Betraya" by Phillip Margolin is a gripping legal thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. Defense attorney Robin Lockwood finds herself defending her former MMA rival, Mandy Kerrigan, in a complex murder case involving multiple suspects. As Robin delves deeper into the investigation, she uncovers a web of secrets and dangerous connections that put her own life at risk.

I was drawn to the intriguing premise of a defense attorney representing the very person who ended her fighting career. The case becomes even more intense when it involves a family with dark ties to Russian mobsters and a husband drowning in debt. The author skillfully weaves together a compelling narrative filled with twists and turns, making it hard to predict the outcome.

The courtroom scenes were a highlight for me, showcasing Margolin's expertise in legal storytelling. The mounting circumstantial evidence and the revelation of unexpected motives kept me guessing until the final pages. Overall, Betrayal is a thrilling read that left me eager to explore more of Margolin's works in the series.

Big fan of Margolin. This book didn’t disappoint. Great storyline, interesting characters, intriguing plot. Highly recommend.

Name of Book: Betrayal
Author: Phillip Margolin
Series: Robin Lockwood #7
Publisher: Saint Martin’s Press - Minotaur Books
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Pub Date: November 7, 2023
My Rating: 4+ Stars
Pages: 336

This is my eighth Philip Margolin novel and book #7 in the Robin Lockwood series.
Love this author as well as this series and call myself a fan!
Robin is a Defense Attorney in Portland but while she attended Yale Law School she was a professional MMA fighter aka ‘Rockin Robin”; she quit so that she could focus on her present career.

Now ten years later she gets a call from Mandy Kerrigan who was one of her first MMA opponents.
Mandy is no longer a world champion and is actually in a lot of trouble. She was on the downside of her career and yes desperate to win. Unfortunately she turned to some non-legal help and flunked a recent drug test which led to a suspension. She is more than upset with Ryan Finch a drug dealer who had promised his drugs wouldn’t show up in a test so beat him up – oops not a good idea as she has now been indicted for the murder on not only Ryan but his family- Margaret, Nathan, and young Annie.

Robin’s investigative team goes to work and finds out that Margaret was the lawyer for the Russian mob and was involved in an auto accident insurance scam. Fourteen year old Annie was bulling Donna Faber a classmate suggesting she kill herself and she did –( family is more than upset with Annie) we already know Ryan was a drug dealer and Nathan manufactured a basement lab in their home. .
Yes things get complicated and more complicated!

Robin takes the case!
BTW: I am a big thriller fan and love trying to figure things out so when something is mentioned that makes me curious I look it up. I was curious about ~ ‘Tinker to Evers to Chance’ (My hubby went to bed early and I am sure he would know so HAD to look it up) anyway It is a reference to a double play completed by Chicago Cubs shortstop Joe Tinker, second baseman Johnny Evers, and first baseman Frank Chance, famously eulogized in a poem[1]. Love Margolin for throwing in this bit of trivia.

Back to the story -- I am a big court room drama fan so totally loved this! Plus an added 'wrinkle’ is that Robin and Tim McGee the prosecutor whom she will have to face off with in this case is the first man she’s dated since the death of Jeff Hodges her fiancé. (If you haven’t read [book: The Darkest Place] Book, you may want to do so.)
– Their relationship certainly added more to the drama.
Hmm Wonder if we might we be hearing hear more about Robin and Tim in the next book? -

Thank you author, Phillip Margolin for another great Robin adventure – love and enjoy this series and looking forward to Book #8!!

Want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press ~ Minotaur Books for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for November 7, 2023.

Margolin’s Robin Lockwood series are the best and like all his books, he tells the story….gets to the point….and always has an unexpected ending. Betrayal has a lot of characters and many moving chess pieces that culminate at the end for a great ending!! Thanks for the advanced read!

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Robin's next case is a woman who may have killed a family. Robin has very little to go on but wants a not not guilty verdict for her client. This book kept me guessing.

In Phillip Margolin's Betrayal, attorney Robin Lockwood finds herself defending her old nemesis in a multiple murder case with too many suspects, where success might cost her own life. This is book 7 in the series. I have not read all the books in this series, but I didn't feel I missed too much by reading this one out of order.

Oh, Betrayal is such a good book! Phillip Margolin's writing feels effortless to read, and the words flow and immerse me in the story and characters.

I found the jury information interesting and the difference between a capital case and the selection of jurists.

I would definitely recommend Betrayal. I cannot wait to read more in this series. I will also read earlier books because the writing is done so well, and Robin is such a good, well-developed, and interesting character. I love her style, interactions, and how she thinks and presents herself.

