The Governor's Wife (62 page)

"I will not be a candidate for the presidency."

The reporters erupted as one, shouting questions at him. Bode held a hand up until they calmed down.

"I lost my way here in Austin. Ambition can do that to a man, blind him to what's important in life. I found my way again in Nuevo Laredo. I remember what's important now."

He put his good arm around his wife.

"I'm going back to where I belong with my wife and my children, Becca, Alejandro, Miguel, and Josefina. And our dog, Pancho."

The room had fallen silent. A reporter spoke softly.

"Governor, after killing El Diablo, you'll be unbeatable. You can be the next president of the United States of America. You're a living legend. There's even talk of erecting a statue of you here in the State Capitol—next to Sam Houston."

"A legend, huh? Well, I don't deserve a statue. You want to erect a statue, make it of Jesse Rincón. He made a difference in people's lives. I just wanted their votes."

"Governor, you're really going to walk away from the White House? It's really over?"

Bode Bonner nodded.

"It's over."

Two hundred thirty-five miles to the south in the white compound in Nuevo Laredo overlooking the
Río Bravo del Norte
, the teenager with the altar-boy face watched the Texas governor's press conference on the flat-screen television on the wall of the office that was once his father's. He pointed the remote at the screen and froze the image. He was now
El Capitán
, head of the
Los Muertos
cartel. In the week since he had witnessed his father's death at the hands of the governor in this very office—
in his own home!
—he had finally become the man his father had always hoped he would become. And he had sworn to God that he would avenge his family's honor. That he would dispense justice. Julio de la Garza now raised his father's machete to touch the image of the
gringo
who had murdered his brother and father. He would seek
venganza
.

"No, Governor—it is not over. It has just begun."

Best-seller lists

No. 7, South Africa

No. 8, London
Sunday Times
hardback

No. 11, Ireland

No. 14, UK paperback

"Some critics are calling the Texas-based lawyer Mark Gimenez 'the next Grisham'—but I think that's far less than fair. This, his fifth novel and the second featuring attorney A. Scott Fenney, shows he's now better than the one-time master of the American courtroom drama. For my money, Grisham has grown stale over the past five years while Gimenez has gone from strength to strength. If you doubt me, sample this cracking thriller which sees Fenney defend his former wife against the allegation that she killed the man she left him for, millionaire golf professional Trey Rawlins… . This is one of the best legal thrillers since Scott Turow's Presumed Innocent in 1987 … Superb."

–
Daily Mail
(UK)

"Brilliant writing, masterful plot and all the thrill of the courtroom in one. Grisham, step aside."

–
City AM
(UK)

"Gimenez has set his bloody murder trial
Accused
against the background of a failed marriage, single-parenting issues and male infidelity… . This mix of family values, sex, sleaze and intrigue holds together in a gripping read with unexpected twists that ranks with anything Grisham has done in years."

–
The Times
(UK)

"Gimenez writes smart vernacular dialogue, hip and street-wise, with a nice line in social commentary, and his plotting leaves the over-rated John Grisham in his rear-vision mirror."

–
The Australian

"Courtroom drama at its finest… . Great ending, too."

–
Perth
Now
(Australia)

"Gimenez's latest novel
Accused
is classic Grisham at his best."

–
Gisborne Herald
(New Zealand)

"A great read… . Gimenez is a thriller writer of quality."

–
Oamuru Mail
(New Zealand)

"You’ll be handcuffed and imprisoned from the first page."

–
Joburg.co.za
(South Africa)

"If you enjoy suspense and a fast-paced courtroom drama, this one's for you."

–
Foschini Club Magazine
(South Africa)

"
Accused
is an engaging and character-led legal thriller. Gimenez's dialogue and prose are as fluid and natural as we've come to expect, and the pacing of the plot will keep pulling you along. When we're finally brought into the court-room, the author actually makes it gripping and tense, even though we've been following Scott and his team's investigation every step of the way.
Accused
, therefore, offers the reader everything they could want from a thriller, and is a very satisfying read."

–
Civilian–Reader
(UK)

Gimenez's plots are driven by surprises and twists, while the stakes are much higher than what one can possibly imagine at the beginning of the book. What's more, the Texan lawyer, A Scott Fenney, grips our interest with his mind games, and we are compelled to turn one page after another to discover where the story is headed. Gimenez is in good form in Accused. He is equally good in the companion book, The Color of Law. Unputdownable for those who love the genre."

–
The Times of India

No. 6,
Sunday Times
paperback list (UK)

No. 28,
New York Times
hardback list

Amazon's Top 10 Mystery & Thriller List, 2005

Finalist, 2005 Thriller Award for Best First Novel

Finalist, 2005 Gumshoe Award for Best First Novel

Alan Cheuse's (NPR/All Things Considered) 2005 Holiday Booklist.

Top 10 of 2006, CrimeSquad.com (UK)

"First novelist Gimenez draws on his experience as an attorney in this taut legal thriller that echoes
To Kill a Mockingbird
. With fast-paced and edgy prose, dramatic tête-à-têtes between attorneys, and an explosive courtroom conclusion, Gimenez effectively weaves elements of race, class, and justice into a story of a lawyer who rediscovers the difference between doing good and doing well."

-
Library Journal
(starred review)

"Gimenez delivers an authentically creepy debut novel. A big part of this thriller's appeal is its moral backbone… . This is a well-calibrated contemporary morality play, set in get-rich-quick Dallas, with tours of country clubs and gated communities, and knowledgeable forays into Darwinian legal tactics. Gimenez also gives us a hateful character who becomes more sympathetic the more he fails. Fast-paced and thought-provoking fare."

