📖 Book Review

The Suspect by Rob Rinder
Century, 20th June 2024

The story revolves around celebrity chef Sebastian Brooks, who is accused of murdering Jessica, a well-loved television presenter, by presenting her with a meal containing an ingredient she was allergic to; her epi-pen having been hidden.

There is also the case of Alexei, who is assuming guilt for the stash of weapons found under his bed.

These two cases are attended by Adam, an up-and-coming junior barrister.

This was an excellent read, with insight into the fascinating machinations of the halls of justice. It held my interest throughout, and the characterisation was such that I felt I knew the people involved. It was such a treat to read this well-crafted and compelling book.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to Century and Rob Rinder for providing an eARC via NetGalley; this is my unbiased review.

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When the UK's favourite breakfast TV presenter dies live on air in front of millions of viewers, the nation is left devastated.

More devastated still when it becomes clear that her death was not an accident.

The evidence points to one culprit: celebrity chef Sebastian Brooks. But junior barrister Adam Green is about to discover that the case is not as open-and-shut as it first seemed.

And although her angelic persona would suggest otherwise, she was not short of enemies in the glittery TV world . . .

I was asked by NetGalley to review this book -2nd book in the series but this can easily be read as a stand alone book.

Well written and from a law perpective Rob brings in his experience, knowledge makes his experience accessible and writes good stories. Ths is the Adam Green series - Shows just how challenging a career in law is, justice and how life does not alway go as you want it to.

Recommended read.

A famous TV host dies on live television; all the evidence points to the TV chef. Adam, a junior barrister, is called onto the team to defend the TV chef. Not everything is as it seems. For me, there was too much detail, and I lost the thread in a few places. I also wonder whether reading the first book may have given context to some of the characters. I wanted to like the book but was disappointed.

A very enjoyable follow up book although it can be read as a standalone. Good that all the main characters are back again but glad that there is a lot less of Jonathan! A good storyline that leaves you wondering where it will go but with some nice additional side line storylines too.

A fast-paced courtroom thriller. I enjoyed the references to well-known tv shows and the humour in this book.

An entertaining courtroom mystery thriller and follow-up to 'The Trial'. When a breakfast TV presenter chokes to death live on air, suspicion falls on celebrity chef Sebastian Brooks who cooked the food that was poisoned. Is this an open and shut case? Junior barrister Adam Green is not so sure. A legal eagle lover's delight.

I had not read the first book in this series but that didn't matter .I liked the character of Adam Green who is now a Junior Barrister .The story is fast paced ,enjoyable and interesting .I loved the conversations between Adam and his Mum .A great read I look forward to reading more from this Author .Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC

I really enjoyed this book, where Adam take on a seemingly impossible case, with a client who is clearly not telling everything he could which could put reasonable doubt on his case. I particularly enjoyed Adam’s relationship with his Jewish mother. Their conversations were hysterically funny. It would have been a 5 star if it wasn’t for so many characters introduced in the early chapters, and I’m not sure how necessary all of those were. This is obviously one book in what will become a series as we see Adam rise through the professional ranks in court. A really good read.

Technically this book is a sequel to The Trial but it stands alone perfectly well in terms of plot and character.

Junior barrister Adam is back and trying to live up to his mentor’s ideals, juggle work with a (reluctant) social life and avoid his mum’s thorough phone interrogations. Oh, and he also has a couple of cases on his plate: one that leads to him being threatened by a local gang and the other that involves national celebrities and is assumed to be a clear open-shut case, which Adam strongly believes may be ‘shutting’ on the wrong suspect… but what can one baby barrister do against the whole machinery of the justice system?

Rob Rinder opens the chamber doors once again to give an insider view of the legal and/or justice system and explore the morality between whether the two are one and the same. The mystery plot is solid and kept me hooked in and guessing throughout, and there is definitely plenty of excitement – Adam’s work/life struggle alone is going to give me ulcers-by-proxy! I don’t know how he even survives the kinds of stress levels that his personal life and career engender.

But, regardless of the dangers to my digestive health, I would 100% read more from this series!

Loved the first book and this was just as good! Liked the lightness of the book and story! Well written and an easy read.

Meet Hannah Holby, a TV host that has captured the world's heart. When she dies on national and live television, the nation are distraught, especially considering the evidence points to the tv chef Sebastian. Enter Adam, a junior barrister, who is put on the case to shadow, yet forms opinions of his own. After a big of digging, he begins to feel that it is not as black and white as initially thought and begins to realise the amount of enemies the 'dream host' really had.

From the moment I started reading this book, the world felt so real and familiar to be. I warmed to Adam a LOT and enjoyed how sure he was of the decisions he made and opinions he formed. Despite the evidence pointing towards Seb, he stuck to what he believed to be true. We love a strong-minded protagonist.

