Editorial Content for Pro Bono
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Thomas Perry is a great thriller writer, and his latest stand-alone release is clear evidence of that. Following the acclaim he has received for the FX series “The Old Man,” which is based on his 2017 book of the same name, Perry has been in demand.
It will take readers a couple of chapters to ease into this puzzle of a novel as characters and storylines are introduced in a non-linear fashion. We open in August 2007. Mack Stone is involved in a deadly instance of road rage that sees his car driven off the road. Next, we see two random characters coming upon the scene and finding something of value with which they abscond.
"You will find yourself looking over your shoulders while reading this one. PRO BONO hits a lot of great notes and elevates the financial thriller to new heights."
We then meet 15-year-old Charlie Warren, who is not at all thrilled about his mom’s new boyfriend and soon-to-be husband. Mack never works and claims that his wealth comes from high finance and investments. Charlie is shrewd enough not to completely trust him and obtains proof that his future stepdad is a con man who is playing his mom. So Charlie follows Mack as he heads off for a mysterious business trip and ends up rear-ending him, forcing his vehicle off the road.
Now, in May 2021, Charlie is running his own law firm. He specializes in clients who can pay him, like estate planning and divorce cases. He also has an interest in financial crimes and holds a CPA license. This makes him the ideal choice for Vesper Ellis, who recently has found out that someone is pilfering large sums of money from financial holdings left behind by her late husband.
Charlie knows a thing or two about being the victim of a con and agrees not only to help Vesper but to do so pro bono. Not long after signing on to handle her case, Charlie is attacked while in his vehicle after picking up food at a restaurant. He gets away with some crafty driving, but his car is taken by the police, who are called to investigate the situation. It turns out that his briefcase containing all the notes from his meeting with Vesper is missing.
Vesper goes through her own crisis when she goes off the grid after being kidnapped by two strange men. When Charlie locates her, he learns that her abductors are the same individuals who took the valuable merchandise from Mack’s vehicle years earlier. Charlie makes a deal with them to gain Vesper’s freedom by promising them a healthy cut by way of a finder’s fee once he settles Mack’s case on behalf of his mother. First, though, he needs to take care of his client.
The focus now turns to Great Oceana, the firm that was behind the theft of millions of dollars from Vesper’s account. Charlie is able to work out a deal to get the funds back without involving law enforcement, but the really bad men from Oceana will not go away that easily. They turn out to be far more dangerous than anyone could have imagined, and the ease with which they steal the funds is enough to turn anyone off from investing with any financial firm.
You will find yourself looking over your shoulders while reading this one. PRO BONO hits a lot of great notes and elevates the financial thriller to new heights.
Teaser
Los Angeles attorney Charles Warren has dedicated his career to aiding people in financial straits. He is particularly skilled at the art of recovering assets that have been embezzled or hidden. In his newest case, helping a beautiful young widow find the money missing from her late husband’s investment accounts, Charlie recognizes a familiar scheme --- one that echoes the con job that targeted his own widowed mother many years before and led him, as a teenager, to commit a crime of retribution that still weighs on his conscience. He can’t get the present case out of his mind, but within hours of starting his investigation, he is followed, shot at and has his briefcase stolen. As Charlie continues to pursue answers, he quickly becomes too entangled in the web of fraud, betrayal and career criminals surrounding the theft to escape its deadly snare.
Promo
Los Angeles attorney Charles Warren has dedicated his career to aiding people in financial straits. He is particularly skilled at the art of recovering assets that have been embezzled or hidden. In his newest case, helping a beautiful young widow find the money missing from her late husband’s investment accounts, Charlie recognizes a familiar scheme --- one that echoes the con job that targeted his own widowed mother many years before and led him, as a teenager, to commit a crime of retribution that still weighs on his conscience. He can’t get the present case out of his mind, but within hours of starting his investigation, he is followed, shot at and has his briefcase stolen. As Charlie continues to pursue answers, he quickly becomes too entangled in the web of fraud, betrayal and career criminals surrounding the theft to escape its deadly snare.
About the Book
A tenacious attorney grapples with a dangerous group of thieves in this new thriller from the author of THE OLD MAN.
Los Angeles attorney Charles Warren has dedicated his career to aiding people in financial straits. He is particularly skilled at the art of recovering assets that have been embezzled or hidden. In his newest case, helping a beautiful young widow find the money missing from her late husband’s investment accounts, Charlie recognizes a familiar scheme --- one that echoes the con job that targeted his own widowed mother many years before and led him, as a teenager, to commit a crime of retribution that still weighs on his conscience.
Charlie can’t get the present case out of his mind, but within hours of starting his investigation, he is followed, shot at and has his briefcase stolen. It’s clear that someone doesn’t want him following the trail of the missing money. But as Charlie continues to pursue answers, he quickly becomes too entangled in the web of fraud, betrayal and career criminals surrounding the theft to escape its deadly snare.
A nail-biting tale of conspiracy and pursuit from Thomas Perry, “a dominating force in the world of contemporary suspense thrillers” (Publishers Weekly), PRO BONO will have readers looking over their shoulders as constantly as they keep turning pages.
Audiobook available, read by L.J. Ganser
