Mackerel by Moonlight

Terry Mullally #1

by William F. Weld

"I recognized this gambit immediately. It was the old Abe Fortas trick: define the issue so that you and the judge--in this case, the voter--are on one side, and everyone else is on the other side, especially opposing counsel or the opposing candidate," says Terry Mullally, a former prosecutor from Brooklyn now running for district attorney in Boston. "When Fortas was in private practice, he drove his adversaries crazy by persuading the judge that he wasn't an advocate for his client at all, he was just trying to help the court. The more his opponent protested, the more the opponent looked like a shrill partisan who couldn't be trusted to give the judge reliable information." Shrewd, sharply observed inside nuances like that light up almost every page of this debut legal thriller by William F. Weld, the former federal prosecutor and two-term Governor of Massachusetts who never got to be President Clinton's Ambassador to Mexico because of Jesse Helms's determined opposition. Mullally--an orphan virtually raised by cops after his father's death--is a fascinatingly flawed hero for our time, determined to do good even if it means bending the law. He's helped by a fine gallery of supporting players, including an old sportswriter brought in to "Bostonize" the candidate by insisting he say things like "So isn't Murphy" instead of "So is Murphy." --Dick Adler

Genres: Fiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published September 10, 1998

Reviews

[Jeffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Novel with interesting points about running for political office and dealing with different social groups in 1990's Boston written by former Masschusetts Governor. Also has a second layer about police corruption with an interesting take on the ever-present need for someone to take the fall. Enjoyable quick read.

[Jennifer Buckley-Giessler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. The book reads like an insiders account of Boston's political scene. The book reads like non-fiction highlighting many of the true Boston political events, players and scenarios, but with the creative fiction touch.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny, well-written light reading.

[Lora Shouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

I put this on my to-read list a long time ago hoping it would be funny. And it was. It wasn’t the blatant insulting or insinuating sort of humor you find in a lot of political satire; it was much more of a quiet, thoughtful tongue-in-cheek sort of humor. But it was funny nevertheless.

The author is a former governor of Massachusetts, so he obviously knows whereof he speaks. I just hope that his own life doesn’t too closely parallel that of his main character.

Terrence Mullally Jr. is a lawyer and former Assistant U. S. attorney who gets tapped to run for DA in Boston. He meets up with the phenomenally talented Lanny Green who becomes his campaign manager and never looks back. He later hires an equally talented press secretary. It’s amazing the way they spin the most embarrassing allegations.

Much of the story concerns the great speeches Terry makes and the various political and press moves they pull. There is also an interesting romance he has with a married woman and the peculiar way her husband happens to be murdered in Hong Kong.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I heard Bill Weld had written a few books, and then I found one used for a couple of dollars, I decided it would be worth giving him a try.

I loved the beginning, because it was based in Brooklyn, where I spent the first 21 years of my life. I knew all the places he referred to, and I even dated a boy from the high school the main character attended. Then the action moved to Boston, where my daughter lived for 8 years, so I enjoyed all the references to places in Boston.

The plot revolves around the police department and the world of politics, with digressions into hunting and fishing, and a little bit of a love life. My reading has been in a female rut lately, so I was thrilled to read about men for a change, even if they were crooked and smarmy.

The writing was so-so, but the twist at the end made it worth it! I was not expecting this ending! I see that there's a sequel with this main character, and I may have to check it out, simply because of the way this book ended.

[Tyler Wolanin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story of how Bill Weld wishes he had been born an Irish Democrat was a good first start, and makes me wish he had stuck with writing longer. Full blog post here: tylerwolanin.com/blog/2020/11/26/what...

[Rick Bayko · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, well. If I hadn't already known how unsuited for public office I am this might have been what I needed to show me the light. Former Governor Bill Weld sheds light on the strategies and deceptions that win a person an election. A process that is as interesting as it is infuriating. Diogenes! Keep looking!

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

#1 in the Terry Mullally series.

Political novel - Terry Mullally, ex- Asst. U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, runs for District Attorney of Boston.

[Thomas Nevins · Rating 2 out of 5]

sort of boring story of boston politico on the rise