WHEN BEAUTIFUL, JADED ATTORNEY RUBY RANDOLPH IS ARRESTED FOR KILLING HER SNAKE OF A LAWYER HUSBAND, NOBODY BLAMES HER—EXCEPT THE COP WHO LOVES HER.Ruby Randolph is a street-smart lawyer with a dark past who finally makes it big, but she’s snared in an abusive marriage. Privilege has its costs.When her husband’s shocking murder sets her free, Ruby vows to keep it that way at any cost. But when her … cost. But when her former lover shows up at her door as the police detective investigating the case, freedom gets tricky. There’s still heat between them, but can she trust him?
Hank Rider, an honorable, world-weary cop, knows better than to get emotionally involved in a case. But he can’t forget what he once felt for Ruby as they re-ignite their steamy affair. When he discovers evidence against her, the line between duty and passion gets blurred, fast.
As the investigation spirals out of his control, Hank struggles through a long list of suspects who wanted Ruby’s husband dead—including Ruby. A bankrupted law firm, a busted client-attorney privilege, an ex-con out for revenge, a corpse in an orange grove, and Ruby’s own shady history conspire to make everyone a suspect.
“Claire Matturro’s twisted, intense mystery layers one deception over another in rapid-fire delivery that will keep you reading until the wee hours. Forget sleep—this sizzling, sexy story will leave you breathless.”—Donna Meredith, award-winning author and associate editor of Southern Literary Review
“Ruby Randolph is a red-hot force of nature… Privilege is a steamy tale of murder, betrayal, and bad behavior. But look closer, and you’ll see that it—like its heroine—also has a bright glimmer of hope etched on its heart.”—Laura Benedict, award-winning author of The Stranger Inside
“Only a lawyer [like Claire Matturro] would know the inner workings of a law firm. Only a great writer can make it so thrilling. Privilege is a great read.”—James O. Born, NYT best-selling author of crime and thriller novels.
“The reader is kept off balance by the gritty characterization of lawyer Ruby Randolph. Is she a victim or the orchestrator in this intricate web of misdeeds? … [A]n excellent story, well written, and with complex and satisfyingly flawed characters.”—Rebecca Barrett, author of Trouble in Paradise and Road’s End.
“Welcome to a read that is as steamy as a Florida swamp on a hot August night. …Secrets and secret lovers make it a riveting page turner as each layer of this captivating mystery is slowly revealed.”—Andrew Nance, author of All the Lovely Children.
“A dark and twisted past follows Ruby Randolph …. Drugs, financial abuse, and murder all play a role in this intense legal thriller that pulses with action—and plenty of heat—under the Florida sun. Ruby learns the hard lesson that Karma always comes round again and the dead will rise from their graves.”—Carolyn Haines, USA Today best-selling author of the Sarah Booth Delaney mystery series
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Claire Matturo has us at the first page. Clean, stylish writing and the beguiling Ruby Randolph’s troubling relationship with a convict, abusive marriage to a colleague and simmering love affair with a cop provides a myriad of possibilities in this wonderful whodunnit. It’s a diversion and it’s a perfect one, too. The story takes place when public payphones were still the norm, and when people went through a company’s books, they weren’t looking at files on a laptop. Ms. Matturo has created a setting in which the principle characters are so finely wrought, and so lovingly detailed, that she owes us the favor of a sequel or two for them to make another appearance. Fantastic!
Ruby is a former street person turned lawyer. She’s strong, smart, and determined, all qualities I love in my heroines. The book is a fast-paced murder mystery set in Florida that went a long way to take my mind off of the strains in the real world. I found myself sinking in for a fast, fun read, and I wasn’t disappointed.
Claire Hamner Matturro has created a psychologically complex character in Ruby. The reader is given an image of a young, female attorney, competent, self-assured, in charge. But slowly, layer by layer, Ms Matturro peels away the façade to reveal a woman controlled by everyone who enters her life: her powerful husband, the felon ex-boyfriend, her mentor, and even the police detective with whom she’s having an affair. Whenever Ruby attempts to take charge, wrest control from those around her, she ends up deeper and deeper in the morass of deception and secrets that is the ultimate control over her life and actions.
Everyone wants Gardner Randolph dead. He’s a powerful man, a master manipulator, a control freak, and cruel. Ms Matturro deftly captures all this with her astute use of dialogue and action. Gardner’s marriage reflects these aspects of his personality as does his machinations to oust the founding partners of the law firm. When he is found shot to death, there are plenty of suspects but the police zero in on his wife, Ruby.
This is an excellent story, well written, and with complex and satisfyingly flawed characters. The intricacy of the plot will keep the reader spell bound to the end.
I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. The story grabbed from the first line. Call it a romantic suspense or a story of survival- Ruby’s survival.
Ruby survives a difficult childhood, a dark past, and an abusive husband. With her wild beauty and uncanny intelligence, she easily attracts men. Each boyfriend helps her in a different way. Determined to be independent, she accepts the temporary help and works hard to improve her status. But oftentimes, the man in her life resents her when she manages to succeed and threatens his ego. However, can she escape her past?
