Legal Tender

Rosato and Associates #2

by Lisa Scottoline

Philadelphia lawyer turned novelist (what a concept!) Scottoline has already won a best original paperback Edgar for Final Appeal. Now she might just nail down a hardcover one for her latest book -- a lovely combination of high energy, imagination and nasty good humor mostly directed against lawyers. Her central character this time out is a definite keeper: Benedetta Rosato, "Bennie" to everyone but her mother, a towering blonde who rows to keep her body in shape and duels with the police on a daily basis to keep her legal talents sharp. Most of Bennie's clients have a gripe against the cops, so Philadelphia's finest are less than sympathetic to her cause when she becomes the chief suspect in the murder of her ex-lover and soon to be ex-law partner. Hiding out in a truly original way, Bennie uses (and abuses) a big law firm to help find the real killers; you'll find yourself laughing and gasping all the way.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Audiobook, Legal Thriller, Suspense, Crime, Thriller

434 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Lisa Scottoline is a #1 bestselling and Edgar award-winning author of 33 novels. Her books are book-club favorites, and Lisa and her daughter Francesca Serritella have hosted an annual Big Book Club Party for over a thousand readers at her Pennsylvania farm, for the past twelve years. Lisa has served as President of Mystery Writers of America, and her reviews of fiction and non-fiction have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Philadelphia Inquirer. She also writes a weekly column with her daughter for the Philadelphia Inquirer entitled Chick Wit, a witty take on life from a woman’s perspective, which have been collected in a bestselling series of humorous memoirs. Lisa graduated magna cum laude in three years from the University of Pennsylvania, with a B.A. in English, and cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she taught Justice and Fiction. Lisa has over 30 million copies of her books in print and is published in over 35 countries. She lives in the Philadelphia area with an array of disobedient pets and wouldn’t have it any other way.

Reviews

[Jocelyn Jazmen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book pulled me in immediately. Great plot, great pace, and great character development, and most importantly great wit and humor. If we compare to the writing of Janet Evanovich, I would say Scottoline is a notch above her in terms of sophistication. Her characters are more than cartoon-like, and the suspension of disbelief is easier.

I was a bit disappointed because I was expecting more courtroom scenes, but in this one our heroine (extremely engaging Benedetta Rosato - 'Benny') is on the lam because she's accused of murdering her ex-lover and law partner. So for most of the book she's a fugitive.

The only reason I couldn't give it 4 stars was the plot resolution (i.e. the ending) was rather weak and somewhat contrived, although that didn't stop me from enjoying the rest of it.

This is my first Scottoline book and it won't be my last.

[Cindy B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read & audiobooked all her novels & will continue, wish she'd write faster! No gore, usually no cussing. Enjoyable people & plots.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gave it a generous 4 stars for the fun read that it was! Just what the doctor ordered. Easy reading, enjoyable characters, a few LOL moments, some eye-rolling moments too ( but what the heh... it's not literature), oh and yes there is a murder mystery.

"Bennie" Rosato is screwed when she is blindsided by her business partner & former lover Mark who has decided to start his own law practice, taking associates, clients & the offices. Angry over this betrayal of their hard work of building the practice together, she has a loud argument with Mark who is later found murdered. Bennie becomes the prime suspect and is soon on the run when she is determined to find out who murdered Mark and prove her innocence, only things just keep getting worse & she is unsure who to trust.

Enjoy!

The only thing that I didn't like was how she "cared" for the kitten. She did save it, but...

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having recently read a short story by Lisa Scottoline, I realised its connection to two of her legal thriller series. I was eager to give these full novels a try and enjoyed the debut, so it was time to forge onwards. Scottoline does well in the genre and prepares the reader for quite the adventure, full of legal maneuvers and some strong female protagonists. The reader is introduced to another of the Rosato and Associates lawyers, the name partner, Bennie Rosato. Her struggles are real and the novel takes quite the adventurous turn throughout, as Bennie tries to stay out of jail. A thrilling story provides a stellar backdrop for a series I am sure to enjoy!

Benedetta ‘Bennie’ Rosato is the name partner in a small Philadelphia law firm hoping to make a name for itself by watching out for cops who prefer to bend the rules to their favour. This has created many an enemy for Bennie, but she cannot deny that everyone has the right not to be maligned for something they did not do. She works hard and has high hopes for the law firm, though there are whispers that things could be taking a turn. When her former lover and soon to be ex-legal partner is found murdered, Bennie is the prime suspect. While she is adamant that she is innocent, her past issues with the Boys in Blue makes it all the more difficult to get someone to listen.

