Judicial Prejudices in Murder Trial

Robin Peguero's With Prejudice is a must-read for fans of legal thrillers and anyone interested in exploring the complexities of the American judicial system. With its riveting plot, complex characters, and timely themes, the novel is both an entertaining and insightful read.

An original, creative murder mystery involving a cast of interesting characters connected over time. At times, however, the narrative feels confusing as episodes move back and forth in time. Nonetheless, an intriguing romp of personal histories that criss cross one another, intersecting to paint the humanity in a murder trial.

Courtroom drama with an interesting perspective. Edge of your seat read that will keep you up reading and engaged wanting to know what happens next. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy.

As a paralegal, I love reading legal thrillers. This one did not disappoint! I enjoyed the premise and am looking forward to reading more by Robin Peguero.

I enjoyed the premise of this book, but not necessarily the execution. It was a good story, but there was just something about the writing that felt amateurish and it didn’t quite work.

A very interesting take on the courtroom drama. Most of the book has little to do with the actual trial of the accused rapist/murderer but instead focuses on the those seated on a jury and the courtroom players. I enjoyed the different approach although I do have to admit with so many individuals and their stories explained, I had to remind myself who everyone was. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for something a little different.

I picked up With Prejudice after hearing a rave review and comparisons to 12 Angry Men. As a lawyer (albeit not a criminal one, and in an unemotional field of law to boot), I tend to steer clear of legal thrillers, though every now and then one catches my eye--particularly when the focus is on the jury, not the lawyers. In this story, the author takes a close look at everyone involved, be it the lawyers, jurors, witnesses, judge, and even the defendant. We find out about perhaps their worst traits--their prejudices--but also understand their humanity at the same time. The book is told in rather confusing interwoven timelines and perspectives, though as the book nears its close you realize it was done on purpose. To avoid spoilers, I won't say much more than that, except there was more of a twist than I was expecting. Overall, I was enthralled, and struggled to put the book down and get some sleep.

For fans of the legal system or those who want a closer look at juries, and want a book that doesn't avoid the biases we enter the legal system with, this is an excellent read.

Thanks to GCP for my eARC and finished copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 8/10

Robin Peugero shows great promise in With Prejudice, her debut novel. This legal thriller is just that, a thriller with twists and turns that even devotees of the genre won’t anticipate set against the background of a murder trial in Florida. Because Florida requires only six jurors, Peguero is able to focus on each of the jurors and each of the legal teams as she skillfully takes readers through the trial and its various backstories. Some readers may be put off by the constant shifting of focus and time, but I think it pays off as each switch in focus strengthens the plot, creates more suspense, and draws the reader into the story. Peguero writes with the confidence of a seasoned author. I look forward to reading her subsequent works.

With Prejudice by Robin Peguero. Interesting premise, not the usual courtroom thriller. POVs from different characters, in past and present time frames was confusing. A more in-depth look back at the main characters would have been a plus. All in all a fast paced, addicting story. Will be look for future books by Mr. Puguero.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

Published by Grand Central Publishing on May 17, 2022

It isn’t unusual for a courtroom drama to explore the private lives of the lawyers and the defendant who are the novel’s key characters. With Prejudice, set in Miami in 2011, moves beyond the usual. It offers a behind-the-scenes look at the judge and at the jurors who are deciding guilt in a sexual assault case. On occasion, the novel tracks the truth after a witness lies on the stand (such as the cop who recalls the truth as he denies ever using a pejorative term to describe a gay man).

Nor is it unusual for a courtroom drama to offer the “Inside Baseball” of criminal trials — the strategies employed by prosecutors and defense attorneys to work the angles and sway juries. With Prejudice does that, but it also takes a deep, honest dive into the dependence of prosecutors and defense attorneys on prejudice as they try to influence outcomes. The lead prosecutor in the trial, for example, while thinking of herself as a liberal feminist, wants a jury of white conservative males because they are demographically more likely to judge a nonwhite defendant harshly in a sexual assault case. The novel portrays, albeit superficially, the impact of race and ethnicity on trials and jury deliberations, from the impact of race on witness identifications to the interaction of jurors of different races.

The inner workings of the system are exposed in other ways. The novel features a medical examiner who is willing to slant ambiguous results to favor law enforcement when honesty would require ambiguity to remain unresolved. It recognizes that judges consider reelection when they think about making a legally correct ruling that the public might view as “soft on crime.” And it reminds readers that the rules governing police conduct — rules that allow the police to induce confessions by lying about nonexistent evidence and by claiming they are on the defendant’s side — make it easy to convict the innocent.

