When a desperate woman comes to Daniel Pitt seeking a lawyer for her boyfriend, Rob Adwell, Daniel is convinced of the young man’s innocence. Adwell has been accused of murder and of setting a fire to conceal the body, but Daniel is sure that science can absolve him—and Miriam fford Croft is the best scientist he knows. Miriam connects Daniel with her former teacher Sir Barnabas Saltram, an expert in arson, and together, they reveal Adwell’s innocence by proving that an accidental fire caused the victim’s death. But it’s not long before Adwell is killed in the same fiery fashion. If these deaths are, in fact, murders, what essential clue could Daniel and Miriam have missed?
As their investigation deepens, one of Saltram’s former cases comes into question, and Miriam finds herself on the defensive. If the reasoning Saltram used in that case is proved false, several other cases will have to be re-tried, and Saltram’s expert status—not to mention Miriam’s reputation—will be ruined. Haunted by Saltram’s shady tactics in and outside of the classroom, Miriam is desperate to figure out truths both past and present and protect herself in the face of Saltram’s lies. What started as an accidental fire in Adwell’s case seems to be linked to a larger plot for revenge, with victims accumulating in its wake, and Miriam and Daniel must uncover who or what is stoking these recurring flames—before they, too, find themselves burned.
Release Date: Apr 7, 2020
Series: A Daniel Pitt Novel
Book: 3
Publisher: Random House
Imprint: Ballantine Book
Price: $14.99
When Robert Adwell is accused of setting the warehouse fire that kills a rival gang member, his girlfriend Jessie Beale begs young lawyer Daniel Pitt to represent him. Daniel’s good friend Miriam helps arrange an expert witness who helps Daniel’s case. However, just when things appear to be resolved, the unexpected happens. Daniel and senior barrister Toby Kitteridge find themselves in the middle of a related case, representing a client they can’t trust. The results of that case spur Daniel, Toby, and Miriam to take on a third related case and the professional and the personal stakes couldn’t be higher.
One Fatal Flaw is the third book in this series, which is a spin-off of the author’s popular Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series. Their son, Daniel, is the main character in this series as he gains experience as a new lawyer at a prestigious law firm in 1910 England. Daniel and his friend Miriam, a scientist and daughter of the law firm’s founder, put justice ahead of themselves. They are likable main characters and I enjoy seeing them work together as well as watching their friendship grow. However, when Miriam is on her own, the narrative can become bogged down in details about the state of women in science at that time. There were a lot of chapters with Miriam on her own and with her own friends at the beginning and those portions of the book moved slowly, but the first two cases out of necessity had a lot of repetition, but it didn’t make for exciting reading.
The slow start to the book made this book my least favorite in the Daniel Pitt series. However, when Daniel and Miriam start working on the third case, things pick up. It was suspenseful as the reader anticipates what the outcome in court would be. The novel is a good mix of forensics, legal strategy, and courtroom drama, especially in the later chapters. Even though it takes a while for the story to play out, I enjoyed the book overall and loved the ending. This isn’t my favorite of the Daniel Pitt books, but I still look forward to reading more books in the series.
~ Christine
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