Jack Gilmour: Wish Lawyer

Wish lawyer WHat does a wish lawyer do? He brokers wish contracts, looks over them to check if they are real, can they be broken, or meant for the wrong person. Demons are involved and they can't lie, Benny, Eddie's nephew met a beautiful woman that he really wants and he signed a paper that he didn't read so he can have her. Her fiancee is Patrick Halikov, who is worse than all the Mafia put together. Jack and Sebastian, a wizard go to see Lucia, a powerful demon of The Inner Circle to see if she will help. She agrees but she wants something. Lucia needs to stop a conspiracy that could bring down the Inner Circle. Also, his secretary has disappeared with someone she shouldn't be with. Will that be more than they can do do, will Jack get paid and what about Benny? Will they find Gloria, the secretary safe? Well written, suspenseful, I liked it. I received this book from Net Galley for an honest review and no compensation.

Read Wish Lawyer by Ed Ryder, a thoroughly great read that just wasn't long enough. I found myself wanting more of Jack Gilmour. He's a lawyer who works for those who find themselves on the wrong end of a contract with an entity they really shouldn't have signed a contract with. In this book he also finds himself working as a detective to get to the bottom of whats going on. I really enjoyed it and hope for more from this Author and with this character.

There are many who would say that lawyers are from hell, but this one might just be your only chance of getting out of a demonic contract alive.  Jack Gilmour is Las Vegas’s first and only demonic contract lawyer. In a city all too eager to sin where you can get anything if you are willing to sign on the dotted line - he’s the last line of defense.  The novel starts with this unique premise, introducing a very different kind of hero in a world where demons readily interact with humans. Jack Gilmour is middle aged and balding, but he knows his demonic law.  He also has friends, including a suave gambling wizard with major mojo. Don’t expect dry courtroom scenes. There’s plenty of action and more than a touch of dark humor.


When Eddie Malfitano’s naive nephew signs a contract guaranteeing the interest of the fiancé of one of Las Vegas’s biggest players, Jack is tasked with finding a way to break the contract.  If it is consummated, there will be bloodshed on the streets and that doesn’t include what will happen to his nephew. The contract leads back to Lucia Oredis, a powerful demon and major player who agrees to break the contract in exchange for Jack finding out about a demonic conspiracy and ending it.


Part pulp mystery, part urban fantasy action Jack Gilmour Wish Lawyer is 100% fun.  The unusual characters and the unique premise combined with Ed Ryder’s snappy dialogue make for a winning novel.  I hope to see more of Ed Ryder and Jack Gilmour in future.


5 / 5


I received a copy of Jack Gilmour Wish Lawyer from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.


— Crittermom

4.5 Stars A broker of wishes may give you what you want but be careful what you wish for because you may just need to be protected from them. My first read by this author but what and introduction, I loved this story, the characters and the overall interaction and look forward to reading more by this author.

What a fun, twisty and turny story! This was so different...I couldn't get enough!
I adored Jack There was something so appealing about him...his personality, his snark, just everything!
And really. Who doesn't love demons, and pacts, and the lawyers who can get mortals who make really bad decisions out of those pacts? :)

Loads of action, suspense, the supernatural, a bit of funny mixed with plenty of danger, an original storyline, and fantastic characters. Combine all of these and you have the wonderfully written Urban Fantasy that is Jack Gilmour: Wish Lawyer. This one had me hooked from the first page and didn't let go even when the last page was turned. The only thing wrong with this story is that I didn't want it to end. It's just that good.

We all know that we should never sign a contract without reading the fine print, and Jack has the job of making sure all is fair in contracts - With demons. That's where our story starts. Jack agrees to help break a contract and from there it's a downward spiral into danger. With plenty of twists and lots of action, the story moves at a fast pace, making it impossible to put down.

Well this one is pure pulpy fun. The world has opened routes of communication with hell, and it seems that demons like nothing more than making deals. The human soul is worth a lot to them, and the standard deal is ten years of working for them post-death for your greatest desire. Want more? Spend a hundred years. After your payment is up, you go on to a better place, but you're going to want to make sure your contract is solid before you sign on the dotted line.

That's where Jack Gilmour comes in. He's a lawyer, specialising in demonic contracts. He'll check for loopholes, try and argue your corner and hopefully stop you being dragged off to hell before your time. He's also been a bit too inspired by Sam Spade and the like and has consciously built his life to be a living tribute to noir.

The setup is a standard "damsel in distress" arc, though here the damsel is casino owner Eddie Malfitano's nephew. Eddie brings some two-fisted muscle and the occasional gun shot to the story, acting nicely against type, as this sort of character would normally be a noir antagonist.

Jack's also helped by Sebastian, a wizard who pays a rather unpleasant price for his demonic magic. And finally there's Lucia, a major demon with her hooks in Jack. She's probably my favourite character in the book, combining the charming malevolence of a femme fatale with some impressive body horror.

It's a relatively straight plot, with not much structurally surprising, but it's an enjoyable ride anyway. It's a novella-length piece, and the thrills never really let up. There's a lot of action, some gruesome hell scenes and some interesting hooks for future adventures. The noir/pulp feel is also well done, with that balance between dark and humour that's so core to the genre. One for a look at.

