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120th out of 385 books
—
200 voters
Death Qualified - A Mystery of Chaos (Barbara Holloway #1)
by
Kate Wilhelm
Barbara had given up the law five years before, but she's still "death qualified," still able to defend clients in Oregon who face the death penalty if convicted. And now her lawyer father needs her back in the arena to defend Nell Kendricks, who's been indicted for the murder of her estranged husband, Lucas Kendricks.
But did she do it? After not seeing him for seven years...more
But did she do it? After not seeing him for seven years...more
Paperback, 448 pages
Published
April 1st 2002
by Mira Books
(first published 1991)
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This is the first book in the Barbara Holloway series and it had a little bit of everything. The mystery itself was very good and the culprit nobody I guessed. The court room drama was very good, I liked the interaction and the fact you already know the accused is innocent but looks guilty as hell, so you have no clue who will win. Then there's the whole sci-fi thing with chaos and math and weird psychology that kinda went over my head, and finally the whole part about Barbara hating the legal s...more
I was familiar with Kate Wilhelm from her science fiction but wasn't aware of this mystery series until recently when I was looking for a quick-read, MP3 audiobook to borrow from eNYPL. I enjoyed the fast pace and interesting characters of this first in the series and will probably listen to more. I guess this is a cozy mystery along the same lines as JA Jance and Margaret Coel. Barbara Holloway is a 40-something attorney who has been purposely avoiding the political games of legal practice for...more
My favorite line is when Barbara's father tells her you solved a murder, but not the one you're working on! This was an all-around fantastic read. I love the down-to-earth characters and the intensity of the legal battles. Barbara's father also tells her slow down, you're working 5 jobs - not to mention defense attorney. With the help of her new boyfriend, Mike and her father, Barbara solves the mystery of two murders - the supposed victim of Lucas Kendriks and the murder of Lucas Kendricks. The...more
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Barbara Holloway had given up practicing law 5 years ago but she receives a plea from her father to help him defend a young mother accused of murdering her husband who had returned after 7 years absence. Nell Kendricks was at the scene when he was shot but she asserts that she did not shoot him. The police believe that Lucas Kendricks had slaughtered a girl he had picked up earlier that day and that he came after Nell, forcing her to kill him in self defense. Nell refuses to plea self defense as...more
Barbara is an attorney who doesn't want to practice anymore. She finds herself representing a young mother who is charged with murdering her husband. Barbara is "death qualified" because she is qualified to represent someone who might get the death penalty.
Where has the husband been for 7 years before suddenly showing up in the woods near home? This is a complicated plot featuring small-town life, university research, and the legal process. It describes in detail the thoughts and feelings of th...more
Where has the husband been for 7 years before suddenly showing up in the woods near home? This is a complicated plot featuring small-town life, university research, and the legal process. It describes in detail the thoughts and feelings of th...more
Five years ago Barbara Holloway gave up practicing law, disillusioned with a profession that put politics before justice. Then she receives a phone call, with a simple message: "I need you." Begrudgingly she finds herself back up on McKenzie Pass, pulled into a murder problem that just doesn't seem quite right. Unable to just walk away she successfully pulls the case together and brings "peace to the valley," once again.
The fun part about Barbara Holloway's books is that she lives in Eugene and...more
The fun part about Barbara Holloway's books is that she lives in Eugene and...more
This book was a little slow to start but I stuck to it and I am glad I did. Around the middle of the book I found it hard to put it down.
Barbara Holloway is a lawyer (same as her father) and is trying to free herself from her chosen profession when a call from home tracks her to her fathers town to help defend a woman that could have murdered her ex husband. There are many twists and turns in the book that keep you guessing.
I love that there are pretty much two different types of stories goi...more
Barbara Holloway is a lawyer (same as her father) and is trying to free herself from her chosen profession when a call from home tracks her to her fathers town to help defend a woman that could have murdered her ex husband. There are many twists and turns in the book that keep you guessing.
I love that there are pretty much two different types of stories goi...more
BOOK 34 OF 2010 - The first book in the Barbara Holloway series. I was a bit confused at the beginning of the book. It was like the book started out of nowhere. Like there was something I should have already known. Once I pushed past that, I realized that this disorientation was exactly right for the start of this book. The rest of the book flipped by pretty quickly, I always enjoy a bit of courtroom dramatics. But the ending... And I know this is the first in a series, but the ending felt very...more
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I downloaded this from the library and listened to it while biking and working on jigsaw puzzles.
