Deep under the streets of New York City lies an underground network of tunnels, subway stations, and waterpipes. It's a rough place and so are the people that work there
This is the setting for Linda Fairstein's latest novel, Bad Blood. The story begins with Assistant DA Alex Cooper in the middle of a high-profile trial. A prominent young businessman, Brendan Quillian, is accused of hiring someone to kill his rich and beautiful wife.
The conviction is far from certain. Once the trail begins, it seems even less likely. Witnesses have kept damning secrets; the defense seems one step ahead of the prosecution; and the snitch with key testimony is brutally attached in the jail yard.
The Sandhogs
Alex is trying to make sense of all of these changes when an explosion rocks Manhattan's Tunnel Three water pipe construction project. One of the three men killed in the accident (?) is Quillian's brother, Duke -- a brother that neither the cops, the prosecutor, nor the defense knew he had. It seems Quillian has a sister, too. Curious that no one had mentioned this family.
As Alex and her police associates dig into the case, they are introduced to the subterranean world of the sandhogs, whose generations of men who work in the tunnels and subways under Manhattan. It's dangerous work and so are the men who sign up for it. They also like to settle matters their own way -- without the police. What connection does Quillian's sandhog family have to the murder case? Perhaps more than is initially apparent.
About Linda Fairstein
For over 25 years, Linda Fairstein was chief prosecutor in the Manhattan District Attorney's Office Sex Crime Unit. Certainly, no one can claim she doesn't know her subject. She has written nine mystery novels, all featuring Assistant DA Alex Cooper, beginning with Final Jeopardy in 1996. She divides her time between New York City and Martha's Vineyard.
Other Book Recommendations
- The Night Gardener by George Pelecanos
- Echo Park by Michael Connelly
- Limitations by Scott Turow
- The Innocent Man by John Grisham
