Dead Room [Paperback]

A young woman is found brutally murdered in her own home in Philadelphia. The mailman apparently "did it." His fingerprints and teeth marks are found all over the corpse, and he is discovered at his own home, a short time after the murder, covered in the woman's blood. A neighbor witnessed the mail carrier running away from the crime scene, drenched in blood, at the approximate time the crime was committed.

Teddy Mack, a young attorney at the Barnett & Stokes Law Firm, specializing in corporate law, is asked to defend the accused by the firm's senior partner, even though Mack has no experience as a defense attorney. Because of past personal issues, Mack is revolted by criminal law, and is reluctant to take the case. However, the request is made by his mentor, which makes it difficult to turn down. He is basically told that all he will be asked to do, since the defendant obviously committed the heinous crime, is to eliminate the death penalty as an option and make sure that the accused is sentenced to life in an institution for the criminally insane, as opposed to the state penitentiary.

As Mack explores the homicide and the investigation to prepare his defense, he discovers another similarly grisly murder - and another; murders committed while the defendant is behind bars. The city's populace panics that a serial killer is on the loose. As the bodies keep turning up, so does evidence of dirty politics and corrupt justice - a system that will indict, convict and kill the innocent in return for solving crimes and bringing in guilty verdicts.

Mack enters a world of terror and violence, confronting his own past demons, and a very real monster in the present. He fights to save a life, and discover the truth behind the aggressive prosecution and the history of death penalty sentences by a zealous DA.

Ellis writes a compelling story with well developed characters, a fascinating plot and subplots, and accurate and interesting detail of homicide investigations. Even the setting, Philadelphia, is unusual and provides a historical backdrop to this powerful novel. "The Dead Room" is also a psychological thriller. As with all of us, much of what motivates Teddy Mack, as well as the other characters, major and minor, has to do with their psychological make-up, and their past. This added psychological dimension gives much depth to the novel. Ellis' writing is spare and tight adding tension to the dialogue and storyline. This is a most unusual thriller that will keep you in suspense and shock you at the conclusion. A must read for all mystery thriller fans!
JANA

The thrills get started on the very first page.
What follows is the compelling story about a young
attorney just out of school who gets forced into
a homicide case and can't be bought off by
the powers that be.

This is a sensational story with fully fleshed out
characters and a great plot that really rips.

I had a wonderful time reading this book, and
highly recommend it.