Mary, Mary [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

Only diehard Ed McBain fans or lovers of courtroom procedural stories will enjoy this book. And, I think many Ed McBain fans will be disappointed by this ridiculous story. Beware: this is not anything like the famous 87th Precinct books by Ed McBain. And, I would be misleading you by calling it a courtroom drama because approximately 80-percent is courtroom procedure without much drama. Normally, I don't like disclosing the crime solution but in this case it is on the book cover: Mary, Mary is the answer to the crimes.

There are identical twins and one is a sociopath killer who constantly plots to incriminate her sister. After the innocent sister is convicted of first-degree murder for three young girls, the sociopath appears at defense attorney's house and attempts to kill his daughter. Why, you might ask. The only apparent reason is so the girl can pulverize the killer. After being captured the killer-twin discloses her crimes and hatred of her sister.

Meanwhile, prior to the trial which comprises most of the story, the female Assistant District Attorney meets the male defense attorney to arrange a plea bargain but loses her mind and seduces him. Supposedly, they instantaneously fall in love but it seems more like unadulterated lust as they fornicate nonstop. She has to confess to her boss and is banished to another part of Florida. For the sake of drama, the D.A. assigns the case to his best and most notorious assistant D.A.

Added to this nonsense are a bunch of subplots involving private detectives working for the defense attorney. I will not bore you with their stories because they are far-fetched to say the least.

For those who like courtroom procedure and battling attorneys, you are in for a treat because this methodically plods through every prosecution and defense witness plus the cross or redirect examinations of each. And, as an added bonus you get many sidebar discussions between the attorneys and judge. Unfortunately, the defense attorney keeps making mistakes which he knows are hurting his case and I kept wondering when he was going to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the hat. But, he never does.

At the end, the innocent twin is released and admits knowing all along that her crazy sister was behind the murders. However, she was hoping her sister would feel remorse and confess. For unknown reason, she did not think it was important to tell her attorney or the District Attorney about her crazy sister who previously murdered their parents. If you can believe that nonsense then please email me because I am selling a bridge on Maui. Meanwhile, the big love story climaxes with the defense attorney and Assistant D.A. fornicating. I was very disappointed by this book and felt like I was the one getting screwed.

Based on the hardcover 1992 edition...

This book is this reader's first exposure to author Ed McBain... even though an older writing, tucked amongst all the books owned by this "biblioholic", it begged to be read regardless of its age!
"MARY, MARY" is Mary Barton -- a teacher by occupation; a outstanding flower & plant gardener by hobby, as witnessed by neighbors of the glory of flora in Mary's yard. Mary Barton is accused of killing three young girls, whose bodies are found buried within her floral domain.
Defense Attorney Matthew Hope, and assistants - Toots and Warren - believe in Mary's innocence - most of the time... With a few credible and non-credible witnesses for defense and prosecution alike, the court game of winning the jury's favor is played to the hilt. Witness, neighbor Charlotte Carmody swears that she saw Mary Barton digging at night, burying bodies in her floral paradise garden. A denim dress and a pair of sneakers come into play and question as to the validity of ownership. Meanwhile, a former student of Ms. Barton's - Melanie Lowndes, from England, comes forward to pay the defense expenses, and to support the "gentility" of Mary, testifying that Mary loves children and would never commit murder.
Although this reader at first did not favor the flavor of the rapid-fire, gunshot writing style, I would do the author an injustice by negating the author's book "MARY, MARY" as a bad read -- IT IS A GOOD READ!
Albeit a sound-story premise, I found it awkward to "digest" the author's method of sliding in non-premise scenery and activity, personal and otherwise, as an interruption to the flow of the story.
After getting used to the "he said", "she said"; and the clipped-style format, I found myself being absorbed into the story, and imaged placement in the jury box and court observers section. Readers will find that author McBain allows for lengthier, vivid descriptions of script in court processes as informative & entertaining, inclusive of the judge's actions, the pro and con attorneys arguments, and the orders to the jury of their duties to reaching a viable verdict.
Any reader knows that an ending is not an ending--- until the story actually ends!
I recommend this author and look forward to reading additional Ed McBain writings.

What a simply thrilling book. I doubt if I was the only one who found it not only a great read, but also sort of spooky as well. Once again Mr.Mcbain has succeeded in giving a very well written performance. I would recommend it to anyone who loves a little bit of suspence in thier lives.