The Judge.

Steve Martini G. P. Putnam's Sons, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. 389 pp., $23.95.

Reviewed by Biz Van Gelder

Murder, conflicts of interest, sexual tension, and police conspiracy are all tossed together in author Steve Martini's latest courtroom drama, The Judge. The result is a mishmash. Marnini knows legal procedure, but, at times, his writing is sophomoric and self conscious. Some of his metaphors are so glib that they are distracting.

As the book begins, we become aware that rumors have abounded for years concerning Judge Armando Acosta's private plea bargains with hookers, so attorney Paul Madriani is not surprised when the judge is arrested on charges of soliciting a prostitute. But when the police decoy is found dead in a dumpster, the judge is arrested for the murder, and Madriani, a longtime critic of Acosta's judicial temperament, is asked to be part of the judge's defense team, Madriani is shocked.

Madriani is comforted by Acosta's request that former prosecutor Lenore Goya be lead counsel. Although Madriani finds the judge repulsive, he is attracted to the slender, fiery Goya and looks forward to the close working relationship. For her part, Goya respects Madriani's work--in fact, she recently referred a childhood friend to him.

The friend, a police officer, has his own troubles with Judge Acosta. The judge had been overseeing a grand jury investigating police corruption, and the friend was an unwilling witness. Even though the judge had been about to jail Goya's friend for contempt, Goya jumps at the chance to represent Acosta because she is spoiling for a public fight with the district attorney who fired her.

Martini portrays Goya, the f male love interest, poorly. Other than her alleged drop-dead looks, she has little to endear herself to Madriani or the reader. In one episode, Madriani takes Goya to a Republican fundraiser where she "assesses the scene with all the fervor of a farmer observing weeds in his rows of corn." They endure the reception, until the D.A. shows up. For unfathomable reasons, Marnini has Goya go into a public rage, first insulting the D.A.'s wife and then casting her venom and her cocktail sauce on the D.A. himself.

Martini's writing improves when he describes the courtroom. As Madriani chips away at the state's formidable accumulation of forensic evidence, it is easy to see why Acosta chose him. Madriani's cross-examinations are crisp and informative and, even though he continually steps on ethical lines, his actions are usually explained, if not always defensible.

Marnini is obviously a talented lawyer and, with proper editing, a good storyteller. Those looking for a quick read will find The Judge fit for light duty.