Night on Fire: A Kevin Corvelli Mystery

At the start of Corleone's appealing follow-up to 2010's One Man's Paradise, transplanted New York lawyer Kevin Corvelli observes a pair of newlyweds arguing in a beachfront bar outside Honolulu hours before a fire sweeps through the couple's hotel. New bride Erin Simms is quickly arrested and charged with multiple counts of murder and arson. Among the dead are the groom and at least eight others. When Corvelli undertakes Erin's defense, he discovers reasons besides the strong circumstantial evidence pointing to her guilt. Interested in winning an acquittal but not solving the crime, Corvelli uses an impressive array of legal precedents and courtroom antics against ambitious prosecutor Luke Maddox, who isn't above using underhanded tactics to guarantee a conviction. The resulting thrust and parry is well done, and it's amusing to see confirmed bachelor and ladies' man Corvelli becoming a surrogate parent to a four-year-old boy he rescues from the blaze. (May)