The Murder Rule, by Dervla McTiernan

Law student Hannah Rokeby transfers university from Maine to Virginia to join the Innocence Project, defending prisoners apparently wrongly convicted. She has a hidden agenda, with an interest in a particular case linked to her mother’s troubled history. But is her alcoholic mother a reliable witness and will Hannah have to re-evaluate her quest for vengeance? This tale is quite a departure from McTiernan’s Irish detective trilogy, although equally dark. It lacks the authenticity of the earlier books, straining credulity at every turn. Timing, characters, motivation, procedure – nothing quite adds up, despite some convenient later justifications.