56128

Title: Try Dying
Author: James Scott Bell
Pages: 280
Year: 2007
Publisher: Center Street
My rating is 5 out of 5 stars.
Ty Buchanan is a young lawyer at a well-known, prestigious law firm. He is the golden boy and has reached his peak performance years, seeking to eventually be a partner in the firm. One of the partners has taken him under his wing, and it appears Ty can do no wrong. He is the lead on a high-profile case, which he is confident he can win and that will garner him more prestige. He is engaged to the love of his life and has bought a house for them to live in after the wedding. Ty is riding the high wave, but with one phone call he is drowning.
At first his fiancée’s death is ruled an accident, but someone approaches Ty at her funeral and tells him it was no accident. This person tells Ty that he saw a man kill her. Ty begins asking questions, but the police don’t take him seriously as there is no proof of murder. Ty won’t give up and keeps digging. He is set up to take the fall for a murder, is arrest and put in jail. He makes bail and goes right back to prodding and digging and making a nuisance of himself, but what he uncovers will cause him to risk everything to bring down a criminal. He also meets a priest and a nun, who offer him aid and friendship when he desperately needs both.
With razor sharp wit, funny comebacks and some truly hilarious scenes (I’m thinking of the dancing on the tabletop), I fell in love with the character of Ty Buchanan! Not a romantic love, of course, but a want to meet this guy and talk to him. Ty’s reactions to some situation are off-the-cuff while others are well-planned. He has anger and rage over the senseless death of his fiancée. He seeks justice for her and will stop at nothing in his search for resolution. His emotions are raw and real, which made him so much more interesting and easy to care about. I can’t wait to read the second book titled, Try Darkness. I am looking forward to Ty’s evolution from a corporate, grooming for partnership lawyer to a solo attorney who defends those with very little, if any, hope. ( )

good!