Former Los Angeles prosecutor Clark's debut novel is well polished, using her insider experience to create a fast-paced mystery. Surprisingly, DA Rachel Knight never enters a courtroom but must juggle the investigation of one official case and one behind the scenes as a colleague dies under suspicious circumstances. Her characters—good, bad, and at points in between—speak in believable counterpoint, with the right notes of humor and humanity. She may overdo the taciturn with some of these individuals, but she forges believable friendships and backgrounds that suggest this will be a successful series with Knight, LAPD detective Bailey Keller, and fellow attorney Toni LaCollette. Actress January LaVoy captures the female voices well and adds the right notes for an L.A. gangbanger's range of emotions. Highly recommended though not the expected legal drama. ["Employing a quick and humorous writing style, not to mention surprising plot twists, Clark most likely has a...best seller on her hands," read the review of the Mulholland: Little, Brown hc, LJ 2/15/11; the Mulholland pb will publish in March 2012.—Ed.]—Joyce Kessel, Villa Maria Coll., Buffalo