If you enjoy legal-themed fiction, then THE SILVER STATE needs to be at the top of your reading list. Gabriel Urza teaches fiction in the MFA program at Portland State University. He also is an attorney from Reno, Nevada, the setting for this unique courtroom novel.

Most books in this genre rely on action in a criminal trial to tell their story. This usually includes courtroom confrontations featuring defense counsel, angry prosecutors, and judges who may or may not have justice as their mission. Urza has written a far different legal thriller that rarely finds itself in the middle of such struggles. But his presentation is so sweeping and encompassing that the absence of these proceedings actually adds to the novel’s impact. On several occasions reading this extraordinary book, I had to remind myself that it was a work of fiction and not a practicing attorney’s memoir.

"On several occasions reading this extraordinary book, I had to remind myself that it was a work of fiction and not a practicing attorney’s memoir."

Santi Elcano is a seasoned veteran of the Washoe County Public Defender’s Office. We ominously learn that he has received a letter from a client, a man whose name he is reluctant to speak out loud because “to consider his name or to remember his face would mean to remember that an innocent man is in prison.” Eight years ago, Michael Atwood was convicted of a vicious murder and sentenced to death. The evidence was weak, but the police were able to obtain a confession from Atwood.

Throughout THE SILVER STATE, Urza tells the story of this case, which gripped the Reno community with fear. A young mother named Anna Weston disappeared, leading to an investigation that was covered daily by the national media. Law enforcement agencies frantically searched first for her body and then for her killer. Atwood was connected to the murder by a small sample of DNA. Before the full details of his journey through the criminal justice system are provided, readers will acquire information about Santi’s experience as a public defender. It’s a battle to stay sane in a system that is stacked against him.

In this penetrating portrait of Santi and his work, Urza does a masterful job of debunking some of the common misconceptions of how the criminal justice system operates. Many believe that the system provides trials and just consequences for those charged with crimes. But the opposite is true. Most criminal cases are resolved without trials. Many are simply dismissed, and a number of them end with guilty pleas to lesser charges. Even those that conclude with a plea to the charge result in agreed-upon sentences for far less than the statutory maximum.

Santi learns through bitter experience that advocating for his clients can often lead to adverse results for other clients. Why? In addition to having a great deal of legal power, both prosecutors and judges have long memories.

THE SILVER STATE is a haunting and emotional novel. Because I toiled in the criminal justice system for many years, the book profoundly reminded me how it often can lead to devastating outcomes. This thoughtful character and institutional study will squeeze the idealism out of anyone who thinks that “justice” is the true result of what occurs in American courtrooms.