Undue Influence

by Shelby Yastrow

Overview

This story is less than a "who done it" and more of "why did he do it" and "where did he get it." Why would an 83-year-old Catholic bookkeeper leave a fortune to a Jewish Synagogue? Where did he get the millions he left? Where is his family? This book shows that the drama of a civil lawsuit is every bit as dramatic as any criminal trial, and that people will fight for money every bit as hard as they will fight for freedom or for their lives.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781466901742
Publisher:	Trafford Publishing
Publication date:	11/07/2011
Pages:	340
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.76(d)

Editorial Reviews

Attorney Yastrow's slow-starting first novel takes place in Chicago's law offices, a quack cancer clinic and a judge's chambers. But just when readers may be ready to give up, the author's detailed knowledge of the legal system, his feisty villains, believable heroes and intriguingly original plot all take hold, creating a first-rate suspense story that is hard to put down. The centerpiece of the tale is Benjamin Stillman, low-paid bookkeeper at a brokerage firm, who dies at 83. Stillman leaves $8 million to a synagogue he had never attended; in fact, he was a Catholic. Philip Ogden is the small-time lawyer who unexpectedly becomes the protector of the will. Ogden's challenges include determining whether any heirs exist, deciding why someone would leave all his wealth to an institution representing a religion he himself didn't espouse, and learning where all the assets came from. Was Stillman a humanitarian thief? In any case, this is an engaging picture of the legal profession portrayed as corrupt, egotistical and morally complex. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Who is Benjamin Stillman, where did he get eight million dollars, and why would a practicing Catholic bequeath such a fortune to a synagogue? The search for answers to these questions makes for an exciting, fast-paced story about an unlikely subject--the probating of a will. Events are more important here than characters, who are all types serving particular functions: the white liberal and the angry black, who end up friends; the aggressive, unscrupulous female attorney; the flamboyant shyster; the nit-picking, brow-beating judge. The legal maneuvers are carefully explained, but never dull, and the descriptions of the Chicago locale merit special mention. This first novel by a corporate lawyer will have particular appeal to fans of the courtroom genre, but also to anyone who enjoys a good story of human dishonesty and greed.--Marcia R. Hoffman, M.L.S., Hoechst Celanese Corporation, Somerville, N.J.

Library Journal