The Credibility of the Chief Justice is Threatened and Nick Heller is on the Case

Nick Heller, private spy, is hired by Gideon Parnell, a legendary DC attorney, to save the reputation of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and he has only forty-eight hours to do it. The Chief Justice is accused of having relations with a high priced call girl, and an Internet scandal sheet has picked it up. In fact, their best reporter has already written the article.

Nick is a tough investigator who likes to work alone and do things his way. Sometimes this leads to unintended consequences, like the murder of the call girl. Nick is a typical larger-than-life PI. You know he'll win in the end, but in the meantime he makes mistakes which makes him a more real, and likable character. I also enjoyed his assistant. She's primarily a computer geek, but he interactions with Nick add credibility to the story.

The plot starts fast, but bogs down a bit in the middle. Nick pursues many avenues to get to the truth. Each segment is interesting, but since the outcome is never in doubt, it gets wearing after awhile. The ending has a surprise twist that I found a bit uncomfortable, but the author did foreshadow it.

If you like tough PI stories with a background of political corruption, this is a good one.

I received this book from Net Galley for this review.