A brilliant thriller of a book that keeps you enthralled until the brilliant end

Would highly recommend

Thank you Netgalley for a copy fro an honest review

This was very good! This is the fourth book in the Rosato & DiNunzio but it reads as a stand-alone novel. This is one of those series where you can just jump in at any point. I have read a couple of the previous books in this series and consider myself a fan of Scottoline so I had a pretty good feeling that I would enjoy this one. I was pulled into this story from the start and was eager to see how things would work out. I am so glad that I decided to listen to this book.

The story opens with Mary taking on a new case. At the center of this case is a young boy named Patrick. Patrick is ten years old and lives with his grandfather, who means the world to him. Patrick has dyslexia and is not getting the services that he needs in order to be able to learn to read. He has also been accused of violence against a teacher's aide. Unfortunately, this is the beginning of the problems that Patrick will have to face.

Like Mary, I fell for Patrick pretty quickly. This little guy has not had things easy but he was still such a good attitude. He was frustrated with school but who could blame him. It was really hard not to like Patrick and his grandfather. Mary fought for them very hard and I loved her dedication to the case. I am not sure that most lawyers would go quite as far as Mary did but it did make the story interesting. This was a pretty complex case that seemed to get more involved as the story progressed. There were some pretty exciting moments and a few twists that I did not see coming.

Rebecca Lowman did a fantastic job with the narration of this book. I think that this is the first time that I have had a chance to listen to this narrator's work and I really liked her work. She has a very pleasant voice that I found easy to listen to for hours at a time. I liked the voices that she used for the various characters and thought that she did a good job adding emotion to the story. I would not hesitate to listen to more of her work in the future.

I would recommend this book to others. I really enjoyed this story and thought that it was emotional at times. I felt bad for Patrick and Mary and wanted to see good things happen for them both. I look forward to reading more of Lisa Scottoline's work!

I received a digital review copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley and borrowed a copy of the audiobook from my local library.

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

Ten-year-old Patrick O'Brien is a natural target at school. Shy, dyslexic, and small for his age, he tries to hide his first-grade reading level from everyone: from his classmates, from the grandfather who cares for him, and from the teachers who are supposed to help him. But the real trouble begins when Patrick is accused of attacking a school aide. The aide promptly quits and sues the boy, his family, and the school district. Patrick's grandfather turns to the law firm of Rosato & DiNunzio for help and Mary DiNunzio is on the case. Soon Mary becomes Patrick's true champion and his only hope for security and justice. But there is more to the story than meets the eye and Patrick might be more troubled than he seems. With twists at every turn and secrets about the family coming to light, Mary DiNunzio might have found the case that can make her a true protector, or break her heart...

Maybe I have read too many of these books in a row or something, but this one never really got out of the blocks for me. For some reason, the author decided that this book was going to be filled with very minute details of clothing her characters were wearing, the rooms or settings that the characters were in, or the very painful descriptions of the wedding stuff.
Also, for some reason, Mary comes across as a 1st year student, rather than a partner in a very successful law firm. There was a great opportunity for Mary to take on a horrid male counterpart but, instead, she whined, moaned and cried for half of the book. And her incompetence knew no bounds!

I know that Lisa Scottoline can write amazing thriller novels. This just wasn't one of them!


Paul
ARH

This fourth book in the series returns the attention back to the new partner, Mary DiNunzio. She is weeks away from her wedding and a case that is in and out of her wheel house lands on her doorstep. Part of the case that takes place in this book is about special education and the school system and the other part deals with child abuse. This book was hard to read at spots. There were a few moments where I had to close the book and take a step back because as the reader I wanted to reach in and help Mary fight for the good of this kid.

I have said this earlier about this series, but I love how the cases are all self contained within each book, but there is a lot of character development that helps, so you don't want to skip around in this series. I felt as though with this book in particular this case really affected Mary's personal life and I just enjoyed seeing her take her work home with her like us normal people do!

Another great book. Interesting, and well thought out and put together.

Damaged (Rosato & DiNunzio 4)

I haven't read any of the previous books, and hadn't realised that this was part of a series.
an interesting and enjoyable read.

Rating: 4 STARS

(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY in exchange for an honest review.)
(Review Not on Blog)

First of all...what about ANNE??? I get that Mary and Bennie are the partners in the firm, but what about the others getting a chance. We get a bit of a glimpse of Anne but have not really seen her since [book:Courting Trouble|84826].

Now back to the regular review...this book stars Mary and this time she is up against a lawyer who has no problem winning at all costs. As usual, Mary lets things get personal with her young client, by first becoming his guardian ad litem and then investing all her time and energy in the case. Will this case put her new engagement in jeopardy.

Corrupted, the previous book, was great and this one too had me reading as fast as I could. But again, it is the characters that keep me engaged. As story on it's own I am not sure if I would rate it less.

Another really good one in the series. In this one, Mary tackles the heartbreaking case of a young boy. Her heart is soon involved, and she is on the verge of alienating those around her. This was a touching one full of suspense. I loved the characters, as always, and was kept captivated by the storyline. A definitely winner for me!

Damaged by lisa Scottoline.
One boy. One lawyer. One chance for justice.
Ten year old Patrick O'brien is a natural target at school. Shy, dyslexic, and small for his age, he tries to hide his first grade reading level from everyone. But Patrick is accused of attacking a school aide. The aide promptly quits and sue's the boy, his family and the school district. Patrick grandfather turns to the law firm Rosato and Dinunzio for help. Mary Dinunzio is on the case. Can she help?
A really heartfelt and moving read. I loved the story although it bought tears to my eyes. I really felt for Patrick. And Mary was like a cool hero trying to save Patrick. Just to give him a start. A few surprises too. Highly recommended. 5*. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book from netgalley.

This book is what is classified as a "legal thriller" and honestly I'm not sure how I feel about the genre. Damaged is the fourth book in the Rosato & DiNunzio series, but it reads like a stand alone novel. Honestly, it was just super depressing to me. I did like Mary DiNunzio, but I thought the story was a bit slow at times. That said, I would be interested in reading the next book in the series.