The Missing Piece

In Egan’s engaging second standalone legal thriller (after 2013’s Midnight), Judge Oliver Johnstone, of New York City’s Civil Court, presides over a complex case involving the so-called Salvus Treasure, a 14-piece collection valued at $70 million. Croatia, Hungary, and Syria have disputed the treasure’s ownership by the Earl of Leinster, a wealthy English aristocrat. Just as the trial begins, two gunmen burst into the courtroom, shoot court officer Gary Martin, and make off with a silver urn that’s part of the collection. Three years later, Linda Conover, who worked for Johnstone as a court attorney on the case and is now a judge herself, has inherited the lawsuit. Martin has survived the attack, but is now confined to a wheelchair. The intrigue surrounding the urn places Linda’s life in jeopardy. Egan, a former law clerk, demonstrates a gift for making legal technicalities, such as an order to show cause in a court case, easy to understand, though the ending may disappoint some readers. [em]Agent: Ben Bova, Barbara Bova Literary Agency. (Apr.) [/em]