The crime involves the disappearance, alleged rape, and death of Melina Morris. Her body was evidently cremated in the medical examiner’s morgue. An anonymous tip alerts the authorities to look for bone fragments that the police eventually match to Melina’s DNA. Skull fragments suggest Melina sustained a blow to the head. Hairline fractures to the pelvis suggest she was “possibly maybe” the victim of a sexual assault. Oddly, while the body’s other bones were pulverized after cremation, the bones with evidentiary value were left intact.

Suspicion falls on Gabriel Soto, once of the body handlers in the morgue. He’s a quiet loner and regarded as a bit odd, so he’s immediately pegged as the culprit. After the police decide he’s guilty, they focus their investigation on proving that they are right. Is Soto guilty? Well, the question is answered at the story’s end, but that’s not really the point, is it? The question is whether guilt can be established beyond a reasonable doubt. The question is whether Soto can receive a fair trial. As the novel points out, defense lawyers are willfully ignorant of their client’s guilt or innocence, and rightly so; their focus is on the evidence and the process, not the truth.

But even those questions are not the point of With Prejudice. “With prejudice” is a legal term that refers to finality. A decision made “with prejudice” means a party won’t be given a do-over. The double meaning in the title refers to prejudice that pervades the legal system. That’s what the novel is about. The clever story Robin Peguero tells simply frames the larger issues.

The jurors violate the court’s instructions (as jurors commonly do) by chatting about the case during breaks, many having made up their minds before they hear any evidence at all. But as soon as it appears that they are ready to reach a verdict, the story upends. For a moment I thought the narrative traveled through a portal that transformed the roles of key characters. It soon becomes apparent that a flashback changes the perspective of everything that happened before. Characters, both living and dead, turn out to be connected to each other in surprising ways. I admire novels that can turn the story upside down in an instant and dislike novels that attempt that trick but fail. With Prejudice earned my admiration for pulling off the magic trick, for confronting timely issues of prejudice within and outside the criminal justice system, and for keeping me engaged in a smart story that disguises its intricacy with apparent simplicity.

RECOMMENDED

What an astounding legal thriller, and I NEVER saw the end coming. Entertaining, slick, and a total puzzle. I can’t wait to tell everyone. This book should be on every summer list and in the beach bag.

With Prejudice is Robin Peguero's debut novel.
I quite like legal suspense and am always on the lookout for new authors, so I happily picked up With Prejudice.

Peguero rapidly introduces us to a large group of characters - jury members, prosecution, defense and judge, all involved with a rape/murder case. We meet them in the present, but are then served up a snapshot of their past. A time that they exhibited prejudice - racial, faith, sexual orientation, social status and more. These moments can be tied to the present.

But....yes, I have a but. Those time periods don't follow a pattern. So, that was difficult to keep track of. Sometimes the jurors are called by name, some by number. Also confusing.

I agree with Peguero's take on the 'prejudices'. This happens and is indeed an issue. I applaud that part of the book.

But the execution wasn't great for this reader. I found the courtroom legal machinations to be overly convoluted, with way too much legalese. Peguero has worked as a homicide prosecutor in Miami, so his take on that bit is spot on. But, I found myself skim reading some of those scenes as the end drew nearer. Which took a while for me to reach, as I kept picking up and putting down the book. It didn't hold my interest as I had hoped. Peguero did surprise me with a late entry twist that changed things. The jury is still out for me on the ending. For me it almost negated what had come before. On the other hand, it does show the cracks in our systems.

The prose are staccato, almost presented like court documents. It kept me at arm's length as the depiction of the characters was too clinical. They never became 'real' to me.

A solid debut, but not a stand out for this reader.

✔️ fast paced
✔️ most legal thrillers focus on the accused, the victim and the lawyers; this one also gives us insights into each of the jurors , and some other key characters in the trial- I loved this, although I kind of wish I had a list of all jurors with a brief description to refer back to - I was getting confused 🤷‍♀️
✔️ lot of insights and perspectives on race and racism in this book
✔️ I definitely didn’t see that twist or the ending coming !

DNF at 20%. I enjoy a courtroom thriller and was drawn in by a lot of the synopsis for this book - looking at the issues with our justice system through the jury deliberations on a murder trial. However the execution isn’t working for me - it jumps around a lot and keeps me from feeling connected to any of the characters. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.

Not giving any spoilers other than the plot except it involves the trial of a man accused of rape and murder. It is an interesting approach to a legal thriller. I' 've learned a lot about the machinations of the prosecution and the defense and I also got some insights of life experiences from the jurors.

The author has a good sense of today’s societal, racial and cultural divides and there is even some humor injected. There are a lot of characters and its confusing at first and definitely got a lot questions but the near end definitely answers all of my questions in the story.


This was a fast read that I enjoyed the flow of the story. It was a great read.

The case is State of Florida v. Gabriel Soto. The charge is sexual assault and murder of a young lady. No one in that courtroom, except perhaps Mr. Soto himself, can say for certain what fate Ms. Melina Mora met on that grievous night two years prior. But six radically diverse strangers are called on to determine the defendant’s in a courtroom in South Florida. This novel shifts between the viewpoints of all key players in an intense courtroom drama, providing a raw and realistic glimpse into our criminal justice system.

As a trial lawyer, I could relate to every word and loved this one. Some of the legal references might go over lay persons heads but I nerded out 🤓. I finished in three days complete with underlines, highlights, and tabs. I devoured yet savored it at the same time. This book is a fictional thriller, yes, but it also teaches us some very important lessons about accused entitlement to a diverse cross-section of our communities, how our backgrounds and life experiences can shape our views of the world, and how our prejudice and judgement of others can have an impact on their lives too… And that twist at the end 🫢🫢 That packs an important lesson. This one will always hold a special place in my heart! I hope to see more from this author soon PLEASE!!🤞🏼

I did catch a few grammatical errors and some ink smudges in my physical copy, which I am sure were fixed prior to final publication this week. I also struggled a little bit throughout the book with the jurors being referred to as their pool numbers instead of petit numbers, however, the ending, of course, makes the decision to do that make more sense. But it was confusing until you get to the twist.

Thank you to NetGalley, Grand Central Publishing and the author for an e-galley and physical uncorrected proof of this novel in exchange for my honest review!

With Prejudice
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Thriller
Format: Kindle eBook
Date Published: 5/17/22
Author: Robin Peguero
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Pages: 320
Goodreads Rating: 3.72

Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for providing a copy of the book for me to read in exchange for my honest opinion.

Synopsis: These jurors of varying ages and walks of life whose paths would likely never have otherwise crossed must come together to make one of the most important decisions of their lives.On the night Melina Mora, a free-spirited woman both proud and kind, was murdered, she was seen with a young man of Gabriel Soto’s description. Two strands of her hair were found in his bedroom. Sandy Grunwald, a young prosecutor whose political ambitions depend on securing a conviction, finds herself pitted against Jordan Whipple, a preening public defender armed with a freshly discovered, dynamite piece of evidence on the eve of the trial—if the Honorable Darla Tackett will admit it. What Sandy, Jordan, and Judge Tackett all know, however, is that the criminal justice system is complicated, and everyone has a story—especially the jury. And it’s their experiences, biases, and beliefs that will ultimately shape the verdict.

My Thoughts: The chapters are long but there are only 12 chapters so it does go by pretty fast. There are multiple POVs in the story. Sometimes, it was hard to follow who was talking about what, but eventually I caught on, once I continued reading. I really love how we read the facts of the case, the jurors background, the verdict, and what really happened, that was very cool. The author did an amazing job on character development. My favorite had to be the prosecutor, Sandy. I felt like I was right there with Sandy prosecuting this case. Legal thrillers are my favorite, probably because I am a paralegal by day. This book releases tomorrow, I would highly recommend purchasing it. A very good read that I thoroughly enjoyed.

I really don’t want to say too much about the plot except it involves the trial of a man accused of rape and murder. It is an interesting approach to a legal thriller. We learn not only the machinations of the prosecution and the defense, but also get insight into the life experiences (and prejudices) brought to a trial by individual jurors, police, attorneys, witnesses.

The author has a good sense of today’s societal, racial and cultural divides and there is even some humor injected. There are a lot of characters and that could be confusing. It is only near the end when some of that confusion is clarified. I could say more about that, but it might be considered a spoiler.

This was a fast read that I enjoyed.

Thank you to #netgalley and #grandcentralpublishing for the DRC

I love legal thrillers but this book was not for me. The author clearly knows his legal processes but I was put off by the slow pace of the story. The abrupt switching between multiple timelines and backstories. was confusing and the attempt to be overly creative with his prose was very distracting. Not recommended

With Prejudice is an interesting novel abut a criminal trial in the context of racial bias - of the witnesses and the jury as they deliberate