Published by Century
Publication Date: 22nd June 2023
Book Description:
ONE MURDER. ONE IMPOSSIBLE CASE. WHO IS GUILTY?
When hero policeman Grant Cliveden dies from a poisoning in the Old Bailey, it threatens to shake the country to its core.
The evidence points to one man. Jimmy Knight has been convicted of multiple offences before and defending him will be no easy task. Not least because this is trainee barrister Adam Green's first case.
But it will quickly become clear that Jimmy Knight is not the only person in Cliveden's past with an axe to grind.
The only thing that's certain is that this is a trial which will push Adam - and the justice system itself - to the limit . .
My Thoughts:
A fabulous insight into the goings-on behind the scenes in the world of the justice system! I know The Trial is a work of fiction, however Rob Rinder is a highly respected barrister with many years' experience so I suspect there are a few characters within its pages who could possibly be based loosely on real people who he has crossed paths with over the years.
The focus of this book is a young man, Adam Green, who is in his first year of pupilage in Chambers - he's basically there to prove his worth over the 12-month period and in return, if he passes scrutiny of the "higher-ups" he earns himself a proper job as a junior barrister. The book begins with him chasing his tail constantly, propping up the ego of his mentor, the bouffant-hairstyled and extremely arrogant Jonathan Taylor-Cameron; the pupil master is more than content for Adam to do all the donkey work while he takes the plaudits in court when their case is successful. Then the chief clerk, who allocates the caseloads to the various legal teams, ups the ante by setting Jonathan and his staff the high-profile case of defending Jimmy Knight, who is accused of murdering top police officer and public favourite Detective Inspector Grant Cliveden. Jonathan is apoplectic with rage at being allocated such a "lost cause" of a case which will be the top story in all the media. He only likes to be seen as a winner, so thus it falls to Adam to fight Jimmy's corner.
I thoroughly enjoyed watching Adam grow as a person throughout this book, his moral dilemmas based on his personal life experience often clouding his judgment. The narrating of his day-to-day workload is hilariously interspersed with the regular phone calls he receives from his mum, who is desperate to find him a suitable young lady with whom he can tie the knot - I can imagine that these chapters could well be based on the author's own experiences as a young man!
There are some juicy twists to this excellent debut novel, and there's an interesting slant on whether the truth or a different kind of justice is the most important outcome in some situations. I can imagine lots of book clubs choosing this for their reading lists - and I'd love to be a fly on the wall to hear the ensuing discussions! I very much look forward to further instalments in the life of young Adam Green soon.
About the Author:
Rob Rinder is a barrister turned writer and broadcaster. In 2014, while still a practising Barrister, he began starring in his reality court show Judge Rinder, and now uses his legal knowledge working in the media to make the law more accessible. He is also the author of two books and a columnist for The Sun and the London Evening Standard newspapers. His participation in Who Do You Think You Are? retraced the story of his Holocaust survivor Grandfather received a BAFTA. The BBC series he presented 'The Holocaust, My Family & Me' was aired to wide critical acclaim. In 2020, Rob was awarded an MBE for his services to Holocaust education and an honorary doctorate for his legal work.
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