The excellent legal thrillers by former Texas prosecutor Jay Brandon (such as his Edgar-nominated Fade the Heat) are the real McCoy--brainy and visceral assaults on the justice system by someone who has seen all of its aspects. Brandon's latest is a powerful story about two men determined to destroy each other, using whatever it takes. San Antonio District Attorney Chris Sinclair, who is white, is so sure that a charismatic African American community leader, Malachi Reese, is a bad guy, in spite of all the good work he does to feed and house the needy, that he uses a legal loophole to have Reese convicted of a double murder that he may not have committed. From his jail cell, Reese then orchestrates a monumental attack on Sinclair, arranging murders and ruining reputations. Using his stripped-down prose like a scalpel, Brandon cuts away most (but not quite all) of the fat that often pads legal thrillers, leaving a strong story and several vivid characters. You might not like either Sinclair or Reese very much at the end, but you'll come away understanding why the law can only go so far in bringing people together. Other Brandon books include Defiance County, Local Rules, and Rules of Evidence. --Dick Adler