🏛️ ⚖️ "Burden of Proof" (2020) ⚖️ 🏛️ - Book Review

 

 

MY REVIEW

 

Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: Revell (November 3, 2020)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1335488553
ISBN-13: 978-0800727888
⬅️ Click Picture for Purchase Information

 

 

“Three weeks after his twenty-third birthday, Ethan missed the chance to save his brother's life when he was murdered on the steps of the courthouse in Jacksonville, Florida. Ever since that fateful day, Ethan has sensed a deep disconnect between the man he should have been and the one he has become. His days play out a beat too slow, his mind replaying the scene of his failure again and again.

 But when his brother's widow appears, asking for his help in uncovering what was really behind his brother's death, Ethan is stunned to hear that she and her late husband were involved in a much larger case than he knew--one that threatens the global power structure. As Ethan joins the search for answers, he will enter into his own past--and discover a means of redeeming his future.”

 

Thank you in advance to the publisher; Revell (a division of Baker Books); for providing an advanced review copy through Library Thing. A positive review was not required in any way, nor was it requested. All words are my own.

This is the second book I’ve read by Davis Bunn, and sadly it might be my last.

 

The first book I read, Unscripted, didn’t seem to have much of a plot nor did it make sense to me. But, I figured it was probably me.

 

After reading the blurb on this one, I was really excited and HAD to get it. In addition, the cover was a bit intriguing. So, I was VERY happy to win it on Library Thing. And, I always like to give authors a second (2^nd) chance. I don’t want to view one bad book and go “no more”. Thankfully this is a standalone read so I don’t have to worry about having a book in a series that I don’t want to complete.

 

Right off, the character of Ethan grabbed me. A surfer, he is now dying, and has a lot of regrets, particularly surrounding his brother’s unsolved murder. Ethan’s former sister-in-law (Sonya) asks for his help. And, he is willing to help.

 

There was SO much complexity to his character that was surprising. Right off, this starts as a tear-jerking story with so much promise. And, there were moments of great character development – Ethan is obvious, but Sonya, as well as Ethan’s “almost ex-wife” Gina.

 

After Ethan’s present-day visit with Sonya, and his niece Delia – most of the story is told back some 25 years ago. Only Ethan does things much differently – the surfing competition, an investment, as well as digging into the reason for and trying to prevent his brother’s murder. And, the motives seemingly tie into Sonya’s company.

 

A side note, despite the political climate, it is interesting that the writer chose a particular hotel/casino for Ethan’s “investment” to begin. Of course the investment isn’t to secure a future, but to pay for what Ethan needs to save his brother’s life.

 

What sounds like almost a suspense novel takes a sharp turn towards science fiction. This is not a “feel good”, happily ever after read. There are a lot of twists and turns leading up to the “big reveal”. And, what “could’ve been” seemed to languish in the end. The big reveal was a slight let-down. There was a lot of legal wrangling with some witnesses being asked “leading” questions.

 

There were also a few “terms” used that were not quite right. U.S. Marshals are often called “deputies” not officers.

 

It started off a bit slow, kept my attention for a bit, then slowly waned. The ending and even the plot didn’t seem to live up to what I was expecting from the blurb.

 

The writing was solid, vivid, descriptive, and in some ways emotional. The chapters were short so that it was easy to keep moving along.

While no real plot holes, I was left asking “why” quite a lot during this read. Why was it so critical for Ethan to do this? Why did Sonya want Ethan’s help? More importantly … why now at this point? Sonya’s motives seemed mostly selfish by the beginning. Even the entire story seemed to center on something that just couldn’t be touched. I kept trying to “dig” for the meaning.

 

The science fiction aspect, science terms, and theories were a bit too far-fetched for me to truly enjoy this. And, there were seemingly no consequences for Ethan’s “time-travel”. In addition; the past characters of Sonya, Adrian (Ethan’s brother), and Gina; all seemed to believe Ethan’s story without even finding it suspicious. Even a minor character believes Ethan’s story.

 

Even after reading the book, I was wondering what the “point” of the story was. The title didn’t seem to match what was going on.  

 

I’m sure fans of the author and/or this type of read/genre will likely enjoy this far more than I did. And, I really tried to like it. I did love reading about some of the history (locations, songs) from 1985 as I remember that year with a certain fondness.

 

 

 

RATING:

 

3 ⭐⭐⭐/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  – Goodreads

 

3 ⭐⭐⭐/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  – Bookbub

 

3 ⭐⭐⭐/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  – Personal Rating (see rating explanation in this blog: https://readingexcursions.blogspot.com/2020/01/rating-system-2020-changes.html)

 

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 

Davis Bunn (www.davisbunn.com) is the award-winning author of numerous national bestsellers, with sales totaling more than 8 million copies. His work has been published in 20 languages, and his critical acclaim includes four Christy Awards for excellence in fiction. He and his wife, Isabella, live in England.

 

You can follow him on the following social media accounts:

 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/davisbunnauthor

 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/davisbunn

 

 

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