Refusing to take things sitting down, Bennie takes matters into her own hands and tries to get some answers, all while dodging the police and anyone who might recognize her. How she wishes that she could be out on the water, where she could row away her issues. In this case, she will have to remain incognito and get answers before her name is sullied throughout the press and any chance of practicing law, innocent or not, goes up in smoke. Another great thriller by Scottoline, which pulls on some great legal matters and expands the base of the Rosato and Associates series.

While I always have ave many books around me, I can rejig things a little if a novel or series is to my liking. I decided to try that with this collection and I have not been disappointed whatsoever. Lisa Scottoline does well to lay the groundwork and has been diligent at building on it, with two strong lawyers in the first few books of this series. Where things are headed next, I have no idea, but I am eager to see. Scottoline introduces readers to more great characters, some of whom I can only hope will reappear throughout the series. Bennie Rosato is well-placed and her sass is perfectly timed, making her someone I can see growing as the series develops. Plots come across as simple, but effective, allowing the reader to delve into them and provide some entertainment in what can sometimes be an intense reading experience. With two books down, I am eager to see what’s to come and how the two protagonists (Bennie Rosato here and Mary DiNunzio from the debut novel) will continue to flavour the series.

Kudos, Madam Scottoline, for another winner. You have me intrigued and ready for more!

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

[Edwina Book Anaconda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Over the top unbelievable to the point that it was simply stupid.
By no stretch of the imagination could I picture the hot-shot lady lawyer, on the run from the police, crawling around on the basement floor of an abandoned building looking for a place to sleep or barging into a courtroom and pleading her case to the judge while a trial is in progress.

This is the type of brain rot that makes non-readers.
Not recommended ... unless you are in the mood to do a lot of eye rolling.

[Marleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve had this paperback issue of Legal Tender by Lisa Scottoline on my To-Read shelf for more than a decade (!!), and finally I gave it go. I enjoy Lisa Scottoline’s writing: her pen is fluid and easy. She’s an author able to give the story a good rhythm right from the start with enough wit and intrigue, so that you’ re hooked right away.
Meet Bennie Rosato, who’s quite an interesting character - a female lawyer with plenty of personality, ambition, humanity and drive. Here, in Legal Tender, Bennie is accused of murdering her ex-lover and business partner, Mark Biscardi, and as the plot thickens, Bennie realizes that she’s the only one who can uncover the truth: who killed Mark? And why frame her? Bennie is very inventive and creative, that’s what I liked about her. It was so smart to hide in plain sight.
I think this was an enjoyable read for most part, but towards the end, I would’ve like the author to elaborate more on the actual murderer(s). I wanted more explanations. How? Why? I felt bereft. It really felt like the author was in a hurry to finish the book.
So all along I would’ve given this book a three, but seeing the end really disappointed me, it’s a 2,5 ** stars.

[Jan Flores · Rating 2 out of 5]

Review of Legal Tender

Review of Legal Tender

I gave this book two stars because, even though I've read others by this author, I felt it was way too long, too convoluted, and simply unbelievable. Also, as an animal lover, I was very distracted by the way the kitten was treated (diet coke and snickers bars? definitely not the way to treat a helpless animal, fictitious or not) and it was wholly unnecessary to the plot. I'm sorry to give this book such a poor review, because I think the author is a talented writer. Maybe the problem was that I just didn't like the plot.

[Alison · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I generally enjoy reading Rosato & Associates books, this one had me stumped. Without going into the plot in detail, I just don't understand how a lawyer, with her own law firm, can take so many irrational steps once she's been declared a person of interest in the murder of her, then, partner, Mark. But wait, it gets worse, then she's accused of murdering a former client. But wait, it gets worse, then she's accused of murdering a friend and colleague. And, she has no alibi for any of these murders. Just not believable.

[Una Tiers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not believable.

[Marty Fried · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars.

This was not bad, although not really a favorite. It was fun, with some excitement and humor, but seems overly contrived to me, and not really believable.

The main character, Bennie Rosato, was smart, good-looking, and way too brash for her own good. She's confrontational and often rude, which continually gets her in trouble. But she's basically honest and usually means well, so it's kind of fun watching her antics and ways of escaping the results.

The ending was a bit too neat, and everyone lived happily ever after, it seems.

[Kennedy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This read provided good background information on Benedetta "Bennie" Rosato. I have read a few books in the various series and always felt like I needed and wanted to know more about Bennie and now I do. I was surprised that Mary was not included in this story. Enjoyable. Suspenseful. Entertaining.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second in a great series about a women attorney.... fast paced!

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

BEWARE. I DON'T FLAG SPOILERS. BUT I DON'T PUT MY REVIEWS OUT ON ANY FEED, EITHER.

