THE SERIAL KILLER ISN’T ON TRIAL.HE’S ON THE JURY…****************‘Books this ingenious don’t come along very often.’ Michael Connelly‘THIRTEEN is my favourite read of the year.’ Sarah Pinborough‘Outstanding.’ Lee Child‘Smart and original. This is a belter of a book.’ Clare Mackintosh****************‘To your knowledge, is there anything that would preclude you from serving on this jury?’Murder … Mackintosh
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‘To your knowledge, is there anything that would preclude you from serving on this jury?’
Murder wasn’t the hard part. It was just the start of the game.
Joshua Kane has been preparing for this moment his whole life. He’s done it before. But this is the big one.
This is the murder trial of the century. And Kane has killed to get the best seat in the house.
But there’s someone on his tail. Someone who suspects that the killer isn’t the man on trial.
Kane knows time is running out – he just needs to get to the conviction without being discovered.
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THIRTEEN REASONS WHY … YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK:
‘An oh so clever hook for an oh so clever, gripping book. THIRTEEN is courtroom drama at its finest, blended with page-turning twists and characters you can’t get enough of. Steve Cavanagh is the John Grisham for a new generation. Slick, thrilling and unique, THIRTEEN is my favourite read of the year.’
Sarah Pinborough
‘Outstanding – an intriguing premise, a tense, gripping build-up, and a spectacular climax. This guy is the real deal. Trust me.’
Lee Child
‘Smart and original. This is a belter of a book.’
Clare Mackintosh
‘Great hook. Great plot. Great book. Thirteen is a real page turner and one you won’t want to put down.’
Simon Kernick
‘A brilliant, twisty, ingeniously constructed puzzle of a book. Steve Cavanagh pulls off an enviable premise with panache.’
Ruth Ware
‘I’ve been tracking Steve Cavanagh for a few years now and Thirteen is his best, a dead bang beast of a book that expertly combining his authority on the law with an absolutely great thrill ride. Books this ingenious don’t come along very often.’
Michael Connelly
‘Quite simply deserves to be HUGE. If you read a thriller as good this year, it’s only because you’ve read this one twice.’
Mark Billingham
‘Tore through this between dusk and dawn. Absolute 5-star cracker from Steve Cavanagh, who’s gotta be among top legal thriller writers out there nowadays. A powerhouse of a book that’s much more than its high-concept hook.’
Craig Sisterson
‘Wow! This book is friggin’ awesome! Utterly immersive.’
Emma Kavanagh
‘Fantastically gripping? Guilty as charged!’
Angela Clarke
‘An absolute cracker.’
Susi Holliday
‘Guilty of thrills, twists, and expertly manipulating the reader.’
Mason Cross
‘An absolute rollercoaster of a read. Thrilling.’
Cass Green
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THIRTEEN won the CWA award for the best novel of the year and although I don’t usually enjoy books where the murderer shares the narration with the sleuth, I have to confess this one is an exception.
Primarily a courtroom drama, it has an original premise in that an innocent man stands trial in the dock – while the murderer sits on the jury. Our hero is defence lawyer, Eddie Flynn, who slowly comes to realise that someone on the jury is manipulating the trial and has a hidden agenda. Even reading back those sentences sends a shiver down my spine.
Fast paced and written with wit and punchy dialogue, ‘Thirteen’ is a roller coaster of a story and utterly compelling reading.
Five stars…ALL OF THE STARS!
In a market saturated with legal thrillers, Thirteen needs its own category! This concept was brilliant and the execution superb. I could not put it down.
Thirteen is the 4th book in the Eddie Flynn series but works as a stand alone. Eddie is an ex-con turned lawyer who goes toe to toe in a battle of brains with a serial killer who wrangles his way onto a jury. This book is so clever, so intriguing, so filled with red herrings and brilliant misdirection that I CANNOT wait to go back and read the others.
There is an interesting sub-plot with some “bad guys” but I dare not say too much, except for this: Get yourself a copy and get to it, even if legal thrillers are not your jam! You won’t be sorry!
Thank you to the brilliant Steve Cavanagh, Flatiron Books and Netgalley for giving me this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!
An original fast-paced non-stop thrilling joy ride!
Hold on to your hats folks, because this one will blow your mind! YES, it’s as good as everyone says. YES, you should read it now. NO, I wouldn’t lie to you. I have to say, I haven’t been this impressed since J.D. Barker’s The Fourth Monkey. That’s saying a lot, because he’s at the top of the list for me.
Former con artist, Eddie Flynn, now lawyer, has just be hired on to represent a very high profile client, Bobby Soloman in what just might be the trial of the century. Bobby Soloman has been accused of murdering his wife (of two months) and his security guard, also her lover. While the evidence is unfavorable, Eddie realizes that it’s been tampered with. Eddie quickly assembles a team to help him prove his case.