I enjoyed parts of the story, but there were too many coincidences and red herrings for me to be convinced. It was especially amusing to try to explain the plot to my husband. There is a portion of the plot in which images of Mandelbrot Sets are used to rewire peoples brains that was particularly silly. When I told my husband the ending he said there was sure to be a sequel. And he was right. I put t...more
I enjoyed parts of the story, but there were too many coincidences and red herrings for me to be convinced. It was especially amusing to try to explain the plot to my husband. There is a portion of the plot in which images of Mandelbrot Sets are used to rewire peoples brains that was particularly silly. When I told my husband the ending he said there was sure to be a sequel. And he was right. I put t...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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I enjoy Kate Wilhelm's writing. Over 20 years ago I read "Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang," a sci-fi book and it became one of my favorites. "Death Qualified" is a legal/courtroom drama, but Wilhelm still grapples with many of the same ideas - though perhaps more subtly - as those in Sweet Birds. The characters have depth, the story is well thought out, and she gives you things to think about - individuality/chaos vs. conformity/order, etc. My one complaint would be that she banged the nail a fe...more
Nov 19, 2012
Vannessagrace Vannessagrace
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
kate-wilheim,
phyllis-a-whitney
Barbara Holloway’s dad, a retired attorney, calls Barbara to ask her to defend a neighbor who will be accused of murdering her husband. To keep her client out of prison, Barbara must unravel layers upon layers of lies and deception.
Kate Wilheim is excellent in creating smoke and mirrors. Just when the reader believes she/he knows who the killer is, author Wilheim throws a wrench in the readers deduction.
Though Anna Fields was one of my favorite readers, she died in 2006, she was out of her elem...more
Kate Wilheim is excellent in creating smoke and mirrors. Just when the reader believes she/he knows who the killer is, author Wilheim throws a wrench in the readers deduction.
Though Anna Fields was one of my favorite readers, she died in 2006, she was out of her elem...more
Not disappointed, at the same time it wasn’t what I expected.
It’s not a simple courtroom drama though. It’s a mystery, who actually killed Lucas and why. Of course, we assume it wasn't his wife Nell even if she's been accused. It also has an almost science fiction aspect. While researching Lucas’s history, Barbara finds that he was involved in an experiment involving treating young men as guinea pigs, attempting to use chaos theory to change the observer’s perception of the universe. The theory...more
It’s not a simple courtroom drama though. It’s a mystery, who actually killed Lucas and why. Of course, we assume it wasn't his wife Nell even if she's been accused. It also has an almost science fiction aspect. While researching Lucas’s history, Barbara finds that he was involved in an experiment involving treating young men as guinea pigs, attempting to use chaos theory to change the observer’s perception of the universe. The theory...more
I expected a legal thriller, courtroom drama kind of thing but this is much more than that. This book is about the power of the mind and ideas. There is a stron "twin peaks" feeling here. Even the storyline shares a lot in common with that magically horrifying first season of Twin Peaks. The setting of the Pacific Northwest, the grisly rape-murder, the reference to a shadowy "other world" are all so much like that atmospheric televsion show. I did enjoy reading this one.
I thought the opening was terrific -- a very paranoid "Nowhere Man"-like story of a man who's identity had been stolen from him. But it really jumped the shark for me when, when we've had enough time to be invested in that character, he was killed. And when one character started describing all of the character changes and emotions she could see in another in a split-second view of his face (not unlike the penchant fictional characters have of reading admixtures of complex emotions in someone's e...more
A tough book to pin down. Contains a bit of traditional mystery, a splash of science fiction, and a fair amount of courtroom drama. Overall I enjoyed the story, though I can see where it could rub people the wrong way. There was enough science fiction to turn off mystery or courtroom buffs, but probably not enough for someone reading for the SF aspect. While the book started a bit slow for me I would recommend it to people who enjoy both sci-fi and mysteries, but not one to the exclusion of the...more
My sister recommended this series for me as one that I would enjoy following and reading a while. I was drawn to the interesting relationship between Barbara Hollaway and her father (one that continues throughout the series) and also her and her fiancee. The author did an excellent job is laying out the setting (the nature-filled hills of Oregon for part of it), and I got hooked! Her legal research is detailed and intelligent.