I would recommend this book and this author. Five out of 5 stars for me.

@StMartinsPress #NetGalley

the author never disappoints. I found this to be fast moving and an enjoyable read. The twists and turns kept me captivated and I look forward to the next installment - keep them coming!

Robin Lock wood is a former MMA fighter, turned attorney. In this 7th installment of the Lockwood series, Robin is once again working to clear her client’s name and keep her out of jail. Robin has not always had an easy time of it. She lost her beloved future husband and has been dealing with that grief for a while. However, it appears that she is healing and is now open to love again. In this story, she faces off against her current boyfriend in court. The storyline is well written, and the characters are developed well. This is a great read, and I enjoyed it immensely. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

Two female boxers trying to destroy each other in the ring end up in the courtroom. This is the best crime and mystery book I have read in a long time. I had a hard time putting this down. The courtroom drama and the action of both lawyers were enlightening. Matters are complicated when the lawyers have started a relationship with each other. The scenes were believable and exciting and the characters were great. Prepare yourself for an exciting finish. Great book!

Thanks to St. Martin's Press, Phillip Margolin and NetGalley for allowing me access to an early release copy of this book.

This is another in the continuing series of the Robin Lockwood series and it is an entertaining, quick and easy read. The characters are well formed and believable. Good story with a satisfying ending.

I love Phillip Margolin's character Robin Lockwood and his latest, 'Betrayal' doesn't disappoint. I will say he drops some heavy clues early, which made it easier to figure this out. As per usual, there's always lots of twists and turns, many dead bodies and even some much deserved romance for Robin! Keep them coming!'

Back in Portland with the incessant rain where former MMA legend, Robin, now practices law. While she’s still grieving the loss of her fiancé, she is healing. There is a possibility of new romance in her future. Legal cases are my favorite and this time Robin is defending a death penalty case. The stakes couldn’t be higher as Robin knows the defendant, Mandy Kerrigan, from her MMA days. It’s a murder mystery ‘who dun it” and a tricky case since the entire Finch family has been murdered. Figuring out who had motive is complicated with Mandy’s recent very public confrontation with one of the victims. There are many obvious reasons with drugs, gambling, insurance scams, the Russian mob and bullying all in play. Suspects include student parents, criminal clients, mobsters, the bookmaker, even the auto accident victims. The Finch family certainly weren’t the perfect neighbors to have or upstanding citizens, but they still deserve justice. Can Robin and her team prove it wasn’t Mandy? They have their work cut out and time isn’t on their side.
Another winner for me by a longtime favorite author who continues to keep me guessing and surprised by the outcome of the case. Many thanks to NetGalley for the digital advance reader copy of “Betrayal”, A Robin Lockwood Novel, #7, by Phillip Margolin, published by Minotaur Books, St. Martin’s Press. These are all my own honest personal thoughts and opinions given voluntarily without compensation.

I've enjoyed the character of attorney Robin Lockwood through the years, and am happy the author has written her a love interest in this new series installment. That she is squaring off against him across the courtroom aisle makes for a fun read.
Robin, an ex-MMA fighter, is defending the woman who sent her out of the ring for good, Mandy Kerrigan. Mandy is on her last legs as a fighter, was found to have performance enhancing drugs in her system, threatened the dealer, who was found killed in his home the day after her match - along with the rest of his family. Got all that?
The problem I had was that the prosecution's evidence seemed very circumstantial, but the author addresses this issue in the narrative. The fact that the slaughtered family consisted of four equally despicable people, each with a reason to be killed, made the middle of the book a roller coaster of suspects and motives.
I always enjoy a good courtroom scene, and this aspect didn't disappoint. The last 20 pages or so provided an unexpected twist. Another solid entry in the series.

Another solid Phillip Margolin mystery starring Robin Lockwood. A quick, exciting read with a complex set (in a good way) of interwoven plots.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Philip Margolin's Robin Lockwood series is about a former MMA fighter turned criminal defense attorney. In the latest story, Betrayal (Minotaur Books 2023), Robin's client is another MMA fighter who was once world champion but now on hard times. She hires Robin to defend her on charges of murdering an entire family. Yes, she beat the son up and yes, she was banging on their home door in the time frame of the killing, but she denies doing it and Robin believes her. This is where a story with lots of fascinating threads slows down and becomes somewhat predictable. Robin is reputed to be smart and clever, an attorney who can pull rabbits out of hats, but in this case, she fails to come up with anything clever or smart to save her client. As we the reader progress through the trial, it is almost boring in its predictability. No Perry Mason moments here. Then, when almost too late, Lockwood uncovers a clever twist of the evidence that saves her client.