Disclaimer - my "reviews" are not truly that. Rather than a critical analysis, each "review" is mostly my quick summary of the plot -- so I can refresh my unreliable memory. Also, I find that once I journal a book, it's easier for me to give it away. That's important, as our house is getting "overgrown" with books.

---

Here's Bennie Rosato in the firm she originally founded - Rosato & Biscardi. It's a first-person novel, which can be intense. (Later on, e.g., in Dead Ringer, Scottoline continues about Bennie in 3rd person.)

Bennie's accused of the murder of Bsiscardi, a male who recently dumped her romantically and had announced plans to break up the firm, too. In short order, She gets accused of other murders, too (a pharma exec, a young male animal-rights protester).

To clear herself, Bennie has to go deeep undercover. She simultaneously poses as homeless (smearing herself w. manure-based garden fertilizer) and high-power atty. at the large Grun firm where she used to work. (Improbably, she immediately gets into the firm's computer network and is able to write inter-office memos, request purchases, reserve rooms, order up computers, etc.) so she can come in periodically to research the legal matters that got her in such a fix.

Turns out the perps behind the 3 deaths are 2 female associates in R&B -- Biscardi's newest lover, who just wanted his money, as well as another minority female lawyer, who has connections to fraud and violent crime within the animal-protest movement.

Grady Wells is Bennie's lover-in-the-making in this installment. I do't remember that relationship in subsequent books (which I've already read) but it seems that long-term they do work out as office peers.

Bennie's mother gets a temporary reprieve fr. her mental illness by electro-shock therapy (which Dick Cavett, incidentally, swears by as helpful in his own illness and healing).

Cute moment ends the book: Bennie makes up to the elderly Grun partner whom she has hoodwinked. Although he appears at times to be senile, he's bright enough in final scene to get her to apologize out loud for thinking, in her prior employment w. the firm, that he was a dastard bastard (actually, the verbatim is "tyrannical bastard.")

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm torn on what to rate this one because it probably deserves 2 1/2 stars. I liked the mystery and I mostly liked Bennie but how stupid do you have to be to think it's acceptable to give a kitten Diet Coke and a Snickers bar and lock it in a car all day?! I was annoyed that she first tried to give the kitten milk but it got so much worse. Anyone reading this book, do NOT give your cat ANY of those things, especially chocolate. Bennie has a dog; how can she lack even a basic knowledge of what is appropriate to feed a pet? I know, that is far from the point of the book, but I found it horrifying.

[LJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

LEGAL TENDER - VG
Scottoline, Lisa - 2nd in Rosato and Assoc. series

Bennie's former lover and current law partner, Mark Biscardi, breaks the news that he wants to oust her from the firm in favour of an ambitious and beautiful associate. When Mark is found murdered, all the evidence points to Bennie, who has motive aplenty and a dubious alibi. Suddenly her world is turned upside down, as the lawyer becomes the client, and the cops she once prosecuted are now after her with a vengeance.

This was very good. I liked the character a lot and appreciated the suspense.

[Lynne · Rating 2 out of 5]

so-so.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I'm quite enjoying this series - they are well written, have fantastic characters and the mysteries themselves are well done. I'm looking forward to continuing to read this series in 2019!

[Sheryl Medina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Lisa Scottoline's writing style and this one did not disappoint. Murder, love, mystery and humor all wrapped up in one!

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

So far I've read four Scottoline mysteries, in order, and one thing I can say across the board is that they're all great fun. Some more more "legal thriller" than others, some are more believable than others, but I haven't met a one that hasn't had me turning pages non-stop from beginning to end, sleep and other plans be damned.

For sheer readability, Legal Tender does not disappoint. I think I read it in 5 hours. In a single sitting after coming home from work, no less. Scottoline can write a tight enough narrative that just keeps pushing you forward. There wasn't much of a legal mystery to be had here -- mainly it's a whodunit, with, of course, our dear heroine as the primary suspect -- and some of the plot devices were a bit over the top -- Honestly? No one recognizes the woman in the bright yellow car and the bright red hair all over town? Not even the half-dozen cops she ends up crossing paths with? No one? -- but it's all in good fun. Talented, idealistic attorney Bennie Rosato is confronted with the death of a close colleague and all the circumstantial evidence points in her direction. She knows no one will believe her, and so she spends the rest of the book sleuthing on her own while coming up with creative ways to avoid capture. It's her scheme to outwit her pursuers and hide in plain sight that provides some of the most entertaining and believability-challenging moments of the story. Unlike other Scottoline novels I've read, the character development gets fairly short shrift, which is a bit of a shame, because she does that so well. There's also a minor romantic subplot, but the main fun of the story is the cat and mouse game.

