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170th out of 428 books
—
52 voters
Lily White
by
Susan Isaacs (Goodreads Author)
"I Was Never a Virgin"
Meet Lily White, Long Island criminal defense lawyer. Smart, savvy, and down-to-earth, Lee can spot a phony the way her haughty mother can spot an Armani. Enter handsome career con man Norman Torkelson, charged with strangling his latest mark after bilking her out of her life's savings. As the astonishing twists and reverses of the Torkleson case are...more
Meet Lily White, Long Island criminal defense lawyer. Smart, savvy, and down-to-earth, Lee can spot a phony the way her haughty mother can spot an Armani. Enter handsome career con man Norman Torkelson, charged with strangling his latest mark after bilking her out of her life's savings. As the astonishing twists and reverses of the Torkleson case are...more
Paperback, Large Print, 656 pages
Published
February 24th 1997
by HarperTorch
(first published 1996)
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Lily "Lee" White is a Long Island attorney who is defending a con man named Norman Torkelson, accused of killing his latest mark. As the case unfolds, so does Lee's personal history, in a double narrative, alternating chapters (in different typefaces); Lee narrates the present-day chapters as she investigates Torkelson's case, while the chapters describing her earlier life are told in the third person.
The style does take some getting used to, but both narratives are sufficiently compelling that...more
The style does take some getting used to, but both narratives are sufficiently compelling that...more
This is one of those books that stays with you for years. Though I read this years ago (as an older teen), there have been several occasions when I would have liked to read it again. I was unable to recall the title or the author and only found it again through creative "google-ing."
(view spoiler)...more
(view spoiler)...more
Meet Lily White, Long Islands criminal defense lawyer. Smart, savvy and down-to-earth, Lee can spot a phony the way her snooty mother can spot an Armani. Enter handsome career con man Norman Torkelson, charged with murder; to wit, strangling his latest mark after bilking her out of her life's savings. As the astounding twists and reverses of the Torkelson case are revealed, so too is the riveting story behind Lee's life.
Read this one (finally) as part of the 2005 ABC Author challenge; I found it...more
Read this one (finally) as part of the 2005 ABC Author challenge; I found it...more
This was a fascinating book for numerous reasons, but what makes it truly unique is the way it's constructed. Lee White, a criminal defense attorney, narrates the story of her defense of a career con man, charged with strangling to death his latest mark. That story is intriguing in itself, with many unexpected twists. But every other chapter is written in third person, describing Lee's life from birth, with all the elements of family and romantic relationships that have caused her to become the...more
Sep 06, 2010
Julie
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
crime-mystery,
chunkster
This is my second time reading an Isaacs novel. Like the first, this one was a nice read, just not a gripping page-turner.
I really enjoyed the story of Lee White; her upbringing, her relationships with her family and friends, her attitude. The plot describing her representation of Norman Torkelson, the con man, was interesting. And the character of Norman's girlfriend, Mary, was really written well.
What I didn't care for was the flow of the story. One chapter was dedicated to describing her ch...more
I really enjoyed the story of Lee White; her upbringing, her relationships with her family and friends, her attitude. The plot describing her representation of Norman Torkelson, the con man, was interesting. And the character of Norman's girlfriend, Mary, was really written well.
What I didn't care for was the flow of the story. One chapter was dedicated to describing her ch...more
Continuing my Susan Isaacs kick. This was a great story about a lawyer and a con man. The chapters alternated between first person and third person, which took a bit of time to get used to. I figured out some of the plot twists, but not others. The narrator was the daughter of a furrier, which was a nice tie-in with the last book I finished: "The Outliers."
Picked this up completely randomly and started reading because I'm a sucker for hard-boiled female protagonists involved in the criminal justice system. While this book is replete with many cliches from the genre, the writing and plotting were much better than they had any right to be and the characters were surprisingly nuanced. Solidly enjoyable.
Pulled this from the back of my book shelf. I *think* I'm enjoying it, but probably not enough to keep my attention. I like the dueling stories, one modern, one in the past...alternating chapters and fonts. Unfortunately, I think I like one plot line better than the other, so maybe that's my hang-up.
I really liked this book. It was almost like reading 2 books at one time. The chapters alternated between the current client she represented and chapters about her life growing up. It wasn't until the very end that everything tied together. Both story lines were very intriguing.
I picked it up and never put it down. Isaacs works an amazing complex relationship between child and parents. The parents desire to not just keep up with but be the 'Jones' is the battle that spurns this story on. The ending was a real kick. I think this is Susan Isaacs best!
I thought this would be a typical criminal defense lawyer semi-mystery, but it was much more interesting. The main character's history (back to her folks meeting) interwoven with a "present time" case made her engaging, and plenty of little surprises kept it going.
Feb 25, 2009
Marti
added it
I read this book in July of 2004 so cannot remember much about it. In my journal I noted that it was not a paperback that I would save. Susan Isaacs is an author I have read in the past, which is probably one reason that I chose this book at a book sale.
I read this under extreme duress, but I was definitely pleasantly surprised. I was fully expecting some horrible chick lit novel, but if all chick lit was written this intelligently then I would read a lot more of it.
Mystery through and through. I did like the way Isaacs consistently moved back in time to give the history of the heroine and then continued with the current story. It did keep me reading 'til the end.
For me this was her best book. I really like many of her books although some of them have not aged well. However, I think she has lost it, her last couple of books were really disappointing.
I love Susan Isaacs but this is not my favorite type of story:following a character over a livetime...coming-of-age kinda thing. But it is a good read.
Grabbed this to take on the trip to Baku. I LOVED it and didn't want it to end. Strictly mind fluff, but that's what airplane reading is all about.
Lee White, a criminal defense lawyer in Long Island... the criminal case is a good story, but Lily's own life was too unbelievable.
Really enjoyed this one. Nice time shift in the story telling narrative, lots of things to keep you guessing nearly to the last page. I can't find any fault with this novel. It's a good read!
I found this novel about a criminal defense lawyer (former prosecutor) more interesting after about the halfway mark. Prior to that point, the alternating chapters describing her personal life and her present case, the writing style of "Lily White" was difficult to become accustomed to.
Whoopie Goldberg bought the movie rights to this book just after it came out, but nothing has ever come of it.
Good reading book but not a compelling page turner. Still a good read for a chick book:-)
An excellent novel about lawyers, con artists and life. Very satisfying read.
I really enjoyed reading this book. It was exceptionally well written.
Zippy, observant, fun - love a good Susan Isaacs! This is one of her best.
A sad, funny lawyer book about justice, love and lack of same from family.
About a lawyer lady from LI. Someone I could identify with.
Found on the e-library site in WMA format. Sounds like fun!
Reading Susan Isaacs is my guilty little pleasure in 2008
A little confusing at the beginning, but worth the read.
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Susan Isaacs is a recipient of the Writers for Writers Award and the John Steinbeck Award. She serves as chairman of the board of Poets & Writers and is a past president of Mystery Writers of America. She is also a member of the National Book Critics Circle, The Creative Coalition, PEN, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the International Association of Crime Writers, and the Ada...more
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