For Joshua Kane, “The American dream wasn’t money. It was freedom. True freedom.” What better way to destroy his targets than by taking away the “American dream”. To do that, he must frame them for murder. Of course for Kane, the job isn’t complete until he can help convict the target by sitting in on the jury.
I did some immersion reading with this one (listening to the audiobook while reading along) and I have to say, the narrator, Adam Sims, did an amazing job. I listen to a lot of audiobooks, and he’s the type of narrator I thoroughly enjoy. One that delivers inflection, change of tone between characters, and emotion. He’s not just reading the book, he’s telling a story. He did this book justice! So I can without a doubt recommend the audio for this one as well.
Thirteen was so expertly executed that I am 100% satisfied as a reader. I blew through this in less than 24 hours. I just couldn’t stop. It works perfect as a standalone, although, having read the earlier novels, who knows maybe I would have given it 10 stars (if that was a thing).
When I saw the cover, I couldn’t resist this one. I served on a murder trial as a juror last summer so my interest was piqued. Even though the reader essentially knows what is happening from the very beginning, we still manage to be surprised with the twist at the end. Though this is book three in a series, I hadn’t read the first two and felt this was a good standalone. I loved it!
WOW! This is the first Steve Cavanagh book that I have read and although I dislike reading series out of order, I loved this book. The concept, a murder becomes part of the jury to convict the man who was arrested for the crime. I didn’t know which one of the jurors was the murderer nor do I know the extent of this crimes. It didn’t bother my to read this one first even though it was the 4th in the series. I will happily go back and read the first 3 and look forward to more.
Con-man turned defence attorney Eddie Flynn’s latest case involves a Hollywood actor accused of a double murder. The book flies through a narrative that , despite requiring a fair suspension of disbelief, really does benefit from the pace of the story. There were times where I could have stopped and thought about the outlandish plot or whether or not that scene made sense but I was having too much fun to care. This is a perfect antidote to those overwritten, five hundred pagers with too much tragic backstory and architectural description. They talk about movies being pure ‘leave your brain outside the door’ popcorn. Well, this ably does that for the court room thriller.
Loved this combo of legal thriller and suspense. Great characters and a multi-faceted villain.
My only complaint is that I’m weary of main characters who are constantly being beaten up, shot at, knifed, and in general, being at death’s door in every other chapter, yet continue to go on with life as if nothing happened.
But great read, highly recommend.
Thirteen is the second book I’ve read in the Eddie Flynn series. I was blown away with the originality of the plot , a serial killer who is chosen as a juror member in a murder trial. The plot focuses on his past, how he diabolically works his way onto the jury, and how Eddie gradually figures out his identity.
“The serial killer isn’t on trial. He’s on the jury.” That tagline hooked me in and the book didn’t disappoint. A well-plotted fast-paced thriller.
A fresh and unique spin on a “serial killer thriller”. A gritty, intense, fast-paced, riveting, artful melding of stunning psychological thrills and nail-biting suspense. An edgy mystery full of dark secrets, shocking plot twists and pulse-pounding, palpable tension. This book brings it!
#TH1RT3EN #THIRTEEN #SteveCavanagh #NetGalley
So I had NO idea that this book was part of a series when I started it. I had noticed quite a few advertisements for it and the synopsis really intrigued me so I thought I’d give it a go. So glad I did because this is a page turner without a doubt.
Eddie Flynn is a defense attorney trying to get his act together. His wife has left him and he feels inadequate as a father. When a high profile actor is accused of murdering his wife, Flynn truly believes the man is innocent and decides to assist with the case. The evidence couldn’t be more damning against his client however. DNA, video footage, an eye witness and more all stand to put the actor behind bars for life. One thing seems out of place to Eddie however. A dollar bill folded in the shape of a butterfly is found inside the victim’s wife. Why? As Eddie begins to investigate, the answers just get more twisted and the case gets more complicated.
Just WOW! (Although if you can’t suspend some belief you may not love this book…) I was so impressed by the imagination and attention to detail that the author displayed in this work! Any time my brain wanted to shout out that something was impossible, Eddie or someone on his team had an answer to shoot down said impossibility.
A roller coaster ride of a read in which I couldn’t turn the ending pages fast enough!
Highly recommended!
Loved it
******* AUDIOBOOK REVIEW *******
I’m in complete shock after listening to this audiobook. Steve Cavanagh wrote a thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat from the very first strands of music to the last word uttered. Let me tell y’all I haven’t read or listened to this author previously and I am seriously kicking myself. I can look at his books and see why I haven’t ventured here previously… his books have the look of legal thrillers (and sound like legal thrillers) and that isn’t somewhere I generally gravitate. Well, let me just tell you… I am missing out! This is a phenomenal story!! Thirteen is more than a legal thriller. It’s one of those books that you’ll find yourself rushing through because you just have to know what is going to happen!
