Bestseller Lashner's novels about the trials and tribulations of Philadelphia defense attorney Victor Carl are theoretically about crimes and criminals, but are really about the protagonist's soul-searching and deep personal involvement in the cases he takes. This solid sixth entry (after 2005's Falls the Shadow
) finds Carl's involvement entirely involuntary. After drinking rather too much one evening, Carl wakes up with a splitting hangover and the name Chantal Adair tattooed on his chest. Who is or was Chantal, and what does she have to do with the elderly lady who just called in a very large favor from Carl's father? Ogling every woman within a hundred miles and seizing any opportunity to drive someone else's flashy car or drink someone else's expensive booze, Carl works his grimy, self-deprecating charm for all it's worth as he searches for answers that are guaranteed to be unpleasant. This fun legal thriller may have more show than substance, but is no less entertaining because of it. (On sale May 30)
