I loved the trilogy...believable characters to engaged with and cheer for...gritty but with redeeming love and friendship. All in all, Robert Bailey helps you to believe that the law isn’t always an ass.

The early John Grisham influence is probably as big as the sky, and I love Robert Bailey for that. One of the few legal thriller writers that actually writes COURTROOMS novels. Not crime novels with lawyer protagonist labeled as Legal Thrillers.

Robert Bailey has continued his success with his third in a series of legal thrillers. The McMurtrie and Drake series is compelling and most of all believable. Having read all of Robert Bailey’s books I am already ready for the next one. I certainly hope the isn’t the last trial for Tom McMurtrie or for the series. (N.B. The author assures us he will return).
I anxiously await.

As a retired trial lawyer, I read novels like The Last Trial with only a slightly determined eye. I am not looking for mistakes or unreal situations. The Last Trail has one big legal mistake and a question mark on the literary evaluation. Starting with the question mark, who is it that we are supposed to root for in this novel.? The defendant? Her lawyer? The law? We aren't given much reason to care about anyone. There are millions of law stories, why should I read this one? I don't think there is a good answer for that. As a lawyer, I wondered why the defense tried their case at the preliminary hearing, spending hours cross-examining the detective and exposing the weaknesses in the state's case. There was no chance that they would win the prelim, so why give the state a preview of their case? Why show the state the weak points in its case? They may not have seen them but for the defense telling them what needs to be improved. Finally, the pending death of the trial lawyer gets too sappy. This is supposed to be an intelligent legal thriller. Show respect for the audience and spare us the moping about all the people he will miss.
Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

A good back but I didn't seem to enjoy it as much as other posters. I love Grisham and his stories about law and corruption but this one didn't hook me the way I had hoped. It was still a fine read though. Tom McMurtrie is a lawyer back for one last case before stepping away. He has to face two former friends and the problems this causes. Justice is eventually served.
Thank you Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for an ARC for my honest review.

I couldn’t resist getting this book. I love the cover. It has such a vybe to it. Being a Grisham fan, I am always on the lookout for good legal thrillers. This one was perfect in every way.

The story begins with the murder of a man who has just recently been released from jail. The police think they have their suspect. However, lawyer McMurtrie has a reason to fight the conviction. It’s a tough case especially with the mounting evidence and I was curious to see how the lawyer would handle it.

I didn’t know that this was the third book in a series until I started reading it. I quickly noticed references to past events in the characters’ lives. I was disheartened when I discovered that I was two books behind and this made me struggle a bit at the beginning of the story. It took time to know the characters and follow the case. However, a few chapters in, I was finally able to fully connect with the story. I really liked McMurtrie. He is a unique lawyer being over seventy years old and a law professor. McMurtrie has taught almost everyone in the legal profession in his town. He has also worked with many of the lawyers, judges and law enforcement officers so there is a lot of history there and most interactions (good and bad) were personal. The author tackled some really sensitive themes through McMurtrie’s back story. This made the story both suspenseful and emotional.

I liked the investigation and how it ran concurrently with the trial. There were a lot of tense moments as the case progressed. In addition, I wasn’t sure whether McMurtrie’s client was guilty or innocent so I kept turning pages seeking the truth while wondering whether he would win the case.

This is a wonderful legal thriller with enough twists and turns to make it a captivating read. I liked everything about it, from the characters to the case. I also enjoyed following the legal proceedings which were well portrayed. Everything was systematic in a way that made it easy to follow the case and hence get invested in the outcome. I can’t wait to go back and read the first two books in this series.

Although this can be read as a standalone, I definitely think the series is much more enjoyed if read in order. Definitely recommended for fans of legal thrillers.

Book Review: The Last Trial (McMurtrie and Drake Book 3) by Robert Bailey

Once in a rare blue moon, we come upon a writer whose debut work comes across with such power and emotion, and with such finesse expected only at the level of more established bestselling authors, that accolades are understated. Think "A Time to Kill /Sycamore Row", only with more sinister, ruthless villains, and much more of the human element - of brotherhood, loyalty, betrayal, abuse of power and repentance.

"The Professor" (Book 1), was one of the first books featured when Prime Reading debuted in October 2016. For some reason and to my own loss, I deferred reading the book until recently. Nevertheless, the book was such a page-turner, I finished it in a day or so, quickly followed by "Between Black and White" (Book 2), and this novel, "The Last Trial" - a series which I thoroughly enjoyed.

I'd strongly recommend that all three books be read in order, The protagonists and characters led by seventy-something law professor Thomas Jackson McMurtrie "who literally wrote the book on evidence in the state of Alabama" are developed incrementally, with main plots, sub-plots, twists, false accusations, daunting odds and cover-ups referring back to key prior events.

Specially interesting are the background stories and present-day interactions with many of the main players, now themselves powerful judges, district attorneys and law enforcement officers, and hot-shot attorneys (not to forget his head-strong partner and co-counsel, Rick Drake), being former students and proteges of "the professor".