It’s a real struggle to know what to say in this review. The book has you feeling confident in yourself and what you’re thinking. You’re wrong. So really I don’t want to get into the storyline. This is book four in the Eddie Flynn series. I haven’t read or listened to the previous three books so I don’t personally think it’s necessary to read them beforehand. I’m sure if you had read or listened to them then you would know a ton more about main characters. I didn’t have one single issue and I fully consider this story detailed and thorough enough to be a standalone.
Adam Sims was an amazing narrator. I truly felt like this story came to life before my eyes… that’s attributed to the author’s nonstop story mixed with Mr. Sims’ portrayal of the characters. They brought the story to life and it was intense, fast-paced, and full of misdirection. I really don’t think I could have loved it more. I found Mr. Sims to be a delightful narrator. His voice was clear and crisp. I did bump the speed up a smidge… I think I needed the tempo to match my heart rate!
I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook with the hope that I would leave an Unbiased Opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that… my opinions.
With a hook like “THE SERIAL KILLER ISN’T ON TRIAL. HE’S ON THE JURY…” how can anyone not be intrigued? Thirteen is a courtroom thriller unlike any I’ve read before, and I loved it!!
Eddie Flynn, conman turned lawyer, is asked to be second chair for the defense of actor Robert Solomon, half of “the” celebrity power couple, who is accused of murdering his gorgeous wife and her bodyguard. It looks pretty cut and dried at the start that Solomon is guilty, but Eddie finds that a lot of what is being presented as facts just don’t add up.
Eddie is brilliant, but so is the serial killer that he’s up against. The killer has flown under the radar for years, masterfully advancing his agenda because no one has tied any of his killings together. Until now. GAME ON!!!!
The story is told via two POV’s – Eddie’s and the serial killer’s. After a bit of a slow start, the tension in this book grew to be palpable. With a unique plot line, well-developed characters, and twists I didn’t expect, this courtroom drama/police procedural is one of the best I’ve read.
I have not read the previous books in the Eddie Flynn series, but that was no deterrent to my enjoyment of Thirteen. It stands very well on its own. Now that I’ve “discovered” Eddie Flynn, I plan to read the previous books in the series, as well as those to come.
My thanks to NetGalley and Flat Iron Books for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased opinion.
Crime fiction writing at its best! This was an excellent read. Everything about the book was superb. The plot, the characters, the pacing, and the writing were all top class.
You know when you have read a superb crime fiction writer when they turn the implausible into the plausible. Steve Cavanagh does exactly that with a few plot twists. At first, I am shaking my head, thinking “Nah!” then a few moments later with brilliant writing he makes me think, “Yes, it could happen.” He should teach crime writing to some other authors in this genre.
The author’s style reminds me so much of the writing of the likes of Charles Bukowsi and James M Cain. I rather suspect he has fallen under their influence at some stage of his writing career. In the main short sentences, short words but with so much meaning and clout.
He is truly such a talented writer. I look forward to reading more of his books.
A dead bang BEAST of a book that expertly combines his authority on the law with an absolutely great thrill ride. Books this ingenious don’t come along very often.
Outstanding – an intriguing premise, a tense, gripping build-up, and a spectacular climax. This guy is the real deal. Trust me.
A brilliant, twisty, ingeniously constructed puzzle of a book. Steve Cavanagh pulls off an enviable premise with panache.
THIRTEEN was just awarded Novel of the Year for 2019 by one of the UK’s most prestigious crime writing festivals and I can promise you the award was more than merited. If you love contemporary crime fiction, you really, really ought to be reading Steve Cavanagh, and THIRTEEN is a great place to start.
When I read the premise of this book I was instantly intrigued, and Steve Cavanagh does a fantastic job with keeping the drama and suspense turned up in Thirteen, the fourth edition to the Eddie Flynn series. I haven’t read the others in the series, but if they are as good as Thirteen then I definitely will.
Cavanagh alternates the telling of the story between Flynn and the killer, Joshua Kane. Cavanagh doesn’t hold back with the descriptions of how twisted Kane’s mind and killings are, which is something that a lot of courtroom dramas shy away from.
There were a couple of things that I rolled my eyes at because it was a bit too far fetched, but it was needed to keep the story going. The biggest thing was when the jury specialist was going to tell Flynn something that disturbed him about one of the jurors, but Flynn just had to be elsewhere. Right. That. Minute. It would have taken the specialist two seconds to say the name, but if he had then what happened later couldn’t have happened. It wasn’t that big of a deal, but it was obviously something that stuck with me.
Another thing that stood out was the way Flynn handled the relationship with his wife at the end. It just seemed forced/strange/something else I can’t put my finger on, but perhaps if I had read the previous books it would have flowed better for me.
Even with those sticking points, I still say you should read this book, especially if you like courtroom dramas or serial killers. And you may not even notice what I mentioned previously!