[Katie Rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book. It had a very slow start, I almost stopped reading the book. Then the middle was decent but the main character had too many lucky breaks for it to be believable. If this had happened in real life she would have been caught day one. Then the ending was EXTREMELY rushed. It made me so angry! We spent 60 pages leading up to the murder but then 1 page on the closure of the crime. The motive was never fully explained and again things were wrapped up WAY too easily for the main character to be believable. If you want a quick read that isn’t completely believable then this book is for you but if you like a mystery with substance then I would skip this one.

[Dawnica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Umm character development? (Spoiler alert)

First of all, Bennie's personality changed about eight times throughout the book. She's lovesick but still the boss; she's a quick-witted jokester; she's all serious business; none of the personalities fit together. Then Grady Wells?? Gimme a break. I literally had no clue who he was, there was NO relationship between the two of them, and suddenly they're falling madly in love, when it seems fairly obvious he's the killer...and then... not? And they live happily ever after? Smh.

[Donnajo]

Riverdale library sale 3/26-27/11

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bennie Rosato with her ex-lover Mark, are partners in a flourishing law firm. The book opens with Bennie trying to save the day for Mark’s new lover, Eve. She’s making a huge mashup of a discovery witness and Bennie sacrifices her dignity by dropping a glass and pouring water all over Mark to take the attention off Eve. While it worked, it looks like a jealous spurned lover getting her own back. When the discussion about her behaviour inevitable arises, Mark confesses he’s dissolving the partnership and is moving her out. To say Bennie’s pissed is an understatement, and there’s a bit of a scene with Mark and the young associates.

The next morning Mark’s body is discovered, stabbed to death. Of course Bennie is the chief suspect. Bennie’s alibi is that she was rowing on the river at the time of the murder. Witnesses? Nada. After the search warrant is served, the murder weapon is found in Bennie’s apartment. With no other choice, Bennie disappears, she knows she needs to solve the case quickly as the proof against her is strong and no one’s looking for another murderer.

Just before this all happened, Bennie successfully defended Bill from a nuisance charge. She sees that his girlfriend is a loose cannon whose association will get Bill in serious trouble and tries to separate the two, unsuccessfully. Then the CEO that his girlfriend was threatening to kill ends up dead as well, surprise, prime suspect Bennie.

Bennie has no other choice, she needs to hide and solve the case. The police have no allegiance to her. Her record shows her success at exposing dirty cops, so she’s truly on her own from the murderer, the police and her associates.

[Manheim Community Library]

Harriet Engle is an avid reader of several authors who write murder mystery series. Look for her weekly reviews highlighting each of these series.

Bennie Rosato and her law partner Mark Biscardi ran a very efficient and effective “boutique” law firm in Philadelphia until Mark decided to break off and start his own firm. When Mark turns up murdered, Bennie is the first and prime suspect. She runs. Then two more murders take place, and Bennie fits the modus operandi for both, and after each murder, Bennie runs. In her mind, the only way out of this mess is to find out who really murdered Mark.

Ms. Scottoline weaves a twisted tale of events that will, of course, take Bennie Rosato through sleepless nights, police chases, clandestine meetings with her defense lawyer, the horrid discovery of the third murder, rowing on the Schuylkill River at midnight, and eventually to the conclusion of Bennie’s investigation of the clever set up intended to put her in prison for life. Through all of that, we cannot forget Bennie’s mother, brought back to reality with the use of innovative treatments.

[Maddielucy(Patti) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good. The murder mystery/storyline itself was nothing new, really. But what made it enjoyable and deserving 4 stars was the main character, Benny Rosato. She is funny, sarcastic and smart, and having her serve as the narrator was perfect. Accused of her ex-business partner / ex-lover's murder Bennie gets herself in plenty of trouble and has a cat with the best name ever. Fast, fun read.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somehow I skipped some of the early books and skipped to those written in the 2000s. Horrors! So is am going back to read those skipped. I alsway enjoy Scottoline’s books. This one is mostly about Bernie Rosato as she tries to clear her name from a murder charge. Some of the scrapes she gets into are somewhat implausible, but I still couldn’t stop reading.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

From start to finish this one is sure to have you thinking that you solved the crime! But how wrong you are. This one is shorter than others but it tells the story well enough that you don't realize it could have been a hundred more pages.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loads of fun, and totally unbelievable. So many things happen in this book - multiple murders, lawyers on the run, and romance (to name a few).

Scottoline is still writing sassy one-liners with sarcasm and humor, and she always keeps the story going.

[Sylvia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!! Great story!! Love this author's books!!

[Lorrie Bettinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

All okay so far in this series. Easy read, not too deep.