With every page, the plot thickens. Are the victims villains? Are the villains victims?
CIaire Matturro pens a thriller with great characters, people who struggle and suffer, love and fight with passion, people conflicted between their work-duty- and their personal emotion-loved ones. In addition to the characters, I enjoyed the way the author anchors the reader in the setting with realistic showing of the colors, sounds and smells particular to each scene.
I couldn’t put the book down and read late in the night. A compelling story with an unexpected yet very satisfying ending. Ms. Matturro you have a new Fan!
Privilege by Claire Matturro is a fast-paced story with mystery, tragedy, and some sizzle.
Did Ruby kill her husband? Even if she didn’t, will she lose Hank forever?
Ruby Randolph
Ruby is our main character. I was rooting for her from the beginning. Ruby is beautiful, intelligent, and an attorney. She has the air about her that makes you either want to like her or hate her. Most men like her, and women don’t care for her. She grew up in Louisiana, poor, doing drugs, and being rescued. However, she turned it around when Gardner decided he wanted her. Ok, it’s more complicated than that, but that is how life is.
The one thing that I truly admired about Ruby was her self preservation. She does her best to land on her feet through it all.
Luther Downs
Luther is my favorite male character. He is by far the down to earth; hard-working, family orientated, detective that doesn’t see Ruby as an object but a person. Luther is also Hank’s partner and probably his best friend. Hank and Ruby have a “thing” going on. When Luther realizes this, he talks to Hank and tries to work through everything. Through all of this, Luther is such a great guy. He even uses old police contacts to try to track down information about Ruby and Billy. Luther has demons of his own to deal with too.
The Mystery
Ruby’s husband Gardner is murdered in their bedroom the day after he attacks her in the office, and she moves out of the house. Gardner was trying to push the primary partner in their law firm out by messing with the books. The law firm is going to implode soon. Gardner was having an affair with one of the other associate attorneys. Ruby was having a relationship with Hank, but she tries to be a loyal friend to an old boyfriend, Billy, who recently got out of jail. Nathanial, the leading partner in the firm, is her friend and mentor, so Ruby hates what Gardner is doing to him. There are so many pieces of the puzzle. Yet, who killed Gardner?
Five Stars
Privilege by Claire Matturro is wonderfully written. I honestly didn’t figure out who killed Gardner until the reveal. There are so many suspects and different motives. I loved that the story takes place in the 1980s. Ms. Matturro adds the right amount of heat to the story. Police work was different back then; they had to drive to the location and pull hard files to read them. The characters are fabulously put together with enough flaws to make them real. I love this story, and therefore I am giving Privilege by Claire Matturro five stars.
I highly recommend this book, especially if you like a good mystery with some heat.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy from the author. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Privilege by Claire Matturro.
This Guest Review is for Baroness’ Book Trove.
Until the next time,
~Jen
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Privilege by Claire Matturro is not a comfortable read. You won’t sink cozily into your favorite chair for a relaxing summer afternoon. Instead, you’ll be sucked into a maelstrom akin to a coastal hurricane.
Ruby Randolph is not the girl next door, not the girl you take home to mama. She is, in fact, every mother’s worst nightmare. But she is also smart and vulnerable and loyal to a degree few people are willing to go as the cost is just too high. Did Ruby murder her husband? A part of you will hope she did, simply because she deserves that satisfaction. Another part of you will hope she didn’t, because the essence of Ruby would never survive prison. And you’ll care about that even as you wonder why you care.
As you wind your way through the myriad of possible murder suspects, you’ll be reminded that very few people are completely good or completely evil. Not the weak boyfriend Ruby never quite left behind her. Not the powerful attorney she married. Not the detective who desires her. And not the several partners who had every motive to murder a man who’d decided he no longer had need of them. Because what Gardner Randolph didn’t need, he discarded.
Privilege is a skillfully woven tale that will remind you some books are not written for pleasant relaxation and will make you hope Ms. Matturro does it again. Soon.
When I discovered that Claire Matturo, author of Skinny-Dipping, Wildcat Wine, Bone Valley, and other books, wrote another mystery, I had to order it.
Along with her expertise as an attorney as to the inner workings of law firm politics and bookkeeping, the author shows the ins and outs of how law firms function and how they can go off the rails. Then there are wild plot twists to keep us in suspense. Yet she ingeniously draws every loose end together in a satisfying ending.
What I appreciated most in this novel is the author’s artistry with words. For example, she details what it’s like to make love while actually treading water. Her talent as a wordsmith shows in descriptions of her character’s idiosyncrasies, like the police detective who stabs popcorn on a bar and cigarette buts in an ashtray with a paperclip. Another example is how she describes the caresses of a lover in reverential language of gentleness and pleasure.
Although I usually have my eyes in a romance novel, I enjoyed reading Privilege and recommend it to all of you who crave suspenseful mysteries. This one will hook you in right away and keep you wanting to leave everything else alone to finish this book.