From Publishers Weekly
Dangle $46 million in front of six people and tell them the last one standing gets it all. From that shopworn yet undeniably tantalizing premise springs Grippando's latest thriller starring Miami attorney Jack Swyteck. The big pot of money comes from wealthy divorcee Sally Fenning, who leaves an enormous estate following her murder. Not only is her death suspicious, the terms of her will are insidiously cunning. None of the six heirs, all people Fenning despised, can collect until all but one has either died or renounced their share of the inheritance. The common denominator is that all were connected to the murder of Fenning's daughter five years earlier. There is Fenning's ex-husband, his divorce attorney, the prosecutor who failed to bring charges against any suspect, the newspaper reporter who wrote about the case and a mystery man who can't be immediately located. Swyteck's client, hitman Tatum Knight, is the only one not connected to the little girl's murder, though his tie to Fenning is odious in its own right: Fenning tried to hire him to kill her, but he steadfastly denies taking the job. As expected, someone starts knocking off heirs. Those who survive are brutally intimidated into dropping their claim on the estate. Swyteck, meanwhile, scrambles to find out who's behind it all while balancing a love affair on the side. Grippando (Beyond Suspicion) handles his eighth thriller, his third featuring Swyteck, with workmanlike dexterity. As a protagonist, Swyteck is likable, yet there is little to distinguish him from the current throng of attorney-heroes: he's white, refined but not prissy, fighting off middle age. Yet his adventures are comfortingly enjoyable. Despite including a pointless trip to Africa's Ivory Coast, Grippando's latest lives up to its promise as a $46-million game of survival.Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From AudioFile
The landscape of Sally Fenning's life changes violently when she is viciously attacked and her 4-year-old daughter is killed. Five years later, following a second marriage to a wealthy man, she walks into a bar to negotiate for a murder--hers. Her will leaves $46 million to six people whom she had reason to hate, with the stunning twist that no one can collect until the others have dropped out or died. It's no surprise when the heirs begin to show up dead. Nick Sullivan's comfortable voice is superb with every character, from the approachable Jack Swytek to an Italian goon, a Latino ex-husband, and the sophisticated Vivian. Sullivan's talented delivery and modulations of vocal characteristics create a believability that is flawless. F.L.F. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

From Booklist
In last year's Beyond Suspicion [BKL Jl 02], the attorney-turned-author dusted off Jack Swytek, the lawyer-hero of his first novel, The Pardon (1994), and repositioned him as a series lead. This time Swytek, who last year was accused of murdering his ex-lover, finds himself in another sticky predicament. Seems his partner, the ex-con Theo Knight, has a brother, Tatum, who used to be a contract killer. A woman recently tried to hire Tatum to murder her, or so he is claiming now that she has turned up dead. Tatum has been invited to the reading of her will, and he asks Jack to accompany him. There, they discover the woman has left her fortune, $46 million, to one of six people--whichever is the last one alive. Naturally, the potential beneficiaries promptly start dying, and Jack wonders if his client is a ruthless murderer or the next victim. Grippando, whose best thrillers have been full of imagination and out-of-left-field surprises, looks like he's found a winner in the Swytek series. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Tatum Knight is a former contract killer. Ruthless. Conniving. And he's Jack's newest client. Tatum is the older brother of Jack's best friend, Theo. Theo himself spent time on death row until Jack found the evidence to prove him innocent. Jack isn't so sure about Tatum." "A gorgeous young woman has been shot dead in her Mercedes on a Miami street. Tatum denies that he had anything to do with it, but he admits to Jack that he did meet with her in Theo's bar, where she tried to hire him." "Sally Fenning was worth forty-eight million dollars when she died. Money had never made her happy, so she left it all to her enemies - left it for them to fight over, that is. She named six heirs in her will, but there's a catch: No one gets a penny until all but one of the heirs are dead. It's survival of the greediest." Quickly the lawyers gear up for a bitter legal battle, but Jack braces himself for much worse. He alone knows that heir number six - Tatum Knight - is a professional killer. As the heirs begin to fall, Jack and his unforgettable sidekick, Theo, are in a race against time to discover if Tatum is behind all the killing. Or is someone even more frightening, more dangerous, the odds-on favorite to be the last to die?

SYNOPSIS

Miami criminal attorney Jack Swyteck is back (The Pardon; Beyond Suspicion). His best friend's brother, ex-thug Tatum Knight, stands to inherit a fortune -- $48 million -- if four other people die. Now Jack has to find out if his client is an innocent man or a killer.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Dangle $46 million in front of six people and tell them the last one standing gets it all. From that shopworn yet undeniably tantalizing premise springs Grippando's latest thriller starring Miami attorney Jack Swyteck. The big pot of money comes from wealthy divorcee Sally Fenning, who leaves an enormous estate following her murder. Not only is her death suspicious, the terms of her will are insidiously cunning. None of the six heirs, all people Fenning despised, can collect until all but one has either died or renounced their share of the inheritance. The common denominator is that all were connected to the murder of Fenning's daughter five years earlier. There is Fenning's ex-husband, his divorce attorney, the prosecutor who failed to bring charges against any suspect, the newspaper reporter who wrote about the case and a mystery man who can't be immediately located. Swyteck's client, hitman Tatum Knight, is the only one not connected to the little girl's murder, though his tie to Fenning is odious in its own right: Fenning tried to hire him to kill her, but he steadfastly denies taking the job. As expected, someone starts knocking off heirs. Those who survive are brutally intimidated into dropping their claim on the estate. Swyteck, meanwhile, scrambles to find out who's behind it all while balancing a love affair on the side. Grippando (Beyond Suspicion) handles his eighth thriller, his third featuring Swyteck, with workmanlike dexterity. As a protagonist, Swyteck is likable, yet there is little to distinguish him from the current throng of attorney-heroes: he's white, refined but not prissy, fighting off middle age. Yet his adventures are comfortingly enjoyable. Despite including a pointless trip to Africa's Ivory Coast, Grippando's latest lives up to its promise as a $46-million game of survival. 8-city author tour. (July 8) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

In Grippando's eighth book and the third to feature Miami attorney Jack Swyteck, Theo Knight asks Jack, his best friend, to represent his brother, Tatum, who is one of six people named in the will of murder victim Sally Fenning. Tatum, who has a reputation as a hit man, claims that Fenning tried to hire him to kill her. It soon turns out that Fenning had reasons to hate all six heirs, and the will contains a provision that only one person will inherit her fortune, the last surviving heir. One of the six cannot be located and is suspected of having killed Fenning's young daughter years earlier. As expected, the heirs begin to die, and Tatum falls under further suspicion. It is up to Swyteck to learn more about Fenning's past and find the killer. Some aspects of the book seem implausible, particularly how a missing heir can inherit the fortune, especially with the others being murdered. Otherwise, Grippando's style keeps the story moving and renders the legal aspects understandable. While not on the same level as Beyond Suspicion, this is still recommended for most collections. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 3/15/03.]-Joel W. Tscherne, Cleveland P.L. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

AudioFile

The landscape of Sally Fenning's life changes violently when she is viciously attacked and her 4-year-old daughter is killed. Five years later, following a second marriage to a wealthy man, she walks into a bar to negotiate for a murder--hers. Her will leaves $46 million to six people whom she had reason to hate, with the stunning twist that no one can collect until the others have dropped out or died. It's no surprise when the heirs begin to show up dead. Nick Sullivan's comfortable voice is superb with every character, from the approachable Jack Swytek to an Italian goon, a Latino ex-husband, and the sophisticated Vivian. Sullivan's talented delivery and modulations of vocal characteristics create a believability that is flawless. F.L.F. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews