This was a good mystery! I liked the interwoven characters of the other jurors points of view while still focusing mostly on Maya. It’s also not very long so it was a quick read.

This book is the perfect read for anyone who enjoys following a case, serving on a jury or wanting to see justice served. However, do any of us really, truly know the whole story? And what if we make a decision that is not the right one and someone is unfairly punished or even worse, let off the hook? These questions and thoughts are at the very center of this book. Maya did not believe that one being charged had committed the crime; however she was the only juror to write down not guilty...at first. One by by Maya convinced all the other jurors over to her side. However, ten years later, as the jurors gather together for an anniversary of their time spent together, there is one of them who has been spending the past 10 years investigating all of their lives as well as others and states that he has new evidence. However, this new evidence is going to result in more questioning on their part, more anxiety and more wondering what is the truth. This book draws you into the jurors' lives now and ten years previously, and will have you trying to unravel the truth in the midst of it all and leaves you at the thing thinking about it all still.

This was a bit slower paced than I anticipated, though not bad. It just took me a while to get into the story. The writing is good and I liked the premise, which had me curious from the start. If you like a legal thriller, you might enjoy this as well!

“An infamous jury is stuck with another murky murder ten years after their controversial verdict.” This was such a page-turner! I devoured this book over the weekend and I was not disappointed. It’s fast-paced but has a slow build, takes place in two different timelines, and is very realistic! At no point did I lose interested in what I was reading. In fact, I could not put it down. This is actually my first book by Moore but I’m really interested to read more of his books because I was really entertained by this one.

Definitely recommend The Holdout for those that enjoy thrillers, especially legal thrillers.

Bobby Nock is on trial for the killing the a wealthy female student with whom he appears to have been involved. Young juror Maya Seale is convinced that he is innocent and gradually convinces the other jurors to acquit him. 10 years later a docuseries reassembles the jurors and one of the jurors is found dead. Maya is suspected of the murder and proceeds to try to prove her innocence. Will the jurors come together again?

Thank you to Netgalley and Orion Publishing group for my ARC in exchange for an honest review..

Ten years ago, Maya found herself on the jury for a murder trial of a 15-year-old girl whose body was never found. To the public and the girls family a conviction was the only possible outcome, that is until Maya manages to persuade the other jury members to vote not guilty.

Today, Maya is now a successful defense attorney and the prime suspect in the murder of one of the jurors after a reunion at the hotel in which they were sequestered during the trial.

The book takes a journey through each of the jury members and what it was that made them flip their vote in the initial trial. It also goes into how the lives are woven together 10 years later. The twists and turns kept the book moving forward, even if some were a bit outlandish.

If you’re looking for a quick and entertaining read, I would recommend this book!

Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgally for review purposes.


Can I just say I was really excited for this one?? Anyone else??

And ya know, it didn't disappoint!

There's been A LOT going out recently and while you would think this would be the perfect time to get some reading done instead I felt a little too stressed to indulge in my books. Again, I was really excited for this one so I wanted to enjoy it - and it ended up taking me some time to get through. I kind of wish I would've binge read it in a day or two because I think this story deserved to be taken in and consumed fully instead of just being able to pick it up when I was feeling well enough too.

With that being said I'm definitely going to give it a re-read so I can appreciate it more.

I did already really like it though including the cast of characters. I loved that there were too main mysteries here - present day and the trial. Both had me fully interested and guessing until the end. I remember audibly gasping at one point and my boyfriend made me dish out what happened from start to finish 😂

Would recommend! Especially if you're a murderino or true crime fanatic.

This was a fast-paced and interesting mystery/thriller, alternating between two time periods - 2009, when a jury on a murder trial ultimately is swayed to acquit the accused by the lone holdout Maya, and 10 years later when they reunite for a documentary and one of them ends up murdered and Maya is accused of doing it. Great and different premise with lots of little twists and turns. The end was a little whacked out (part surprising, part I guessed, and part a little too convenient), but I quite enjoyed the book nonetheless. 4.25 stars.

I liked this book alot. I loved how it flipped from modern day to 10 years ago when the trial was happening. There were two mysteries intertwined in this book which makes it even better! I loved the legal setting of this book and was intrigued by the social issues like racism and the justice system issues. I highly recommend this book!

What a book! @whatjessread and I sped through this one! I loved the characters and the end/twist was SO well put together. Can’t wait for my next Graham Moore!

Graham Moore does courtroom dramas and legal thrillers proud in The Holdout. His characters are believable, the plot is layered and complex, and the conclusion satisfying. I don’t ask for much more in a dramatic thriller.

Maya Seale was a young, somewhat aimless woman, when she reported for jury duty 10 years ago. Like all of us, she figured it would last just a few days and offer a chance to catch up on her latest reading. And then she’s picked for a high-profile, incendiary trial. It introduces her to the intricacies of law and justice, takes four months of her life, and changes her forever.

As the story opens, Maya is now a criminal defense attorney. Her life is as anonymous as possible, although her past notoriety helps her score choice clients. One of her fellow jurors, Rick Leonard, uncovers some exciting new information and shops it to a documentary TV show. The series asks all the jurors to attend a reunion of sorts. They’ll meet in the hotel where they were sequestered for months and stay overnight.

In the morning, everyone expects a dramatic reveal of new details from Rick. But soon after the reunion starts, he and Maya have a conversation in her room. It’s practically an argument, and she storms out. When she comes back, Rick is dead on the floor and she’s the prime suspect.

My conclusions
The Holdout tells Maya’s story, both the original trial and her current tenuous situation. Much of the drama hinges on one person convincing another not to be “the holdout”—the person on the jury who won’t be swayed. And Maya holds true to her original assessment of the trial’s evidence even as it plays into solving today’s crime.

Moore delves into one woman’s maturation process as he develops Maya’s character. She starts out relatively naïve in the jury room. Later she’s strong and calm under pressure, if a bit hardened. Throughout the story, she is principled. But defining principles is fluid. The more you know about law, the more you can bend it to suit your purposes.

Moore builds a complex web of story lines and characters, covering both timelines. Maya and her fellow jurors, the family of the victim, the accused, and even the court bailiff populate the first timeline. In the present day, we reconnect with everyone, plus Maya’s boss and defense attorney, her BFF, parents, and a gopher from the TV show. But Maya drives all the action, and this makes it easier to connect with the story.

In terms of plot and tension, The Holdout was just what I needed right now. Once I picked it up, I didn’t want to put it down. Sanitizing the house be damned. (Just kidding, I still cleaned responsibly.) I immersed myself in courts, legalities, evidence, and personalities. Plus, Moore gave me a whiff of the flavor of Los Angeles life.

Acknowledgements
Many thanks to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and the author for a digital advanced reader’s copy in exchange for this honest review.

I really enjoyed reading The Holdout. It was a bit of a slow start, but it picked up quickly and held my attention. I liked the alternate timelines and the fact that we learned so much about so many characters, although we had one singular narrator throughout the story. I had to continually guess about how the story was going to end and I did NOT expect it at all.

I love mysteries and here is a new one definitely worth reading: THE HOLDOUT by Graham Moore who also wrote The Last Days of Night and the screen play for The Imitation Game. In his latest offering, Moore introduces readers to Maya Seale, a defense lawyer defined largely by "the most intense experience of her life:" serving on a jury, having doubts, and convincing the others to vote to acquit a murder suspect. It is now ten years later and a reunion of sorts is arranged, but a fellow juror is murdered and Maya becomes a key suspect. This legal thriller reveals motivations and secrets about many of the original jurors. Fast-paced and full of flashbacks, this mystery deals with themes of justice, racism and inequity. Moore cleverly characterizes their deliberations: "in this way they realized that a jury's votes were like Tolstoy's families: All "guilty" votes had to be alike in reasoning. But all "not guilty" votes could be for different reasons and still reach the same result." THE HOLDOUT received starred reviews from both Library Journal and Publishers Weekly.

This was a fast, entertaining, part courtroom drama, part psychological mystery. I particularly enjoyed how the author spotlighted the lives of each of the jurors in order to enhance and add suspense and drama to the story. I did not see the ending coming and was surprised by multiple twists. I predict that this will be a top read for 2020.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Random House and Graham Moore for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Quick Take: Maya Seale, when she is a young juror on one of the biggest trial of the century, convinces her fellow jurors to acquit alleged murder. Almost a decade later, Maya is a defense attorney but now must convince another jury to once again acquit- and this time, she’s the one on trial.

What I Loved: This book has an incredibly strong premise and I enjoyed the writing style. I got this one through Book of the Month and I was totally sucked in by the chapter preview. I honestly think this was more of a case of just not being in the mood for a slow burn legal procedural.

What I Didn’t Love: I think my mistake was trying to do this one on audio. It’s complicated and a bit slow moving in places and so it doesn’t make for the best audiobook because I found myself losing my place and feeling like I missed some thing even though I had been paying attention for the most part. I definitely want to give this one another chance in physical book form. I will definitely be updating my review once I do so.

This was a compelling read - I was drawn in from the start and looked forward to getting back to it. 10 years ago, Maya was a juror in a huge case - the kind that gets coverage on all major news sources and everyone in America has an opinion about. Now that the ten year anniversary is approaching, a popular podcast/documentary is bringing all the jurors together again to discuss the case.

I really enjoyed how the storyline unraveled between the two timelines - present day 2019 and the original case in 2009. We had a lot of different perspectives but it was handled well and I never lost track of who we were with at a moment in time.

Unfortunately the ending didn’t totally work for me and felt a little too far fetched which took this down a bit for me. But if you enjoy courtroom dramas and are looking for a book that will pull you in and keep you flipping pages, this is a good one to check out.

Thank you Random House and Netgalley for the free physical and digital copies.

The Holdout is a gripping legal thriller about a young woman, Maya Seale, who is the loan holdout on a jury, convinced of the innocence of a black man accused of killing a white teenage girl. The story is told in alternating timelines including the trial a decade ago and present day as the jury comes back together for a Netflix true crime docu-series on the murder trial.

This book is super fast paced and although the points of view jump around from juror to juror, it's very easy to follow. There were a few plot points towards the end that were extremely far fetched but hey it's fiction so we'll go with it. Overall, a great book that I would definitely recommend to fans of true crime and legal dramas.

Similar reads: Miracle Creek by Angie Kim, The Runaway Jury by John Grisham.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the copy of this book.

Guilt or innocence? It is a hard thing to decide for someone and sometimes harder for individuals on a jury. Ten years ago, a jury decided to acquit Bobby Nock on the murder of Jessica Silver, a student of his. The jury came back with a unanimous decision after a contentious few days of discussion. Now Maya Seale, an up-and-coming defense attorney in LA, is approached by Rick a fellow member of the jury ten years ago. Rick is working with a podcast to bring to light new information about Bobby Nock and how they made the wrong decision ten years ago. Maya along with the other jurors return to the hotel they were sequestered in. The rooms are made to appear as they did ten years ago. On the night they arrive, Rick and Maya go away from the others to have a separate discussion. When things get heated, Maya leaves the room only to return and discover Rick dead from blunt force trauma to the head. Who killed Rick? Law enforcement think it's Maya but she knows she innocent. Maya will do anything to help clear her name and avoid jail time.

This story is told in alternating chapters between present time and a chapter from the point of view of each juror. The chapters from the past help to add another layer not only to the old case but who may have killed Rick. This is not your typical murder mystery but one that is more character driven, a la Agatha Christie. In a publishing world full of psychological thrillers it's nice to come across a mystery that is still empactful and makes you think although it may not be a suspenseful. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars.
this felt like a modern take on the classic "whodunnit" Agatha Christie-type story - her stories are even brought up a few times. personally, I liked how tied to the justice system and juries this was but those who do not like courtroom dramas will probably not like that aspect. I liked the several discussions of racial issues within the criminal justice system, especially that Maya's white knight personality was called out (made me a little uncomfy that the author is white but I think it was still handled well). usually someone trying to investigate a crime they have no business investigating bothers me, but I think because Maya does have some sort of legal/criminal knowledge it didn't bug me as much. I also liked that I didn't really get much opportunity to guess who was actually responsible for both crimes.
I thought this was going to be more focused on the true crime documentary which I really would have liked but sadly it wasn't. the middle became a little tedious and boring. the ending felt a little rushed and almost unsatisfying, even though all questions are answered. overall, this was a pretty fun mystery but it didn't do anything new or crazy.

This courtroom drama was inspired by Moore’s (Academy Award-winner for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Imitation Game) real-life experience serving on a jury in 2008 and sending that defendant to prison for murder. Moore thinks his jury was correct, but always wonders about the small chance they could’ve gotten it wrong. The Holdout does not have a particularly thriller-y vibe, but it’s easy to quickly turn the pages. It looks at the impact of a high profile trial on the jury (particularly one that is sequestered)…how it affects the jurors’ lives, families, and mental state…and how slippery the legal system is in the U.S. It’s a less weird, more accessible version of The Body in Question (one of my Underrated Gems of 2019). The Holdout would make a great book club pick as there is lots to unpack about how we handle juries in the U.S., their ability to render fair and impartial decisions within these circumstances (particularly for high profile cases), and whether or not what we ask of jurors on high profile cases is fair. If you like a courtroom drama that delves deep into a serious issue, The Holdout is for you!