Robin Lockwood, Book 6
ABOUT THE BOOK
In Phillip Margolin’s Murder at Black Oaks, Attorney Robin Lockwood finds herself at an isolated retreat in the Oregon mountains, one with a tragic past and a legendary curse, and surrounded by many suspects and confronted with an impossible crime.
Defense Attorney Robin Lockwood is summoned by retired District Attorney Francis Hardy to meet with him at Black Oaks, the manor he owns up in the Oregon mountains. The manor has an interesting history – originally built in 1628 in England, there’s a murderous legend and curse attached to the mansion. Hardy, however, wants Lockwood’s help in a legal matter – righting a wrongful conviction from his days as a DA. A young man, Jose Alvarez, was convicted of murdering his girlfriend only for Hardy, years later when in private practice, to have a client of his admit to the murder and to framing the man Hardy convicted. Unable to reveal what he knew due to attorney client confidence, Hardy now wants Lockwood’s help in getting that conviction overturned.
Successful in their efforts, Hardy invites Lockwood up to Black Oaks for a celebration. Lockwood finds herself among an odd group of invitees – including the bitter, newly released, Alvarez. When Hardy is found murdered, with a knife connected to the original curse, Lockwood finds herself faced with a conundrum – who is the murder among them and how to stop them before there’s another victim.
| Listening Length | 5 hours and 54 minutes |
|---|---|
| Narrator | Thérèse Plummer |
| Audible Release Date | November 08, 2022 |
| Publisher | Macmillan Audio |
My Thoughts
As far as I’m concerned, there’s always a lack of good legal thrillers out there, so I was thrilled to get the opportunity to listen to Murder At Black Oaks.
The premise is an extremely interesting one and something that definitely would weigh on an attorney. After years of feeling he can’t right a wrong unless he risks being disbarred, retired District Attorney Francis Hardy feels he has the opportunity to correct an injustice that’s taken place. So he summons Attorney Robin Lockwood to see if she can help.
The narration was done beautifully by Therese Plummer. And I was caught up in the story immediately.
However, for those of us who like more legal banter than mystery, this may not live up to expectations. The legal issue was handled fairly quickly and the locked-door mystery took over.
My Concerns
I’m not sure when it started going off track for me, but probably the last half of the book started feeling a little too much like the story flipped to what felt like a gothic, atmospheric, rainy, locked-door, whodunit. It was still good, just felt a little unexpected and didn’t quite flow.
The legal part of the story was almost jumped over in the first half of the book.
Final Thoughts
If you’re looking for a legal mystery, this might let you down. If you’re after more of a closed door whodunit with a touch of legal, this is your book. I have to admit, I haven’t kept up with this series, but it is easily a standalone book.
My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the audiobook to review and the ability to freely post my thoughts.
About The Author
PHILLIP MARGOLIN has written over twenty novels, most of them New York Times bestsellers, including Gone But Not Forgotten, Lost Lake, and Violent Crimes. In addition to being a novelist, he was a long time criminal defense attorney with decades of trial experience, including a large number of capital cases. Margolin lives in Portland, Oregon.
If you purchase through the links in this post, I may earn a small commission. This helps support Pick a Good Book and allows us to continue bringing you great content.
