When life is throwing you curve balls all over the place, there’s nothing like a good book to take you away. So I especially enjoyed losing myself in Eminent Crimes: A Legal Thriller
First, full disclosure. My mother knows the writer and was in a writing group with her. My mom heard about the book launch party and unfortunately was not able to attend, but that’s how she learned about the book. When my mom told me about it, I thought it sounded really interesting. A friend of hers lent her the book and then I read it too. I’m so glad that I did!
The writer, Adelene Ellenberg, lives in Massachusetts and is an attorney. Below is a synopsis of the book from her website.
When Robert Jaston, A Massachusetts dairy farmer, learns that the three-person board who governs the town has voted to take his land by eminent domain, making way for a gambling casino, he says, “Over my dead body!”
He hires the only attorney who will take his case, a young woman also at odds with the town establishment. She wages war in the courtroom, while he battles the underhanded maneuvers of those who hold all the cards.
In law school, I had two co-ops where I worked on land use cases. I really enjoyed the work and my 1st year property class as well. So for me especially, the eminent domain issue was quite interesting.
The Supreme Court case referenced in the book, Kelo v. City of New London, is real. You can read about Susette Kelo and the taking of her little pink house on the Institute for Justice website.
While researching this post, I found that Korchula Productions is working on a movie about the Kelo case called Little Pink House to be released later this year. Little Pink House is already a 2015 Athena List finalist.
The Athena List was created by the Athena Film Festival, which is a list of “between 3-5 screenplays with female leaders or strong female protagonists that have yet to be made into films.”
But back to the book. The worst thing that I can say about it is that the font wasn’t wonderful. If that’s the worst thing, then obviously I think the book is pretty great.
The characters grabbed me from the beginning. The plot moves forward quickly. You want to keep reading. You will love some characters and despise others. There are some interesting twists and turns that I definitely did not expect. I would never have predicted the ending. Ellenberg is a bold writer and did not hold back.
Plus, since there is a local element to the book, it was interesting seeing where she may have been inspired by certain people, places and events in her writing.
If you’re looking for a quick fun read, Eminent Crimes is the book for you! Plus, you might learn about local politics and some property law too.
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Photo Credit: Adelene Ellenberg’ Facebook Page
