As I stated, I've enjoyed most of Bernhardt's writings immensely; but this one was a gross aberration.

Tulsa trial lawyer, Ben Kincaid, is tired and in need of a vacation after a series of tough courtroom battles. He decides to rest in Magic Valley while doing a book signing of his first novel. Though no one shows up for the signing, Ben begins to relax. That state changes and all hell breaks loose when a lumberjack is murdered.

The accused, George Zakin, pleads with Ben to defend him. Six years ago, Ben got George acquitted from a charge of homicide and expects the much wiser attorney to repeat the outcome. Ben begins to inquire into other possible suspects, including Bigfoot. The prosecutor is the merciless but sexy Granny Adams, who always obtains a conviction. As Ben digs deeper into the investigation, he finds himself in danger from both the tree-huggers and the tree-cutters.

DARK JUSTICE, the ninth Ben Kincaid legal thriller, is an exciting tale that provides insight into the protagonist's past as well as placing him in a new venue. The story line is filled with action though the courtroom antics seem ordinary for a Kincaid novel. The complex logging environmental issue of the Pacific Northwest disappointingly retrogrades into a violent thriller without much insight into the controversy. Still, William Bernhardt demonstrates his immense talent by keeping the story line filled with non-stop action that will please fans of Kincaid.

Harriet Klausner

On page 436 of the paperback edition, the author states: "The environmental facts, statistics, and information presented in this book are true, all taken from unbiased sources. All the actions depicted in the conflict between loggers and environmentalists are based on true events . . . ."

What better way to learn about these facts than coincidentally in the reading of an entertaing and engaging story?