I finished listening to the audio version of this book. I enjoyed it until the end. It is a murder mystery/legal thriller that had me driving an extra lap around the block to hear what would happen next. But at the end the main character, a perceptive and intelligent lawyer, did the most stupid thing and the book ended unhappily. I'll admit that I really hate books that end unhappily, but I can accept it if it makes sense for the story, but this book didn't have to end this way. Frustrated....
I may need to take a break from books for a bit because I'm having a really rough go of it lately. This was horrendous. I'm not sure if it's me or what, but yikes, I struggled mightily with the beginning, skipped the middle and read the last 25 pages just to finish it. I was hoping for a great new-to-me serial, but this one won't get a second audition. Maybe I should catch up on some back issues of magazines that are piling up...
The courtroom parts of this book, including the defense/offense strategy were very interesting and pretty well done. It didn't make you really like the characters enough to care about them though. And some of the reactions/behaviors to things just didn't seem to align with what actual people would do in those situations.
Oh, and i listened on audiobook but I didn't like the reader's style as much as other readers.
Oh, and i listened on audiobook but I didn't like the reader's style as much as other readers.
This book is very slow with lots of information. After you sort through it the story picks up a little. I would say that this book is very mellow. There is no sudden moments or fast paced parts in the story. The ending just stopped. I had to look back and forth to make sure that someone did not rip pages out of the book. I hope the next book picks right up after this one. Oh I do like the subtle twists and turns of this book.
Content review:
My three star rating is mainly for the philosophy contained in the book and the ending . Unless this has a sequel you are left hanging. For those who care about a content rating the philosophy is that casual sex is not only fine but expected and even foreordained in some cases. Adultery isn't looked down on. There isn't any graphic sex scenes though but I won't be reading any more from this author.
My three star rating is mainly for the philosophy contained in the book and the ending . Unless this has a sequel you are left hanging. For those who care about a content rating the philosophy is that casual sex is not only fine but expected and even foreordained in some cases. Adultery isn't looked down on. There isn't any graphic sex scenes though but I won't be reading any more from this author.
I was a little disappointed in this book. The subject matter jumped all over the place. It was interesting enough that I wanted to keep reading, and I will read more of this series, but it was hard to follow at times.
One other note: I listened to this in audio format. Parts of the audio kept repeating. At first I thought I had just accidentally hit the rewind button, but after the 4th or 5th time, I knew that was not the case. It happened many many times.
One other note: I listened to this in audio format. Parts of the audio kept repeating. At first I thought I had just accidentally hit the rewind button, but after the 4th or 5th time, I knew that was not the case. It happened many many times.
Although in this book we get to know a more self-doubting Barbara, it is not my favourite among the ones I read in the serie. There is this touch of supernatural that Kate Wilhelm seems to affectionate, as I have seen with the Dark Door, but for me, her mystery serie really doesn't need it and i prefer the pure mystery, and especially the procedural part, once the trial begins. That for me is her forte.
Nell Kendricks is accused of murdering her estranged husband. Lawyer, Barbara Holloway is visiting her father and trying to get her own life in order but ends up taking on Nell's legal defense. Along the twisted path to justice we meet interesting characters and get some insight to Choas Theory. Good read, but it didn't make me want to run out and pick up another in the series.
It was okay for the most part but I hated it toward the end. It seemed like the author decided that she had to quickly come up with an ending. So while the story was built up -- suddenly in the last chapter several things quickly happened to orchestrate an ending -- none of which made sense to the story. If I were to explain further, would become a 'spoiler'.
Good plot, appropriate detail and the pace moves well. Barbara Halloway is a strong character- but also full of contradictions. The relationship between father and daughter is layered and complicated, but at times very simple. A great read, which caused me to pick up others in the series. (Always great to stumble across such a great series/group of characters!)
I am listening to this book on CD and it's not setting my hair on fire so far. I'm giving it a little while longer, but if something doesn't HAPPEN pretty soon, I'm going to abandon it. What a slow start, and what an unlikable character to start out with.... slooooowly.
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Man, I am really struggling with this audiobook. If it doesn't get to the legal stuff pretty soon, I'm finished with it.
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This turned out to be one of those books I simply couldn't finish. I had to force myself to liste...more
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Man, I am really struggling with this audiobook. If it doesn't get to the legal stuff pretty soon, I'm finished with it.
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This turned out to be one of those books I simply couldn't finish. I had to force myself to liste...more
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Kate Wilhelm has won the Hugo and several Nebula Awards. She is the widow of author and editor Damon Knight.
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Mar 30, 2013 09:31am