to finish that I have read it in one sitting. I’m a huge fan of court stories and everything in between. The characters are so intriguing and the suspenseful moments kept me on the edge most of the time.
I was rooting for him to get his truth out and while I hadn’t guessed who was the culprit , I enjoyed it more than I expected.

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Great book, by an author I will read more of! Thrilling plot, great writing and brilliant characters. Highly recommend to others.

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A solid thriller from the early stages of Alex Finlay's career.
I loved Every Last Fear, and when I learnt he had wrote legal thrillers, I couldn't request them quickly enough!
This book is centred around the Supreme Court, an area which I know a little, and Finlay clearly knows a lot! I have learnt a lot from this book, but this could be forgotten rather quickly.

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This was a really great thriller. Very fast moving and unpredictable. It reminded me a bi5 of Harlan Coben’s novels. A great read and thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read a copy of this book.

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From never hearing of this author to reading three of his novels in short order is a good thing. This was the third of those novels, and like the other two a thriller based on the legal system as part of the Supreme Court in America.

I have previously said that the author writes thrillers similar to John Grisham, especially his earlier works that gave great detail about the legal process. This was probably the wrong thing to point out as Alex Finlay wrote a great thriller in his own style.

This was a great novel that starts off quick and doesn’t let the pace drop until the final page.

If you are a fan of legal thrillers, in my opinion you will like this one.

I was provided a free ARC of the book from NetGalley and the publisher in return for my honest review.

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Solid thriller. The Supreme Court setting is really interesting. I'm just not sure any contender for a supreme court seat would realistically be able to go around breaking that many laws and get away with it! If you can suspend reality on that front it's a cracking story.

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Murder/mysteries at the Supreme Court

I make no apology for grouping all three of these murder/mysteries together. In fact, Amazon describes each in the same way - “A suspenseful legal thriller with a shock ending.” The first was an enjoyable read; the second palled a little and the third had a feeling of déjà vu about it.

The Outsider features Gray Hernandez, a messenger who works at the Supreme Court and who works as a law clerk after saving the life of Chief Justice Douglas. The plot was fresh and different and would have merited four stars.

The main character of The Last Justice is Solicitor General, Jefferson McKenna, who is trying to determine who and why gunned down 5 Supreme Court Justices. The motive is unclear, but it is sure to involve corruption and political intrigue.

The Advocate’s Daughter features lawyer Sean Serrat whose daughter goes missing and is found murdered in the Supreme Court’s library. As the main protagonist, it was difficult to relate to Serrat. His past is key to the solution, but his character is a little two dimensional to make the plot sufficiently interesting.

Clearly, Alex Finlay knows a good deal about the Supreme Court and its workings and feels comfortable in using it as a setting for his novels. The writing is good; the characters, in the main, come through strongly and are believable but the novels themselves felt a bit stale and in need of a good dose of fresh air. Overall, though a solid average of three stars.

mr zorg

Elite Reviewing group received a copy of the book to review.

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Thanks to Head of Zeus and Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sean is a Supreme Court lawyer, whose daughter Abby, a law student, goes missing and is then found dead. Her ex boyfriend is arrested but maintains that he is innocent. Meanwhile Sean is a longshot consideration for an opening on the Supreme Court but it haunted by things that occurred in his youth.

This is my second Anthony Franze novel, and a probably wouldn't have ever picked them if I hadn't loved Every Last Fear that he wrote as Alex Finlay. I haven't loved these books as much every Every Last Fear, but they are very different so that is understandable. I think the inter workings of the Supreme Court are interesting and the mystery is good. But, I felt this one again had too many characters to keep straight so I found myself getting confused as to who was who. I have one more of these to read and definitely look forward to his next novel as Alex Finlay.

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This is a legal thriller which is suspenseful and gripping, it's highly recommended with twists and turns throughout that keep the reader engaged until the end of the novel. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Sean is an appellant lawyer. After not hearing from his daughter he and his wife become nervous, Sean calls an FBI buddy to help him find her. So when her lifeless body is found Sean is on the hunt for answers. Only problem is the answers he is given don't satisfy him or his wife, so he continues his own investigation.

I have heard great things about this book and was so excited to read it I brought it right to the tope of my list, a legal thriller great! The story does have some great parts and I must say they were actually centred around the son and his side storyline. Sean on the other hand just wasn't great as a lead protagonist. When we find out his secret quite early on in the book I found it really difficult to connect or sympathise with him. Where as Emily his wife would of made such a better lead.

There are good elements of the book, the who done it part honestly I took a stab in the dark and guessed the correct murderer yet I had zero rationale as to why. I actually quite enjoyed the big reveal it has to be said. I also enjoyed some of the legal history (probably because I'm a law geek myself) it was really interesting learning about the Supreme Court.

