Full of twists and turns, wit and well-drawn characters, Martel's fourth novel (after 1999's The Alternate) manages to transcend pig jokes and Okie humor to present a realistic portrait of a young man coming to grips with the truth about his father and himself. "Mr. Billy Nobody from Enid, Oklahoma," aka Billy Strobe, is two-thirds through UCLA Law School when all hell breaks loose. In a misguided effort to make some fast cash, he engages in illegal insider trading with a frat rat "Billionaire Boys Club II" and ends up doing hard time at Soledad Prison. He has already had cause to ponder the question of justice—his father, Joe Strobe, an alcoholic lawyer, killed himself after being found guilty of forgery and bribery when Strobe was just a child. In prison, Strobe strives for fair treatment for all, and drives himself to finish his degree via correspondence course. Once awarded his law degree, he devotes himself to proving the innocence of a fellow inmate, Darryl Orton, who was wrongfully convicted of murder. Becoming the poster boy of second chances, Strobe lands on his feet in a cushy job whose strategic location will enable him to find the answer to the searing question that has haunted him all his life. The powerful prison sequences have the ring of authenticity, as do the courtroom and office scenes, attesting to Martel's professional expertise (he is one of the nation's top ten trial lawyers, according to the National Law Journal). This satisfying summer legal sizzler should assure Martel the growing readership he deserves. (Sept.)