"At the end, hope always wins." A fourth book based on the author's real life experience of very close relatives "beating the odds", is in the works. Without a doubt. After all, it was his own father's parting words for the author to "write books..." And so do we anticipate!

Review based on an ARC (advance reading copy) presented by NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer.

Nicely done legal thriller that takes uses Alabama football and history to add atmospherics. Taking on the case of a woman who appears guilty of the murder of an old nemesis is more than McMurtie can handle on his own. Bo Haynes has lost his law license so he's working as an investigator for McMurtie. Together these two ably handle a mystery, an grudge bearing judge, and a trial. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. For fans of Southern legal novels.

Robert Bailey’s third McMurtrie and Drake book, “The Last Trial,” is a winner. Even if you haven’t read the first two, and I haven’t, although I am going to rectify that as soon as possible, there is no problem in picking up the stories and the characters.

Tom McMurtrie is a seventy-one-year-old Alabama lawyer, formerly a professor at the University of Alabama Law School, who takes up the case of Wilma Newton who is accused of murdering Jack Willistone. I don’t like spoilers, so I am not going to give any, but suffice it to say that the case against her looks very dark indeed. The Professor, as many call him, is assisted by an intriguing cast of characters, including a friend who is also a lawyer, and the defendant’s teenage daughter.

The case takes many twists and turns, and we also see something of the private lives of the characters. The personalities of the characters are well-drawn, and the writing is crisp and well-edited. The pace and tension of the book are excellent.

“The Last Trial,” is everything a legal thriller should be. Do yourself a favor and pick up this book, I cannot recommend it more highly.

Jen Mullen's review Apr 19, 2018 · edit
really liked it

The Last Trial by Robert Bailey proved even better than the first book in the series. I really liked The Professor, the first book, but somehow missed the second in the series. This is a legal thriller, but most of the book is about the crime, the characters, and the attempt to discover evidence of innocence.

The main characters, Professor Tom McMurtrie and Bo Haynes, will have you rooting for them and worrying about them as they involve themselves in a dangerous situation. Rick Drake, McMurtrie's partner, plays a smaller part in this book because of a personal tragedy.

Football fans will find a comforting element as both the fictional McMurtrie and Bo Haynes played for the legendary Bear Bryant. Real players like Jo Namath and Kenny Stabler who also played for Alabama under Bear Bryant get a mention for verisimilitude.

I really liked this one and will have to get a copy of Between Black and White.

From the description: Former law professor Tom McMurtrie has brought killers to justice, and taken on some of the most infamous cases in Alabama’s history. Now he’s tackling his greatest challenge.

McMurtrie’s old nemesis, Jack Willistone, is found dead on the banks of the Black Warrior River. Willistone had his share of enemies, but all evidence points to a forgotten, broken woman as the killer. At the urging of the suspect’s desperate fourteen-year-old daughter, McMurtrie agrees to take the case.

NetGalley/Thomas & Mercer

Legal Thriller. May 8, 2018. Print length: 400 pages.

#NetGalley #TheLastTrial
Release Date May 8, 2018

The former law school professor Thomas Jefferson McMurtrie finds himself in a dilemma when a 14-year-old begs him to defend her mother, who is accused of killing Jack Willistone. After hearing some of the details, the case appears to be air-tight against her mother, but McMurtrie believes that she may not be guilty, plus, let's face it, it's hard to turn down a desperate 14-year-old.

The Professor isn’t feeling well, his law partner Rick Drake is off due to his father’s death in an accident, so how can he even consider taking the case? McMurtrie figures he'll need lots of help, but his best friend Bocephus Haynes (Bo) has had his law license revoked for the time so he settles for asking Bo to be his investigator. That's still going to be tough for the Professor without the help of another licensed lawyer.

To make matters worse, the judge over the case is one of the Professor’s former students who didn’t feel he was treated right in law school. Nothing about this case is leaning in McMurtrie's favor. (Third book of the McMurtrie and Drake Legal Thrillers series)

Cons: None. Though this is a stand-alone book, due to the unique character relationships, I would highly recommend starting at the first of this great series. You won’t be sorry.

The Professor
Between Black and White

Pros: This is a book based not only on a good mystery but believable characters and relationships. And any book that starts with a bang and has some courtroom action is a winner for me. The Last Trial = 5 stars

The Professor is back! Robert Bailey brings us the third in the series featuring former law school professor Thomas Jefferson McMurtrie. He has his friends, his enemies, his followers/worshippers, his values, and his demons. They all come together when a 14-year old girl awaits him on his step with a plea to defend her mother in an air-tight murder case that she swears she didn't commit. The South is the co-star as Bailey makes the setting almost as important as the characters themselves.

Take a fresh corpse, a damaged woman, and a desperate daughter and you have the recipe for THE LAST TRIAL, a convoluted and fast-paced legal thriller. Highly recommended.

DP Lyle, award-winning author, lecturer, and story consultant