It would of been great to of had flash backs throughout the story to learn what happened to Abby because of how brutal everything was I just felt we didn't get to learn all the details. Although something the author does exceptionally well is writes the prose in short chapters and manages to leave us on a cliff hanger at the end of most. Trying to find a point to stop for a nap was extremely tricky as I got to the end of the chapter and then wanted to know what the next chapter said straight away! It is very cleverly written that way.

The thriller elements of the book were sprinkled in throughout. I had quite a few omg moments that had me re reading the page as things seemed to come from no where. There were some moments I wanted more of and felt were rushed over. Jts clear the author has purposely made this a fast paced book, at times I wanted more or needed more. As although it is a fast paced book there are some chapters that are just lacking and slow. It's hard to explain .


I liked this book, I didn't love it but I would read other work by this author. I just kind of wish that our protagonist was Emily instead, but I do tend to read alot of female lead books (could be my unconscious bias). I found it was quite easy to get through and managed to finish within a a day. I don't think I will be recommending it but it's quite a niche area of interest. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 stars

Thanks to Netgalldy, Alex Finlay and Head of Zues publishers for the reviewers digital copy of the advocates daughter in exchange for my fair and honest opinions

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It was an OK read....the synopsis on the back hyped it up which is why I thought it was my sort of book. However for me I've read better!

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I found this book very absorbing, it is really well written in that it is detailed about the Supreme Court and nomination process but in a way that makes it easy to follow if you are not familiar with the subject but it does not dumb it down.
The storyline is very good and twisty, but I have to admit there were parts I found a little confusing (Spoiler alert) am I missing something obvious about how Chipotle Man fitted in to it all? or was he just a pawn for set ups and blackmail? I also couldn't help feeling Abby's death took a back seat, I didnt feel the devastation to the family.
Overall a very good read, just lacked a little on those points for me.

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A decent enough read, but, like a number of books, the blurb makes it seem better than what it really is. It was also one of those infuriating books that you could easily have put to one side and forgotten about before really getting into it.
Not sure if I had read anything by Alex Finlay before, but will certainly read him again.

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This is a solid 3* Good Read.

It's a legal thriller that has a few twists and turns and enough solid storyline and interesting characters to maintain interest.
Sean is a lawyer with a secret in his past, then his daughter disappears and he's afraid it's all linked to something in his past. I don't want to say any more as it's best read without knowing anything.

A really good beach read or just an easy page turner. I'd recommend.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to preview.

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Packed with suspense and twists and turns.
Sean has a secret from his childhood, and is possibly being considered as a nominee fora Supreme Court Justice.
His daughter is researching nominees and seems to have uncovered her fathers secret.
Fast paced thriller and can't wait to read more from this author.

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A good solid legal thriller centred around the Supreme Court. Entertaining enough to read in a single sitting with likeable characters and enough twists and turns to keep you guessing.

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Supreme court legal thriller and there is lots of info in the book on the workings of this system,the research
Done by the author is fantastic ,that does mean at times there is a lot to take in and every so often ai re read something to make sure ai had it right,
The story itself is well done,a mystery/ thriller with twists and turns and interesting characters, and for me ramped up in the last third to make it a really good read

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This is a legal thriller revolving around the Supreme Court, set in Washington DC, written by Alex Finlay writing as Anthony Franze some years previously. 44 year old Sean Serrat is happily married to Emily, with 3 children, talented law student Abby, 14 year old Ryan and 7 year old Jack. He has just left the office of the Solicitor General to work in the private law firm of Harrington and Caine, for family reasons and finances, with rumours and speculation that he is set to become a supreme court justice, which he does not believe, convinced Senator Mason James will be nominated instead. Sean carries a secret from when he was 14 year old in Japan, where his father was a serving General in the Air Force. It has haunted him throughout his life, and he has never talked about it to anyone, not even his wife.

Abby had been trying to get in touch with him to discuss some matter, and all efforts to contact her since then have come to nought, so he goes to her apartment, only to find it trashed. The past is about to raise its ugly head when Sean, with his friend, Deputy FBI Director Frank Pacini, find Abby's dead body in the Supreme Court library. Her black boyfriend, the smart law clerk Malik Montgomery, is charged with her murder, although the evidence is at best circumstantial. Sean initially believes the right man has been charged, but soon begins to harbour doubts, his grief leading him to act irrationally in his need to find out what happened to Abby. Sean is to find there was a lot he didn't know about Abby, is surprised to see Kenny again for the first time since Japan, in this story of murder and where everyone has secrets.

This is an enjoyable and entertaining legal thriller, full of information about legal Supreme Court procedures and history, and which I thought of as a 3 star read until the last quarter of the book when it became 4 stars for me. I recommend this novel of twists and turns to crime and mystery readers. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

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