Review: Nice lazy weekend read!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 17, 2014
When it comes to the modern legal system, many agree that there is a disparity between justice for the rich and poor.  And, they would agree that the system can sometimes punish the victims more than the actual criminals.  Even after an iron clad case, perpetrators can be set free while innocents are convicted with just circumstantial evidence.  These are the injustices that typically inspire vigilantes—criminals who break the law with the intent of helping those who can’t help themselves.  This is how wealthy lawyer Zachary Kavanaugh finds himself on the other side of the law.Zachary lives a storybook life with his parents and sister.  They all live together in a mansion on the affluent side of town.  But while things seem to be perfect for Zachary, he’s actually going through mixed emotions regarding his career.  His successes as a defense lawyer don’t feel like successes.  Then, his world turns completely upside down when his parents are hit by a drunk driver.  Zachary’s parents succumb while the driver lives.  Through a legal loophole, the man who killed his parents will not serve time.  Zachary snaps, and pursues justice of his own.  Pleased with this act, he decides to join forces with other victims of the system who want to help right the wrongs when others fail.  The organization Personal justice is born.This book has a solid plot with interesting characters.  The idea of vigilantes is always appealing to readers because it is satisfying to see a criminal suffer the consequences of his or her actions when the justice system fails to make this happen.  And the fact that Zachary is wealthy with a promising law career makes him into almost the perfect hero.  He doesn’t have to care this much, yet he does.  He takes his involvement further than his philanthropic sister who has a charity to help victims of domestic abuse.  While her heart is in the right place, she’s content living her privileged life in a mansion tucked away from poverty and violence.  She would never consider bringing home the very victims that her charity supports.  The fact that her brother goes above and beyond upsets her, and there might be a hint of jealousy mixed in with her disapproval.But as much as I enjoyed the book, I do have a few things to point out that I thought the story lacked or could improve upon.  When the Personal Justice teams goes into action, it establishes a pattern of behavior that I believe would have been picked up by some law enforcement agency at some point.  There’s always a checks and balances scenario that makes it more difficult for vigilantes to continue helping citizens, like the grizzled detective or ambitious mayor who’s determined to take out punks that think they make the law in their town.  Perhaps this will become a conflict in the second book.  I also had a hard time understanding why Zachary begins a relationship with Connie, a woman who seems to come out of nowhere and seduce him.  Her character wasn’t developed much.  And finally, I thought the ending was abrupt, even though it picks right back up where it left off in chapter 1 of Personal Justice 2 (included as a bonus).Overall, it was a nice read for a lazy weekend afternoon.  If you’re into criminal fiction, I recommend it for you.