I struggled a bit when meeting all the characters as there were so many at once. They were easy to identify as time went on and I was able to puzzle the pieces together quite well by the end of the novel - something which I thoroughly enjoyed doing.

Was I expecting the twist? No... which is very rare.

I liked that this novel felt rich with context and I enjoyed how Rob Rinder used his law background impeccably in this novel to showcase his understanding, but in a way that felt accessible to those of us who have never had experiences in this field (but adore reading about them). A hit in my eyes.

Entertaining enough, but The Suspect is a little too light entertainment for my tastes. This whodunnit, legal story feels superficial and too easy; it's as if there is a brilliant book waiting to get out, but there's not enough "back at the chambers"' legal work to be seen to make it convincing and not enough complexity of plot to make it genuinely thrilling or satisfying.

If you want a straightforward quick holiday read, then it probably gets five stars. It moves along nicely, there's no one to dislike (apart from the horribly stereotypical comic book Jonathan) and it's easy to read. The big "but" is the frustration that there might be a cracker of a book inside Rob Rinder that would test the reader's view of the current UK justice system and media coverage of major court cases. I'll look forward to that one.

When beloved TV star dies of anaphylactic shock in front of millions it is going to be a very big trial when they find the culprit. Adam Green is struggling to cope with all the work that goes with being a junior in a court. Having got past his first hurdle of betting past his pupillage he now works to prove himself. TV chef is the person that is charged for her murder. He knew her allergy, he provided the ingredients. When another of their team need time off Adam gets put on the defence team although their client does not seem to be helping himself.

This is the second book in the series & I loved meeting Adam again. These books are so much more than a courtroom drama. The peep into Chambers makes me glad I never thought of entertaining the idea of Law as a career (not that I'd have passed the exams) At times it could become overwhelming if it wasn't for the brilliant conversation Adam has with his mother!!! A well written entertaining book & I am already looking forward to the next one. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

I was able to follow along despite it this is the 2nd book featuring Adam Green and it being 1st one I’ve read.

I liked the structure of the book, with the occasional short chapters, which added humour. I engaged with the characters and am keen to read more.

I really enjoyed this there wasn't a great deal of plot and substance but it was so fascinating to have a link into the world of tv and chambers. You can really tell the knowledge.

Although it was the second book in the series it didn't really matter.

Great light read

This is the first book by Rob Rinder that I have read and so I speak as I find.

A very Curate's egg sort of a book bearing in mind that I believe this was supposed to be a serious work of fiction? Whilst the book was very informative regarding all sorts of things legal, I did find the stereotypical conversations between Adam's mother and Adam an annoyance and totally irrelevant; never mind Rob Rinder's family tree.

I would also like to think that members of Chambers and the Police are rather more perceptive than those that populate The Suspect. I am not a Barrister or policeman but spotted the incredibly large hole in the "logic" of the plot.

Overall, worth a read but it is far from flawless.

This is the second book that Rob Rinder has written following the career of junior barrister Adam Green, but it is the first one that I have read. Not being familiar with the characters was not a drawback as I found it quite easy to pick up the relationships within the chambers.
This is a simple whodunit written from a different perspective, take it on holiday and read it on the beach, it is an easy unchallenging read.

As usual in my reviews, I will not rehash the plot - plenty of reviews like that out there already!

Having read Rob Rinder's first novel, I was looking forward to reading this, his second - I was not disappointed.

The author's knowledge of the legal profession makes his writing authoritative - it's interesting to see how things work behind the scenes. The plot of this novel is well thought out - with a few red herrings to throw the armchair sleuth off the scent! I suspected several people - including the actual culprit, though not until a few others had been ruled out...

The characters are well written and believable. I was pleased that several characters from the first novel appeared here too. I find the interactions between Adam Green and his mother amusing and authentic. I hope that further books are planned in this series.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC. All opinions my own.

When a beloved TV personality dies from an allergic reaction in front of millions, her celebrity chef lover is arrested. With overwhelming evidence against his client, Adam Green is merely on the defence team to watch and learn. However, as Adam digs deeper he finds that the nation’s sweetheart wasn’t that sweet and that his client may be innocent. Alongside this he is asked to speak to a vulnerable accused boy, the fallguy for an organised crime crime.
This is Rinder’s second novel and I enjoyed the first enough to pick up this one. Again it is very much in the ‘cosy crime’ genre and works well in its lane. However Rinder also tries to introduce something a little more challenging with the subplot around organised crime and influence versus moral duty. That’s the more interesting part of the book but unfortunately is the less successful as it is not as well-developed and feels more of an experiment. The main plot is the thing that will sell in droves.