-
Booklist
(starred review)

"
The Color of Law
is an unbeatable legal thriller with a lot of heart."

-
Texas Monthly

"Gimenez makes his debut with a legal thriller based in Big D that will keep you on the edge of your seat… . 'The Color of Law' is full of twists and turns into the dark side of human nature with a final courtroom scene straight from 'To Kill a Mockingbird.' "

-
San Antonio Express-News

"American lawyers, more accustomed to speaking the language of their people, are much better at [writing legal thrillers]. Scott Turow and John Grisham are the best known, but there are many others. I recommend The Colour of Law by Mark Gimenez, one of the most promising American lawyer-writers I’ve read recently. It's a Grisham-like novel about a slick, successful, ambitious Dallas corporate lawyer whose life changes when he has to defend a black prostitute accused of murder."

–
The Guardian
(UK)

" 'The Colour of Law' by Mark Gimenez is a compulsive read that owes its heart, soul and passion to Harper Lee's 'To Kill A Mockingbird'. In this fast-paced debut, Gimenez sinks his teeth into the manicured and corrupt world of lawyered, high-society Dallas in all its ostentatious glory: golf club memberships, fancy houses, fast cars, sleek wives and the all-encompassing reach of cold, hard power. In A. Scott Fenney—a young, rich and ruthless corporate lawyer at one of Dallas's most prestigious firms who glibly practises 'aggressive and creative' law for his high-paying clients—will the world find a hero or a patsy? Only a case involving a poor, black, drug-addicted prostitute and a dead white senator's son will tell. Warning: you can lose an entire lazy Sunday to this one.

–
Time Out London

"New author and former lawyer Mark Gimenez, a Texan, has written a riveting story about the corruption of the law… . Gimenez matches up to biggies like John Grisham and Scott Turow, with a thrilling tale of how the law actually works."

–
Calgary
Sun

"This is a powerful courtroom thriller set in Dallas and featuring an engaging hero in the form of hotshot corporate lawyer turned defence attorney, Scott Fenney. Gimenez is a gifted plotter and the story winds its way through some good twists before arriving at a startling conclusion. Along the way, Gimenez also makes some points about wealth, social responsibility and race relations in America."

–
Canberra Times

"A little
To Kill a Mockingbird
with some
Law & Order
thrown in,
Color
is a page-turner, and Gimenez—a real-life attorney-turned-author—seems to warrant his billing as 'the next John Grisham.' "

-
Houston Press

"At least once a year a new legal thriller hits the shelves, hyped to the stars, with promises that the author will be 'the next John Grisham.' Usually, the fanfare is wasted, the hype is a lie and the promises fall flat because the book isn't very good. Not so with Mark Gimenez' compelling debut, The Color of Law."

-
Chicago Sun-Times

"The plot setup is as convoluted and intricate as anything in recent memory, an inverted morality tale that equals some of the best work of legal thriller writers Scott Turow, Lisa Scottoline or John Grisham."

-
BookPage

"Gimenez's stunning debut is easily one of the most provocative legal thrillers to come along in awhile… . This is a must read, inspiring and delicious."

-
New Mystery Reader Magazine

" 'The Color of Law' is more than just a highly readable legal thriller. It's also a blistering attack on both the legal profession and super-rich Texans in Dallas … It's a tasty plot—big money, political intrigue, sexy wives, precocious little girls—but the novel would be a lot less fun without Gimenez's scathing portrait of the city and its most powerful citizens."

-
Washington
Post

"This debut novel takes the best from Grisham, Meltzer, et al – and adds yet more to make this one of the best legal thrillers I have read for some time."

–
CrimeSquad.com

"Gimenez maintains a rhythm that keeps pages turning long past bedtime."

-
Austin American-Statesman

"The book starts fast and never slows down."

-
Houston Chronicle

"Gimenez's debut has plenty of twists and flashes of humor. A promising, distinctive new voice."

-
Kirkus Reviews

"Gimenez does a fine job with the plot; lots of twists and the courtroom scenes are great."

-
Globe and Mail

Best-seller lists

No. 6, Australia

No. 8, Ireland

No. 14, UK hardback

"A cracking read."

-
The Times
(UK)

"Pulse-pounding narrative."

–
Booklist

"Gimenez has written a startling, multilayered thriller in which complex characters and a fast-moving plot grab the reader immediately. Smart dialog and a spunky Gracie, who never loses her cool, make for a memorable read that twists and turns until the final, cinematic conclusion."

-
Library Journal
(starred review)

"
The Abduction
was the best suspense/thriller book that I read in 2007. I repeatedly recommended it to friends. Each person who I shared it with wrote or called after reading it to tell me how they too were talking it up to others as their favorite book of the year. It has a great plot, strong characters, and a story that never lacks for action."

– Carol Fitzgerald,
Bookreporter.com

"After the stunning success of a first novel, there's always the question if the author can do it again with the second and, fortunately, in this case, Gimenez not only surpasses his own preliminary standards of excellence, but those of the entire genre. Not only does he offer up an adventurous plot that races forward at a breakneck speed filled with a cast of multi-faceted and poignantly drawn characters, but he also puts forth some concepts and questions that provoke and compel the reader's consideration long after the last page is turned… . But perhaps most notable of all might just be this book's ability to elicit just about every emotional response possible from the reader. Whether it's laughter or tears, dread or anticipation, be prepared to feel
something
while reading this glorious adventure that only seems to gain momentum with every page… . Ultimately, a forceful, exhilarating, and effervescent read of faith and redemption, loyalty and love, truth and purpose, and one that unreservedly qualifies as one of the best to come along this year."