This is why it got 4/5 (with a lean for less). Character development is great and the potential love interest enticing, but I almost felt tricked that I read a mundane story for 90% of the book just for the last 10% where I was wowed. Worse, I have noticed it in other books in the series. What's up with that?


Still for those who enjoy a good-not-great courtroom drama, this will be a worthy read.

Another winner from Margolin! This is the newest book in the Robin Lockwood series and it’s great. Robin defends a former opponent who is accused of murdering a family. Margolin has inserted enough red herrings to keep the reader intrigued.

It is also a time when Robin, long mourning her late love, comes back to life with a very unlikely suitor.

The plot moves quickly and efficiently, keeping me in its thrall. I really couldn’t put it down.

I enjoyed this and eagerly look forward to the next installment

Thank you Netgalley for this latest Lockwood novel, I’m a fan!

As always, this book in the series with Robin Lockwood is a must read! Love this series, she's tough, she's fair, she's a great lawyer, This story had lots of bad guys that could have been guilty, making it hard to guess who the guilty party actually was. Good story, highly recommend this one and the whole series!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC. Whether or not you have meet ex MAA fighter / defense attorney Robin Lockwood before, you have never seen her pull a rabbit out of a hat like she does in THIS novel! A MUST READ for courtroom drama fans!

As having read all the previous entries in the series, I will say this one was one of the better ones. However, the main case of this one felt a little weak. Don't get me wrong, the crime itself was good but I just don't see how Kerrigan could be convicted based on all the weak circumstantial evidence. I liked how all the family members were terrible people -- leading to them all having someone to suspect, but it still felt a little weak by book's end. I also didn't care for the repetition present throughout the book, where characters talk about scenes we've just experienced. It made portions drag, and felt like a way to pad the page count for the author. That being said, Robin is still a cool character, and I liked the peek into her MMA back story, which we'd previously only seen mentioned. I'll keep reading these as the books are good fun palate cleansers between mightier tomes on my TBR.

Phillip Margolin never disappoints, and ‘Betrayal’ is no different. This 7th installment of the Robin Lockwood series
is spellbinding, well written, and the characters are believable in their roles, from protagonist Robin Lockwood, the former, and rising MMA fighter to her very new relationship with the man she’s only dated a short time and who will
play two critical roles in her life.
Because Robin left the ring more than a decade ago and has now become a prominent Portland, OR defense attorney, her life is on a completely different track. Her dating life has been a bit non-existent, but she’s feeling
a bit more ready to adventure out, believing her late husband would want her to be happy, as she knows she would want him to be happy, and it was only coffee…
if the situation was reversed. Certainly her friends and family are all working hard to hook her up.
Present day, and while not having thought about her old life lately, the phone call she gets is going to change her life, and she will worry about her new life changing as well, when the voice on the other end of the line is none other
than her most memorable and career ending nemesis, Mandy Kerrigan.
Mandy, in several kinds of trouble, from career ending to permanent incarceration, turns to Lockwood for help.
Mandy is in trouble she cannot even understand, and Lockwood and her crack team, (leaving out spoiler here)
will have to cast a really wide net to get to the bottom of the mess Kerrigan is in, and it won’t be easy. The cast of
characters in this story are all important but a little complicated at times.
Lockwood is the best in not just the nuts and bolts of lawyering, but she and her team will get to the bottom of what is basically a Federal case, and she will have to choose to work for her client and then face off in court against the
the first man she’s dated since the death of her husband. Can she beat all of the obstacles placed in her path?
This is one of the best books I have read this year- but a I was certain it would be! I adore Phillip Margolin and
his writing style. I enjoyed some of his references, my favorite is our good friend, Barbara Peters and her
wonderful Poisoned Pen bookstore in Scottsdale and Phoenix, AZ. I enjoy learning about Portland and surrounding areas in Oregon.
I recommend this book to absolutely everyone! This book will just grab you and you’ll be hooked- and you will be thinking ahead, trying to figure out what will happen next… Fans of Michael Connolly, John Lescroat, Brad Meltzer will be especially big fans here,so basically the great courtroom and suspense thriller authors of today. Mr Margolin’s talent as a writer comes in part from his talent as an Attorney, and it shows.
My thanks to St Martin’s Publishing Group via NetGalley, for providing me this free download copy
in exchange for my honest review.