Reviewed by Carlton Rolle
Glenn H. Mitchell studied journalism and scriptwriting before producing and writing programs for the ABC, Foxtel, and SBS. In addition to his first novel, ‘Nowhere’, Mitchell has written science fiction, horror, and literary fiction for magazines. Most recently this was seen in The J.J. Outré Review and Crack the Spine Literary Magazine.
Nine-tenths of the Law takes place out in the suburbs of Australia. It is a story revolving around the criminal case of police officer, Ben. When called in to his first homicide, Ben and his partner T.J. come across a gruesome scene. A person has been murdered with blood and entails all over the place. Ben and T.J. are left to find out what happened and who did it.
While exploring the house, T.J. becomes ill and increasingly gets worse. The two contact the rest of the Lecanto family. They keep to themselves in the neighborhood. But occasionally work with people performing a service. This was the case for the Lecantos.
The following day, T.J. calls out of work and ends up taking a medical leave. Ben is assigned a new partner for the case called Megan or Megs. The new duo start interviewing members of the family and suspects in the case. The case and details are centered on Anthony Perugino and his family. Anthony is the CEO of a company that many people in the town are connected to.
Ben and Megs interview Anthony, his wife Melissa, the house handyman Mitch, and Anthony’s business partner Claire Haskell. While some of their stories fit together, much of it doesn’t. Most of them are not being forthright with information. After a while, readers find that there is a complex story behind the Perugino family. Anthony believes that he is being haunted by the ghost of his childhood girlfriend. The girl Alice, has made appearances throughout the last 30 years of Anthony’s life. Through the various interviews, small details begins to add up and take form.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Mitchell did a great job creating a story with a strong plot and kept it interesting. You didn’t know what was going to happen nor how anything was connected. I really connected with Ben’s character. Mitchell showed the good/bad side of being a cop and how it affected his relationships. It also played a huge role in Ben’s outlook on life. Mitchell also displayed emotion that came through Ben’s character. While the story was solid all the way through, I wasn’t expecting the ending to be so sudden and open-ended.
‘Nine-tenths of the Law’ is a great crime/mystery story with a paranormal twist. The book had my spine tingling until the last page.
More information on Glenn Mitchell can be found at: www.glennhmitchell.com
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