Product DescriptionWhen the body of nine-year old Thuy Sen is found in the San Francisco Bay, the police quickly charge Rennell and Payton Price with her grisly murder. A twelve-person jury, abetted by an incompetent defense lawyer, is nearly as quick to find the brothers guilty, and to sentence them both to die for their crimes.
Fifteen years later, overworked pro bono laywer Teresa Peralta Paget, her husband Chris, and stepson Carlo, a recent Harvard law graduate, become convinced not only that Rennell didn't receive a fair trial but that he may well be innocent. Racing against the clock and facing enormous legal obstacles, Teresa, Chris, and Carlo desperately try to stay Rennell's execution, taking the case all the way to the Supreme Court, and to an enormously moving and powerful conclusion.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - Extremely mixed feelings about this book ...
As an attorney who has worked in criminal law, I found this book to be interesting from a technical point of view. I thought the court scenes were done quite well - the trials and the appellate arguments were exceptionally interesting (when in reality they are not). In fact, the first 100 pages were a very quick read considering how many court scenes there were.
However, this book is also exceptionally preachy, one-sided, and I think unfair to those involved in criminal prosecution. ... Read More
Rating: - A bloated, self-important, sermonizing waste of time
There are absolutely strong arguments to be made against the death penalty and the near certainty that it has led to the government's execution of innocent men. Those arguments are totally and completely undermined by Conviction, a worthless mess of a novel that mercilessly and rabidly pounds into the poor reader Patterson's ultra-left agenda, never stopping along the way to be credible or tell an interesting story.
The world Patterson has created is one where professionals sit around ... Read More
Rating: - Promising but ultimately preaching and biased
This book started out with a good deal of promise in the first third, but ended up falling far short of my expectations.
The story revolves around a family of lawyers who take up the case of Rennell Price, who was sentenced to death along with his brother Payton, for murdering a young girl. Price has only a few weeks left until his execution as the lawyers try to find a way to save his life, believing he is innocent of the crime. Their case rests on three claims - the first that Price ... Read More
Rating: - Hard to review without giving away the end, but I'll do my best
After I finished Patterson's last book on gun control (Balance of Power) and felt like I had been attending a lecture, I wasn't sure I would read any more of his books. I had always liked his legals thrillers, but I didn't like the preachy quality in Balance of Power. I was pleasantly surprised by the first 1/2 to 2/3 of Conviction. Although it's a derisive issue - death penalty - and there is no question on which side of the debate Patterson falls, I thought the plot was intriguing and engaging. ... Read More
Rating: - Very technical
The plot line was very similar to John Grisham's The Chamber, only this book was much more technical - lots more legal jargon. I had to skim parts because I was getting bored trying to wade through all of it. And speaking of legal jargon, the main female character was explaining legal concepts to her stepson that he should have learned on day one of law school! I realize that is the author's "tool" to explain those concepts to the reader, but it was hard for me to think it was credible that the character ... Read More
- A bloated, self-important, sermonizing waste of time
- Promising but ultimately preaching and biased