This was a fun read, with a great set up that begs for more books... The idea of a lawyer who specializes in soul-selling contracts is hardly a stretch (I can make that joke, as a lawyer myself!), but surprisingly enough, it hasn't been played out yet (that I've seen) and I found it a great construct that offered thoroughly entertaining possibilities. Jack's noir personality is a great foil for the more modern messes he finds himself cleaning up, and sets up a nice contrast between old- and new-school.

The story moved along at a mostly solid pace - there were a few times that the book lagged a bit and felt like it needed a tighter edit. It felt a little rough around the edges, and while that worked alright for the format and story, I think that with a little tweaking this could really be an exceptional series. Some of the demonic interactions felt a little rushed - I am still not entirely sure I understand how that world works, although that may be the plan if this is a first-in-series. There were a few places where the transition between plot elements felt rushed, but I appreciated the author's desire to keep it short, sweet, and to the point as much as possible - it kept the flow going and kept me engaged, even if occasionally flipping back a page to make sure I hadn't missed a connection.

It all worked itself out into a satisfactory ending, and I never felt truly lost, but there were a few spots where a little more explanation about the connections between people/demons would have helped tighten the story. Still, even saying all of that, it was a very enjoyable book - the writing was easy to engage with and the plot fun to follow through, and I will definitely keep an eye out for more adventures with Jack!

This was an okay book. It had a new angle on the whole contract with a demon theme. Jack Gilmour is a lawyer specializing in these Demonic contracts. Before you sign one, go to him. Or, if you skipped that step, go after and pray he can find a loophole to get you out of it. The book had a decent plot. Not too fast, not too slow. There wasn't a lot of character growth in the story. The aim was more action adventure than soul searching novel. All in all it was a fair bit of writing and I would read a sequel if one comes out.

I thought this book was so different. The idea of a lawyer brokering for the demons was pure genius. Jack was a strong and very well developed character that I loved. I hated when this book was finished because I thought it was so entertaining. Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book and write about it.

This is a noir private investigator novel except instead of a trained P.I. we have a lawyer fallen into strange company after he made an ill-thought-out deal with a demon. Jack Gilmour has a good heart and a strong hatred for demon trickery, two elements he turns into reviewing demonic contracts before a human does something stupid…like he did.

Both the tone and the traditional elements spring from the noir detective genre, and as the story unfolds, this pen-pushing lawyer is thrust into events better suited for a P.I. He has good friends to call upon, though, and with some harrowing moments, manages to navigate the line as a mediator between demons and humanity quite well. The tone lost me a little when it appeared to become quite misogynous, but I say appeared because there was more going on than Jack knew, and as the true answers unfold, that appearance is negated quite nicely.

One of Jack’s friends is Sebastian, a wizard who supports himself by manipulating casino games. The conversation between Sebastian and Eddie (Jack’s client) is a thing of beauty. How the demon Lucia’s demonic nature comes clear through offhand cruelty rather than heavy description is also well done. The description does get a bit too dense for me at times, but there were many turns of phrase that I appreciated.

The strong narrative voice helped in drawing me into the story, and there were a few twists and turns I didn’t anticipate. Others, I saw long before Jack, and the best reason I can give is he wasn’t thinking like a P.I. so overlooked the early clues. There are a couple of points like that, but the strengths helped overcome these weaknesses.

Ultimately, the book lives up to its description. It offers a fun noir adventure with the traditional emotionally distant main character who nevertheless has a heart of gold and risks everything to protect his people. Toss in some demonic magic, and you have the makings of a series with potential.

P.S. I received this ARC through NetGalley in return for an honest review.

This is a fun pulp noir, lawyer tale. My rating 4.5.

Jack Gilmour is a Las Vegas attorney specializing in demon contract law. His job is to protect people from entering into contracts with the devil, or, if they have already made a deal he may be able to help get the contract voided. Jack works with some unusual characters to accomplish his goals. One is Sebastian, a wizard who is able to work magic against demonic powers. The other is a powerful, seductress Lucia, a demon of the Inner Circle.

Jack is called upon by a local casino owner to get his nephew out of a poorly chosen deal. The young man might get a night of his dreams but it would most likely be followed by his death. Jack enlists the help of Sebastian and Lucia. Lucia agrees to help but only if Jack agrees to investigate a demonic conspiracy that threatens Lucia’s control as well as human safety. Jack has to infiltrate a demon stronghold to uncover answers. He has to follow one clue to another to unravel the contract and he is racing against time.

I enjoyed the mystery and the noir elements of this story. Jack and Sebastian are likeable characters and even Lucia has a bit of a draw – well she is a temptress demon after all. This is a quick, entertaining read and it supports an adage I often tell my clients: An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure! I recommend this fun, easy read to those who enjoy noir mystery.

Source: NetGalley 2018.

Everyone needs a good lawyer. Enjoyable, easy read with great dialogue and a quirky plot. I've always liked the nuances of contract law and when combined with a demonic twist, the story is definitely entertaining. If you watch Lucifer you'll probably like this book.

I loved reading "Jack Gilmour: Wish Lawyer"! Jack is a wish lawyer - basically, he helps ordinary people read the fine print on contracts with the supernatural world. But Jack hasn't always been a wish lawyer. He also knows a bit too much and a bit too little, a situation that gets him into trouble.

I don't want to spoil the book, but if you like fast paced fantasies with well-thought through plots, then this is the book for you.